briansnat
Platnium Member
A year ago I posted this thread about a camping trip at Round Valley Reservoir in NJ that was a near disaster for some canoers and we were involved a bit in the rescue.
Well this year on the very same weekend, the last one in October, I became the rescued. I figured I'd grab a campsite at Round Valley and get in some evening and morning fishing. I was going solo this weekend. As I explained in my post from last year, it's a state park campground that is only accessible by a 2 1/2 - 3 mile boat ride or a 3-6 mile hike.
I arrived there a little after 4 pm on Saturday and decided to set up camp first so I didn't have to do it in the dark. I set up the hammock, stove, etc and just as the sun was setting, I headed out for some fishing only to realize I left my tackle box in the car, so back to the launch. Got the box and it was dark by now so I start motoring toward my fishing ground when I notice my fish finder wasn't working. I looked down at it and start playing with the wires and look up to see the shoreline closing fast. I cut the motor, but it was too late, hit it head on going pretty fast and I was pitched out of my seat onto the floor of the boat. I was OK and to my amazement the boat seemed to be fine, though it was most of the way up on the shore. Luckily I hit one of the few gently sloping, gravel sections on the entire reservoir. Most of it is very rocky and the section I hit was a manmade berm that was part of the dam. 100 feet to my left and I hit the dam head on. 200 feet to the right I hit the rocky shoreline. Total luck on my part despite my stupidity. It took me a while but I finally worked the boat back into the water, but too shaken to fish I went to the campsite, built a fire and smoked a few cigars.
I always double anchor my boat at RV a few feet off shore so it doesn't bang on the rocks if it gets windy. I woke up to a breezy morning and could see the boat in the dim light about 40 feet from shore. The stern anchor had worked it's way off the chain and the boat was riding the one anchor but the wind was taking it out. I stared at it for a while wondering what to do and finally stripped to my skivvies and swam out in the 55 degree water to get it.
Now the real fun started. I broke camp and loaded the boat with my camping gear and tried to push off directly into the teeth of a brutal wind which had by then shifted directly into my face. By the time I would get in the boat and start the engine I'd be blown back on the rocks. I tried rowing but could get nowhere. I threw the anchor back out to keep the bow into the waves, but the anchor line snapped (I lost two darn good anchors that day) so the boat blew parallel to shore and hung on the rocks at one point almost pinning me between the boat and rocks. I couldn't budge it and the waves were washing over the windward side. I sat there in waist deep, 55 degree water holding the boat trying to keep it off the rocks and also keep it from swamping by tilting it toward me when a big wave came then lifting it with all my strength so it landed gently on the rocks. By this time the strobe lights were going. Round Valley has four strobes on towers at each end. When they are flashing it means clear the water immediately and proceed directly to the nearest shore because conditions are too dangerous for boating.
So even if I could get it out out of the situation I had to go back to shore and I'd be in the same situation again. After an hour and a half waist deep in the water and exhausted from trying to keep the boat from smashing on the rocks it struck me that I could be there all day. I gave in and called the park police. About 30 minutes later they were on the scene in their "unsinkable" rescue boat.
We spent some time trying to get each other ropes to no avail, then they tried to get closer and hung up on the rocks themselves. I waded out in chest deep water to see if I could push them off (the rescued rescuing the rescuer) . I couldn't budge it so one of the cops jumps in gun, boots and all and the two of us get it off, but they managed to bend the propeller in the process. It took us nearly an hour but finally we got a line between the boats and they started to pull. My boat was sitting on some pretty jagged rocks and I pictured the bottom ripping like a tin can.
Finally free of the rocks, they towed me away from shore but I noticed the boat was full of water. Was there a hole or was it just the water that had been washing in throughout the ordeal? I watched the level closely and it didn't seem to be rising so I guess it was the latter. Because the strobes were on they wouldn't let me go in under my own power so I had a Nantucket sleigh ride of sorts, bobbing in two and sometimes three foot waves and getting drenched from head to toe with the spray. For some reason the theme song to Gilligan's Island kept running through my head. They could only go slow so it took us quite a while to get back.
Once I got the car on the trailer I took a quick look at the bottom and it seemed to be OK. Those old aluminum Grummans can take a beating. 55 degree water isn't half bad once you get used to it. I might have been borderline hypothermic after almost three hours in the water because I was really shivering and my legs were bruised and bleeding, but I refused the cop's offer to call an ambulance. That heat in the car certainly felt good on the way home.
