Hikin' the River - Update
Damn, no sooner than I talk about the river and the dangers of it, this happens:
Kayaker who died in James River identified
From NBC12 News
Monday, January 23, 2006
"Authorities have released the name of a kayaker who died in the James River over the weekend.
Karen Abse, 55, of Midlothian, was kayaking with a group of friends Saturday and got trapped under a pile of logs near Belle Isle. Police say there was nothing her friends could do to save the experienced paddler. "
I can't swim.
I catch a lot of grief about that from friends and family. I surf fish, fish the river, mountain bike, road bike, have run marathons, summited a 14,500 ft. mountain in Colorado, snow ski, basketball, soccer, camp, canoe, blah blah...but I don't swim.
When fishing the James, I almost always go alone, thus the crap piled on by my loved ones. They argue that one should not go out in the James alone, much less if you cannot swim.
My argument is: my inability to swim is the very thing that prevents me from doing anything stupid or dangerous. Besides, I carry an ID so if something does happen, the authorities will know who died. If I'm in a canoe I wear a life jacket.
I'll bet you anything that woman was an experienced and highly skilled swimmer, and that skill was useless as she was pinned down under logs. She was a skilled kayaker, she was pursuing her passion and her skill, and unfortunately the James River got her.
When biking in the mountains of Shenandoah, I considered it a victory if I made it off the mountain in one piece, limited blood and no debilitating mechanicals. Not a victory over the mountain, just a victorious ride.
Sometimes, the mountain would break my bones and break my bike. That would be a loss.
At any rate, the James River is beautiful and dangerous, proceed with caution. ,
Kayaker who died in James River identified
From NBC12 News
Monday, January 23, 2006
"Authorities have released the name of a kayaker who died in the James River over the weekend.
Karen Abse, 55, of Midlothian, was kayaking with a group of friends Saturday and got trapped under a pile of logs near Belle Isle. Police say there was nothing her friends could do to save the experienced paddler. "
I can't swim.
I catch a lot of grief about that from friends and family. I surf fish, fish the river, mountain bike, road bike, have run marathons, summited a 14,500 ft. mountain in Colorado, snow ski, basketball, soccer, camp, canoe, blah blah...but I don't swim.
When fishing the James, I almost always go alone, thus the crap piled on by my loved ones. They argue that one should not go out in the James alone, much less if you cannot swim.
My argument is: my inability to swim is the very thing that prevents me from doing anything stupid or dangerous. Besides, I carry an ID so if something does happen, the authorities will know who died. If I'm in a canoe I wear a life jacket.
I'll bet you anything that woman was an experienced and highly skilled swimmer, and that skill was useless as she was pinned down under logs. She was a skilled kayaker, she was pursuing her passion and her skill, and unfortunately the James River got her.
When biking in the mountains of Shenandoah, I considered it a victory if I made it off the mountain in one piece, limited blood and no debilitating mechanicals. Not a victory over the mountain, just a victorious ride.
Sometimes, the mountain would break my bones and break my bike. That would be a loss.
At any rate, the James River is beautiful and dangerous, proceed with caution. ,
posted by Redjalapeno at Monday, January 23, 2006
2 Opinions:
...and here I am, thinking about purchasing a kayak. It's unfortunate, but things like that happen.
Freaky.
Until last weekend, I had never even heard of the Midlothian in the US .. to me it was just a Scottish county. The up it pops again here today.
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