Canranger44 wrote:

By the way it is mandatory in Canada to have a PFD for each person, a throw
bag,
baling device, a sound signaling device and a visual signaling device.


Yes, you'll have to carry one (pfd , approved by CCG or DOT) for each person on
board, wearing it is up to you. Common sense tells that it is a good idea to
wear it, since stuffed in a hatch or under the deck lines it is no good.
Reality shows a different picture. Espcl. in spring and early summer, the first
warm days, you see a lot of people paddling the lakes and the coast not wearing
pfd. Warm air and water temperature 10 C are a potentially deadly combination,
since they lure people into ignoring the risk of cold shock and possible
hypothermia after immersion .
What are your chances if you get dumped into water like this to make a speedy
recovery? Well, the people who know those tricks and techniques usually wear
pfd and wetsuits, because they know the risks.
What are your chances to hold on to paddle and boat, pull out the pfd, put it on
and go from there? Good chance that coldshock (not hypothermia) will take care
of that problem for you.

I hate to say this, but increasing popularity of kayaking and the increasing
number of beginners and unknowing "intermediate" role models will cause more
fatalities in the near future. More and more people go on the water and have no
idea what they are getting into. Needless to say that I will not be
disappointed to see myself proven wrong, but I am afraid I this will not happen.

The study mentioned before shows a larger number of canoeing fatalities than
kayaking fatalities. The only reason for this is that canoeing is still much
more common in cottage country than kayaking. The increasing number of
recreational kayaks will likely shift the numbers in near future.
In case it hasn't been mentioned befo the study was published by the American
Canoe Association (ACA) under the title "Critical Judgement". Last time I
checked it was on their website as a pdf file
(http://www.acanet.org/sei-critical-judge.htm)

Ulli

On a trail in the alps there was a sign " Responsible hikers don't leave the
trail, all others are required by law to do so"