all’s well that ends well. . .
October 25th, 2007 | 
Author: 
What a lonely way to be
Lost at sea
-the bengals
When you dig into the details of the article the questions come popping up everywhere. Why did the boat she launched from leave without knowing where she was? Where was her PFD? Apparently she tried to right the “canoe” many times until she got tired. Lack of training? Weather conditions? It’s hard to tell. That’s the problem with these sorts of stories. We just don’t have any details to make good judgments. SKY news certainly did not give a very good account of the situation or do much research to show their WW boat in foam to accent the story.
I have to admit the bit about taking off her top and wrapping it around her head was met with a teenage-like snicker. Yet after I thought about it a bit, that may have been the one wise thing she did.
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Most of the articles I read were also lacking in info. I guessed she left shore in an OC1 (very popular there), and it eventually blew away from her after trying to get it upright a few times. You don’t see PFDs on paddlers in Hawaii. I also wondered if she hadn’t watched survivorman, the bathing suit top as a hat was prety good.
From assorted Google news stories– she was in a borrowed “clear bottom canoe” which keeps on getting called a kayak. According to some of the stories, her flotation device was her camelback!
Interesting comment on paddlers in Hawaii and pfds. Kite surfers seem to wear them – at least the ones I saw surfing during some major swells. I wondered about the helicopters – were they tourist helicopters or rescue ones looking out for the kite surfers…some of whom appeared to be far out to sea…
Here’s the Maui News version – and a more recent ABC News version where it makes it sound more like what she held onto was a flotation bag from the vessel (makes more sense as she did sleep some).
The Maui News story makes it clear that this was a spur-of-the-moment decision of hers to get some invitations out to people she thought might contribute to her fundraiser. She wasn’t a local & it looks like the area had a reputation for shifty & unpredictable winds.
Think the storyline runs quite simply: Woman makes snap decision which turns out to be a bad one, but through a combination of staying calm & being lucky lives to tell the story.
I, er, have been known to not wear a PFD when I’m paddling out there. That’s why I usually don’t chime in on those must-you-always-wear-a-pfd debates – for me, offshore, YES, here in NY, YES but in Hawaii…um, no, not all the time, nope.
btw I would always wear a helmet if I’m likely to be in rough water near rocks, and I did put one on for a beach landing recently ’cause I happened to have it along & figured why not?