re: 22.5 mile paddle on Atchafalaya w pics update: dead fish were Asian carp

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Posted by Geauxtiga I was curious about something. Why does a head wind make it more dangerous.

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When you have a head wind that is blowing strong against a fast opposing current, it causes water to stack up or become very choppy with inconsistent white caps.

My touring yak is 18 feet long and only 19 inches wide so it is very tippy due to not really having a flat bottom. Also, the rim of my cockpit only sits about 4 inches above the water line. It really all comes down to keeping you balance; the front of the boat may be going up over a wave, while the back sinks down, while a wave hits you for the side, while your trying to paddle in water that's raising up and down while keeping your balance. A simple mistake and you flip.

Trying to keep the bow pointed into the waves while Trying to keep an eye out for waves coming over the side and into the cockpit can be tricky all the time, but especially while going around bends in a river.

I have a skirt that seals the cockpit, but it's want bad enough to stop to put it on. I took three wave over the side into the cockpit, but they were small.

In a taller, wider/ more stable kayak it wouldn't be as big of an issue.

I posted about flipping in the MS river during a race last year and getting washed out of the river down a spillway. It was due to the same, but much stronger winds .