Scouting the top of Flight Simulator.  Mike points to where, an hour later, things will start to go wrong.

Mike Swims & Almost Drowns from Dave Hoffman on Vimeo.

Since June, I’ve spend a lot of time thinking about that day on the river.  The video explains a lot of what happened but below are some additional thoughts.

• No matter how bad a rescue situation gets, there is always something a victim can do to improve the outcome. Mike was exhausted.  He spent about 4 minutes swimming through more hundreds of yards of icy class 4/5 and he still managed that last burst of energy to drive himself to the shore.
• Towing a swimmer to shore is hard.  And in the situations you might think you most need to do so, it is even harder, if not impossible.  This episode reinforced my belief in the paramount importance of self-rescue.  Friends are great to back you up, but if you end up in the water, you are you own best rescuer.
• Despite all that was happening Mike was calm.  I still smile when I think of him apologizing for causing me to get momentarily stopped by holes.  That was the worse swim I’ve personally witnessed and the calmest swimmer.  He kept his head and it made a huge difference.   I think a lot of that calmness was due to how much time Mike has spent (intentionally) swimming in whitewater while teaching swiftwater rescue and kayaking.
• Paddling rivers at high water is inherently more dangerous.  The lack of eddies and the continuous nature of the EFSF made rescue incredibly difficult for Mike once he ended up in the water.  I don’t think the river was too high to be paddled that day.  It was not flooding.  But it was certainly more risky than paddling at a moderate flow.
• A side point to mention is our complete disregard for Mike’s gear. No one was going after anything until we got him to shore.  We ended up getting his boat, lost the paddle, but these things are a minor part of the big picture.  I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen seven or eight folks charge after a boat when only one is going after the swimmer.  Don’t do that!
• Flush drowning is a real, legit hazard, even when paddling with a well-trained, close-knit group.

Defeated, broken-down, but alive.

The East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon keeps going.