My Wild Canada

I suppose I should have posted this beforehand to help spread the word, but I guess I'm not quite that on the ball. This afternoon I had the opportunity to guest-host a My Wild Canada Twitter Chat. It was a lot of fun and my topic that I chose was a focus on paddling safety.

#mywildcanada Tweets

Surviving After a Paddling Accident

Last week while packing for a canoe trip I was contacted by Global Saskatoon to comment on how to survive after a mishap on a paddling trip. In addition to being a paddling instructor, I am the Paddle Canada representative for Saskatchewan, and am a co-author of the AdventureSmart paddling safety awareness program called PaddleSmart.

The interview follows on the recent tragic death of David Dice along the Churchill River, a section that I paddled in 2010. I do not know the details of what happened, but according to news reports David was found below Needle Falls on Kinosaskaw Lake. Shortly after David was found by fishermen, his wife Enid Dice was found upriver somewhere along Needle Rapids. She had been there without supplies for 8 days. The reports don't offer much for details, though they do mention she had a fire going (it will make your life easier to have some reliable means of starting a fire on your life jacket or in a pocket, and redundancy is good!). The Dices are very experienced outdoorspeople and paddlers, and David's early death is a loss to the paddling community. My condolences go out to all of those grieving David's death.

http://globalnews.ca/video/1533357/surviving-eight-days-in-the-wilderness



A few more details were reported via CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/details-emerge-on-sask-couple-s-tragic-canoe-adventure-1.2750011

One of the first people to speak to Enid after the ordeal was Ric Driediger, owner of Churchill River Canoe Outfitters, who was also one of the last people to see the couple before they set out on their trip.

He says he learned, from Enid, that the couple's canoe capsized as they were navigating a set of rapids on the lake known as Needle Falls*.

They were separated and Enid swam to shore with her husband's backpack that had a sleeping bag and an emergency fire-starting kit. There was no food, however.

*I wonder if this statement as reported is correct. It seems more likely that they were running Needle Rapids (C2+ to C3), about 2.25 km above the falls, or the outlet from Sandfly lake (C3), a further 1 km above Needle Rapids. It seems unlikely that they would have been running the falls (C5), but the earlier sets of rapids are manageable for the canoeist with skills in rapids. This also makes sense since Enid had no gear other than what she swam to shore with and was separated from her husband who was reportedly found on Kinosaskaw Lake in the eddy below the falls. Were the capsize to actually have occurred at the falls, she would have been mere meters from her late husband, the overturned canoe and much of the gear including the SPOT. 

A map of the region:

Open this map full screen.

Aerial view of the rapids at the outlet of Sandfly Lake. We portaged these.

Class 3 rapids at the outlet of Sandfly Lake.

Uppermost portion of Needle Rapids from the spot where we scouted the set. This is the river left channel. 

Jay & Rod scouting Needle Rapids. 

David & Enid's Blog: David and Enid's Travels


Here are some items you should consider having with you, or on you, whenever you head out paddling. Most of these items can be fit into a small pouch that can be attached to the life jacket or contained in a pocket. These items are described as "The Essentials Plus" in the PaddleSmart program:

• Transport Canada Required Items:
1. Life jacket
2. Whistle
3. Throw bag
4. Bailer
5. Waterproof flashlight
• Other Essential Items:
1. Fire making kit
2. Signalling device (e.g. whistle, signal mirror)
3. Extra food and water
4. Extra clothing
5. Navigation & communication devices
6. First aid
7. Emergency blanket or shelter
8. Knife
9. Sun protection

In the pocket of my PFD I have a small pouch that in the video linked above has had the contents spread out. The contents include a signal mirror, granola bar, fishing line, snare wire, ~20' of thin cord, orange bandana, emergency blanket, lighter, & fire starter. In the canoe or kayak I also almost always have extra clothing, rain gear, some form of shelter (tarp &/or a bothy bag), extra food, water (though we can usually drink our water from the lake), first aid kit, more lighters, matches and fire starting stuff. 

This email went out to all of the Saskatchewan people on the Paddle Canada email list this morning. I'm a little surprised to see that simply copying and pasting here works.

December 1, 2011 PADDLE CANADA  PAGAIE CANADA An Introduction from Saskatchewan Regional Director, Bryan Sarauer  Greetings! I have joined the Paddle Canada Board of Directors as the Saskatchewan Regional Director in the last month, taking over from Jim MacDonald who recently stepped down from the position. I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself. I am a canoeist, kayaker, kayak instructor, year-round camper, biologist, father, and husband. I am passionate about paddling and the outdoors, and I try to share that with the people around me, especially my kids. I am also continually learning - learning how to be a better paddler & instructor, learning how to lessen my impact, and learning about the world around me. As a new Board member, I am beginning to learn what issues are facing PC, what projects it has underway or on the radar, and what concerns Saskatchewan paddlers may have. To that end, I would invite all Saskatchewan paddlers to contact me in the coming months in order to discuss what paddling issues are in mind and what should be on our radar. I want to learn what visions you might have for Paddle Canada and for paddling in general, and how I can help achieve those goals. I look forward to doing what I can to enhance paddling in our province and across the country. Cheers, Bryan Sarauer Regional Director for Saskatchewan, Paddle Canada  sk@paddlecanada.com

It's Official...

Well, the period for comment has ended and so it is now official, I am the Regional Director for Saskatchewan for Paddle Canada.

Last month I was asked by PC secretary, Doug Taylor (who co-led a course I took last spring in BC with Viki, a former Sask Regional Director), to take on the role of Regional Director for Saskatchewan on the PC Board of Directors. The position was vacated by fellow paddler and instructor Jim MacDonald who is off paddling in Belize at the moment. (It's hard to sit on a board when you spend as many days paddling remote areas as Jimmy does.) After learning more about the role and level of commitment required, I agreed to be nominated in the position. A notice was sent to the Saskatchewan portion of PC's mailing list, calling for other nominees (there were none), feedback on me as a nominee was requested (as far as I know, there was no outcry of objection), and now the byelection process is complete.

So, I look forward to learning what issues are facing the Paddle Canada organization, and to learning how I can contribute to growing paddle sports within Saskatchewan and across the country.