On Sat, 2 Apr 2005 20:43:23 -0600, "skip" wrote:

Four of us were paddling one of the spring creeks in Florida's Ocala
National Forest when a thunder storm blew up rather suddenly. The
temperature dropped quickly and the rain was cold. The lightning was
following the thunder by only a second or two. Much too close for comfort.

We were in a swampy area with cypress knees and brush on each side - we
could not see solid land. The first solid land in sight was about 15-20
minutes down river.

One of the paddlers in a tee shirt and shorts paddling a sit on top kayak
was complaining about being cold. It was raining hard and we didn't have
extra rain gear for her.

What should we have done?

I have been in exactly that place during those exact conditions. I used to
live just west of Ocala and have been kayaking in the national forest there
several many times. I go ahead and paddle to a place where I can take
shelter, although getting out of the boat or even off the water is not a
high priority for me. I want to get out of the rain/wind if I can,
although I'm not going to head for a lone tree or even a high bush. I
don't particularly worry about a paddle being metal or a conductor or
anything, I think the mass of the object is much too small to make much
difference of where lightning strikes. No doubt some folks will advise
other tactics of lightning avoidance. Cowering in fear and terror has
always worked for me, I used to live on a sailboat where getting off the
water or the boat was not an option, and with my mast I was often the
tallest thing in the water for miles around. Try to stay as warm and dry
as you can (paddling in a panic situation *does* tend to warm you up) and
hope the storm passes quickly.

Galen Hekhuis NpD, JFR, GWA
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