Boat? Check.
Gas (paddles, oars)? Check.
Food and drink? Check.
Suntan lotion? Check.
Good times plan? Check.
Good place to die picked out?
Folks never start out on a boating adventure with plans to die that day or plans for their children to die, either. It’s time for fun in the sun, with or without those annoying life vests, with or without common sense.
For too many, there will never be another summer, another birthday, another Seahawks game, another wedding, another hug, another day on the water.
This year, 25 people have died in recreational boating mishaps; 10 of them died while using manually powered craft. Ten died in July alone, according to the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.
Carelessness and cold water are deadly combinations. Rivers, lakes and Puget Sound, even in the summer, are cold. Cold water chills the body 25 percent faster than cold air, so hypothermia hits sooner.
It’s easy to tip over canoes, kayaks, floats and homemade rafts; and alcohol impairs judgment already impaired when common sense was left at home.
If you don’t want to do right by yourself or your adult friends, at least do right by your children:
* Know the body of water that you’re going to play on, including its hazards and currents.
* Insist that your children wear life jackets. Need help overcoming objections? It’s the law that children 12 and younger wear a Coast Guard-approved life vest on all boats less than 19 feet long. When the kids whine, blame it on the government, which has brought you these safety suggestions.
* Don’t let the children out of sight when they’re on or near water and be close enough to respond immediately if they get into trouble.
* Pay attention to weather conditions so you don’t get caught in a storm.
* Have a way to contact emergency help.
Leave No Trace: Proponents of the Leave No Trace principles are on the water this summer, spreading the message of the program designed to educate about a science and common sense approach to human impact.
A team of paddlers have been talking to other paddlers along the Cascadia Marine Trail about those principles. Washington Water Trails Association is providing the education through the Sound Education and Action kayaker program.
The Leave No Trace principles are: plan ahead and prepare camp on durable surfaces, dispose of waste properly, leave what you find (unless it’s trash), minimize campfire impacts, respect wildlife and be considerate of other visitors.
Dogs of winter: A dog-sledding demonstration will be at 7 p.m. Aug. 19 at Lake Easton State Park amphitheater, 15 miles east of Snoqualmie Pass off I-90. For more information, call 509-656-2586.
Bird bits: The first wave of shorebirds has been touching down in marshes and mudflats for a few weeks, returning from breeding in the Arctic.
“For a lot of shorebirds, the basic strategy is to get to the Arctic, breed and get out as quick as possible,” said Bill Tweit, a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife fish manager and an avid birder.
Woodwork: Wooden Boat magazine added a new feature in the July-August edition, a 12-page pullout section called Getting Started in Boats.
The section introduces the craft of building boats with wood to beginners. The first project is a lumberyard skiff built from readily available material, complete with materials and tools list, clear directions and many illustrations.
The next Getting Started feature will be in the November-December issue.
Good deeds: No need to go far next weekend to lend a hand. Washington Trails Association has volunteer work crews in two sites. On Aug. 18 or Aug. 19, work on maintaining the stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail that runs south from Stevens Pass. Or spend Aug. 19-20 maintaining the Sunrise Mine/Headlee Pass Trail off the Mountain Loop Highway. Bunks and campsites are available, and WTA provides a BBQ dinner. To sign up, go to www.wta.org.
Bookshelf: Take a fishing trip with New York Times outdoor columnist Peter Bodo’s novel “The Trout Whisperers” (Stackpole Books, hardcover, $25). Louis Traub and Raul Mendoza aren’t Lewis and Clark, but they’ll keep the pages turning as they search for the perfect trout stream and deal with a number of problems. It wraps up a little too quickly but is a good read nonetheless.
Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.
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