How to get Back in a Kayak for a River Rescue

Video Transcript

"Getting someone back in the boat midstream or on some flat water without taking the machine to shore, it is something that you may need to do on larger bigger volume rivers where you may not be able to get them to shore in time for the next rapid or if you are in just a large body of water and you need to get them back in, otherwise taking them to shore is going to take up too much energy and time. When you are doing this, make sure that you've got the swimmer's full cooperation. If they are panicking in any way, you are going to need to calm them down before hand and that could take some time. Once you've got them to the side of the boat, you are going to empty the boat over the cockpit of yours just like we did in the last shoot and then you are going to take that person and they are going to take the grab loop of that spray skirt, put it in their teeth so that it doesn't catch on to their end of their boat and then they are going to climb up the back of their boat while you are holding onto the front of the boat to keep it steady. At which point keeping their weight low, they will straddle the boat, slide into the cockpit and you can get them back in, passing their paddle and you are off and away. "