Here is a pic I took of me getting towed back.
Well this year on the very same weekend, the last one in October, I became the rescued. I figured I'd grab a campsite at Round Valley and get in some evening and morning fishing. I was going solo this weekend. As I explained in my post from last year, it's a state park campground that is only accessible by a 2 1/2 - 3 mile boat ride or a 3-6 mile hike.
I arrived there a little after 4 pm on Saturday and decided to set up camp first so I didn't have to do it in the dark. I set up the hammock, stove, etc and just as the sun was setting, I headed out for some fishing only to realize I left my tackle box in the car, so back to the launch. Got the box and it was dark by now so I start motoring toward my fishing ground when I notice my fish finder wasn't working. I looked down at it and start playing with the wires and look up to see the shoreline closing fast. I cut the motor, but it was too late, hit it head on going pretty fast and I was pitched out of my seat onto the floor of the boat. I was OK and to my amazement the boat seemed to be fine, though it was most of the way up on the shore. Luckily I hit one of the few gently sloping, gravel sections on the entire reservoir. Most of it is very rocky and the section I hit was a manmade berm that was part of the dam. 100 feet to my left and I hit the dam head on. 200 feet to the right I hit the rocky shoreline. Total luck on my part despite my stupidity. It took me a while but I finally worked the boat back into the water, but too shaken to fish I went to the campsite, built a fire and smoked a few cigars.
I always double anchor my boat at RV a few feet off shore so it doesn't bang on the rocks if it gets windy. I woke up to a breezy morning and could see the boat in the dim light about 40 feet from shore. The stern anchor had worked it's way off the chain and the boat was riding the one anchor but the wind was taking it out. I stared at it for a while wondering what to do and finally stripped to my skivvies and swam out in the 55 degree water to get it.
Now the real fun started. I broke camp and loaded the boat with my camping gear and tried to push off directly into the teeth of a brutal wind which had by then shifted directly into my face. By the time I would get in the boat and start the engine I'd be blown back on the rocks. I tried rowing but could get nowhere. I threw the anchor back out to keep the bow into the waves, but the anchor line snapped (I lost two darn good anchors that day) so the boat blew parallel to shore and hung on the rocks at one point almost pinning me between the boat and rocks. I couldn't budge it and the waves were washing over the windward side. I sat there in waist deep, 55 degree water holding the boat trying to keep it off the rocks and also keep it from swamping by tilting it toward me when a big wave came then lifting it with all my strength so it landed gently on the rocks. By this time the strobe lights were going. Round Valley has four strobes on towers at each end. When they are flashing it means clear the water immediately and proceed directly to the nearest shore because conditions are too dangerous for boating.
So even if I could get it out out of the situation I had to go back to shore and I'd be in the same situation again. After an hour and a half waist deep in the water and exhausted from trying to keep the boat from smashing on the rocks it struck me that I could be there all day. I gave in and called the park police. About 30 minutes later they were on the scene in their "unsinkable" rescue boat.
We spent some time trying to get each other ropes to no avail, then they tried to get closer and hung up on the rocks themselves. I waded out in chest deep water to see if I could push them off (the rescued rescuing the rescuer) . I couldn't budge it so one of the cops jumps in gun, boots and all and the two of us get it off, but they managed to bend the propeller in the process. It took us nearly an hour but finally we got a line between the boats and they started to pull. My boat was sitting on some pretty jagged rocks and I pictured the bottom ripping like a tin can.
Finally free of the rocks, they towed me away from shore but I noticed the boat was full of water. Was there a hole or was it just the water that had been washing in throughout the ordeal? I watched the level closely and it didn't seem to be rising so I guess it was the latter. Because the strobes were on they wouldn't let me go in under my own power so I had a Nantucket sleigh ride of sorts, bobbing in two and sometimes three foot waves and getting drenched from head to toe with the spray. For some reason the theme song to Gilligan's Island kept running through my head. They could only go slow so it took us quite a while to get back.
Once I got the car on the trailer I took a quick look at the bottom and it seemed to be OK. Those old aluminum Grummans can take a beating. 55 degree water isn't half bad once you get used to it. I might have been borderline hypothermic after almost three hours in the water because I was really shivering and my legs were bruised and bleeding, but I refused the cop's offer to call an ambulance. That heat in the car certainly felt good on the way home.
Here is a pic I took of me getting towed back.
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