"Brian Nystrom" wrote in message
...
skip wrote:
Thanks for the comments and suggestions.

What we actually did was to spread out and paddle like hell for 15
minutes to a point where there was land. This did in fact warm up the
sit on top paddler who was without rain grear. When we reached land
there was a couple there who had started a small fire under a Plametto
tree. We huddled there in fear and trembling until the thunder and
lightning passed and then paddled on to the take out in the rain
(pleasant for me with my spray skirt, paddling jacket, and Gore Tex hat).

Huddling together was a bad idea. Once on shore, you should spread out.
That minimizes the likelihood of more than one of you being struck.

We used that logic going down river, but it went out the window as soon as
we saw the fire under the palmetto tree - except, that is, for one person
who stayed apart from us for a while, but soon gave in and joined us.


We all had dry clothes, but they were useless in the downpour. No one
brought extra rain gear. I have a space blanket, but it was underneath
my sleeping pad in the tent. Before I go out again I'm going to pick one
up for the boat.

While space blankets are certainly useful items in their own right, you
might want to re-think the logic of wrapping yourself in aluminized Mylar
during a thunderstorm.

hmmmmm. I'm rethinking. Yeah, maybe that's not such a good idea in a
thunderstorm.

Thanks,

skip