Walking on Water - A Cautionary Tale from a Chentleman Cruiser

jimi

Well-known member
Joined
19 Dec 2001
Messages
28,660
Location
St Neots
Visit site
Excellent write up Dave and a sobering experience, I had certainly underestimated the difficulty of extricating oneself from the water until talking to you and it is salutatory to note that the pontoons are in fact quite low .. and there was no tide running through the pontoons (I presume?)
 

dralex

New member
Joined
9 Jun 2004
Messages
1,527
Location
South Devon
Visit site
Good account. It just emphasises the point about how dangerous cold water is and quickly you lose strength. A lesson for us all. Perhaps we should all post our mistakes and errors just so others can be aware ( and laugh if appropriate) .

Glad you're OK.
 

machurley22

New member
Joined
19 Jan 2004
Messages
2,068
Location
Scotland
Visit site
I hadn't considered the tide 'til now so I suppose it wasn't significant. I've looked up the tide tables and it was about mid-flood the day after neaps. I guess there isn't much of a flow in the marina since it's quite small with a single narrow entrance. Maybe DaveS could confirm or otherwise?

Dave
 

ChrisE

Active member
Joined
13 Nov 2003
Messages
7,343
Location
Kington
www.simpleisgood.com
I know what he means

Below is an extract of a trip we made to Dartford a few years ago. It certainly woke me up.....


"Next morning, it was time for a shower. For the past four days we had been living on the boat and to put no fine a point on it we needed a refresh. First mate took the dingy ashore; your faithful skipper does some navving (the house term for passage planning) for the next day. First mate returns, skipper goes ashore and gets showered, shaved and ready for the day.

Just like the other thousands of times, I had done it, I let go the painter and jumped into Born to Run, our dingy. I must have just got the balance wrong as she and I slowly tipped up. I was deposited into the Dart. Now this is 8:30 on windy, drizzly morning with nothing but the odd seagull about, so no one was aware of my luck. The water, for early October, was cold I thought and I took a minute or two to get my breath back. I found that on the pontoon that was attached to the river embankment, there were no ladders and the pontoon deck was good distance up from the water, well above the level that I could hope to scramble onto. I tried to jump back in the dingy and only managed to tip it up again, I tried to make a step from the painter tied to the pontoon without luck. I was just beginning to think that I would have to hold onto the side of the pontoon until help arrived when I noticed a ladder on the town quay pontoon which was 50 metres away. Off with the rucksack, off with the fisherman’s jumper, push off and swim. Fortunately, the tide was slack; the tides in the Dart run strong for most of the time. The wife of the couple who were standing on the jetty waiting for the ferry turned to her husband and made a gesture in my direction as I cruised for the ladder. They both stared and continued to chat and giggle a little, quite uncharitably, I thought.

As I walked back to the pontoon, the pensioner on the bench told me of how it had needed five men to pull someone else out, the fisherman loading up his boat asked if I was OK, first mate asked from below, why had taken so long and why had I walked around to the jetty?"
 

tcm

...
Joined
11 Jan 2002
Messages
23,958
Location
Caribbean at the moment
Visit site
Hm

Good point about the jeans - i never wearem partly cos they look rubbish, also hopeless/dangerous when wet.

Otherwise, i'm afraid your story is a very roundabout self-justification of falling in t'water largely cos you were lashed.
 

claymore

Well-known member
Joined
18 Jun 2001
Messages
10,644
Location
In the far North
Visit site
Re: Hm

I have read recently, informed opinion that there comes a time when Men should not wear jeans.
I notice that you fail to put that as a reason for you not wearing them and wonder if you would wish to amend your post to encompass the fact?
 

DaveS

Well-known member
Joined
25 Aug 2004
Messages
5,484
Location
West Coast of Scotland
Visit site
Yes, never any noticeable tide in Craobh. The pontoons are quite low - certainly much lower than at Pt. Edgar, the only other marina I've used regularly.

I felt bad about this at the time and worse on reading the account. I was hurrying down the pontoon (unwisely in retrospect) since I wanted to finish stowing gear before my crew turned up with more. I did not realise Dave was immediately following me: I somehow thought (why I don't know) that he'd also gone to the car park so was not surprised when he did not immediately appear at the boat. I certainly did not hear any splashing or other alarming noises, but it was quite windy (which accounted for at least some of the weaving progress) with lots of rigging noise. The pontoons were moving about a little but I've seen them much worse.

I'm sure that as Dave says the circumstances played a big part. If, as on most other Friday nights, I had been making my solitary way from pub to boat I would have been walking at normal speed and would probably have slowed further in the shadowy bits. Much to think over. It is interesting that the marina staff are instructed to wear lifejackets before going on to the pontoons; how many yotties do? Will I in future? Probably not, and I know that's illogical.

Jeans. Certainly pretty useless thermally when wet, and heavy after immersion, but far from the worst. Some years ago I used to wear a fleecy suit for sailing - the fleece trousers were particularly good over shorts on "basically nice but chilly going to windward" sort of days. I stopped this after taking them out the washing machine (jammed before spinning) and discovering that they weighed wet: it was frightening. Most modern fleece is far better and not a problem - but worth checking?
 

machurley22

New member
Joined
19 Jan 2004
Messages
2,068
Location
Scotland
Visit site
Re: Hm

[ QUOTE ]
Otherwise, i'm afraid your story is a very roundabout self-justification of falling in t'water largely cos you were lashed.

[/ QUOTE ]
Good point. It is indeed difficult to write about your own actions without trying to make them sound perfectly reasonable and wholly justified under the circumstances. However, this isn't an MAIB inquiry and if I'd been concerned about appearing to be an eejit I simply wouldn't have bothered to relate the tale at all.

The sole point of posting the link here was to ask others to consider their own actions and perhaps reduce the chance of such a thing happening to another.

Dave
 

machurley22

New member
Joined
19 Jan 2004
Messages
2,068
Location
Scotland
Visit site
[ QUOTE ]
I felt bad about this at the time and worse on reading the account.

[/ QUOTE ]
PLEASE don't feel bad about this. I'm a big(ish) boy now and perfectly capable of making my own mistakes. My perception of your progress down the pontoon was only one small factor and it's only in the blog because I've tried to honestly relate all of the factors that influenced my behaviour leading up to the fateful step. I knew that you weren't aware of me behind you and it was windy and noisy. Who hasn't played the "If only.." game after a critical event.

Dave
 

longjohnsadler

New member
Joined
14 Nov 2002
Messages
2,080
Location
NW Ireland
Visit site
Re: Now pour that rum and show me the unlit pontoon

I once capsized a mile off Llandudno beach in an Enterprise I'd just bought whose floatation bags proved to be inadequate and was rescued by a jetski. Never said a bad word about them since.
Think tcm's comment was along the lines of ours when we heard in Tobermory - more banter than sympathy!
Just one of those things. Obviously DaveS not involved tho interesting to see anchored in Pulldorthingy he played it safe by removing his trousers completely...!
 

tome

New member
Joined
28 Mar 2002
Messages
8,201
Location
kprick
www.google.co.uk
Dave

Not much to add apart from it could've been me and food for thought. Thanks for being honest enough to post it.

Cheers
Tom
 

claymore

Well-known member
Joined
18 Jun 2001
Messages
10,644
Location
In the far North
Visit site
Re: Oops!

The only safe response to TCM is a po-faced one
Wee Davey seems to see this through different eyes to mine - rushing along to stow gear for heaven's sake - he wiz aff fer a wee kip!
 

ParaHandy

Active member
Joined
18 Nov 2001
Messages
5,210
Visit site
Something fishy ....

whits this aboot youse lot catching yon?

I too fell in - not up there, mind! it took a good few minutes (maybe 5-10) to work out options by which time the coldness of the water was seeping into you and beginning to slow you down. Got out by making two loops into a ladder from next door's mooring warp. always used to mutter about how long his excess was as we shared the cleat - not any more ... !
 

machurley22

New member
Joined
19 Jan 2004
Messages
2,068
Location
Scotland
Visit site
Spur of the moment swimming

Thanks for 'fessin' up. I'm sure it's not that uncommon an experience but you feel like such a dunderheid (translation: foolish person) that it's not a regular topic of conversation at the average yot club bar (or forum for that matter).
 
Top