Cold water poses a serious threat to unprepared sea kayakers. There are two important and related safety issues involved in cold water paddling: 1) the risk of "cold shock", and 2) the risk of hypothermia.

Cold shock and hypothermia can be avoided easily with proper preparation. Dress in quick-drying insulating and waterproof layers for the weather and the water temperature (water proof clothing is key) and carry extra dry clothing, food, water, shelter and have ability to provide a hot drink (thermos or stove-pot-fuel-water-drinks; not caffeine). A warm waterproof hat is key, 75% of your body heat is lost through head and neck.

"Hypothermia is not normally the issue in cold water paddling, but rather a predictable series of shock reactions that first impair, then quickly preclude effective self rescue." Atlantic Kayak Tours.com

Cold shock is the series of involuntary reactions we experience as a result of an unprotected plunge into cold water (we consider all of Alaska's water to be "cold").

Cold shock sets off a set of involuntary physical and physiologic changes in our bodies that include: hyperventilation, breathlessness, alkalosis (disorientation, confusion, loss of consciousness), inability to hold your breath (lowered by cold water exposure), and lastly, the inability to synchronize breathing (can lead to drowning).

The only known method of preventing cold shock is to dress in wet or dry suits or other protective clothing that could include insulation and relatively water proofed protection for your body, head, and neck. Shock drowning has been documented in water temperatures above 50 F.

Cold shock is often underestimated. The notion that while paddling in cold water you will be able to rescue yourself by swimming to shore, is not one you should seriously consider for very long. Many capable, strong and experienced water-men and women have perished from cold shock while trying to rescue themselves, or have apparently not survived long enough to attempt rescue. For more information on cold shock read on the web:

www.AtlanticKayakTours.com/Pages/ExpertCenter/Coldwater

Hypothermia is much easier to prevent than to treat: Dress appropriately, stay hydrated and well fed. Drink fluids at least once per hour, and eat regularly to keep your energy and heat production up for the duration of your paddling.

Hypothermia is the cooling of the body core below the normal 98.6 F, and results in impaired motor skills, shivering (an involuntary re-warming mechanism of the body), confusion, and if left untreated, or if improperly diagnosed and treated, can lead to shock and death. If you are not dressed in a wet or dry suit and you fall briefly into cold water and are easily rescued, then you should be concerned about becoming hypothermic after being rescued since your clothing will be wet. If done quickly, you can be treated easily by putting dry clothes on and re-warming (w/ shelter and warm drinks), as needed.

If a sea kayaker dressed for the weather (not the water temperature) capsizes in cold water, there is a danger that if they are not out of the water and quickly rescued, hypothermia could set in and be difficult to treat. The longer the swimmer is in the water and in wet clothing, the greater the danger of hypothermia. Assessing the level of hypothermia of the swimmer is critical. If the swimmer can't paddle or manage their kayak and clothing, they probably need medical attention - a doctor, so get help. To learn more about treating hypothermia, read AtlanticKayakTours.com/Pages/ExpertCenter/Coldwater.

You don't need to capsize in a kayak to become hypothermic. You can also become hypothermic by not dressing properly and getting progressively colder as the day goes on. It can happen slowly. If your hands and feet are becoming cold, you are becoming hypothermic, and you should stop the process (dry clothing, hat gloves, increased activity, warm drinks, food, etc.). Gloves and adequate footwear go a long way to preventing hypothermia on a rainy day of paddling.

Initial stages of hypothermia can be treated with dry clothes, warm drink, food and shelter. But it is difficult to diagnose more serious cases of immersion hypothermia (becoming hypothermic from falling into cold water) and you should be cautious to "know" what stage of hypothermia you are treating, since improper diagnosis and treatment can lead to shock or death.

For details about paddling in cold water and hypothermia read on the web:

www.AtlanticKayakTours.com/Pages/ExpertCenter/Coldwater

To dress for immersion or not? This is a personal decision, but it should be a decision you make. Make an educated choice about your clothing based upon your abilities, the conditions you are going to paddle in, the kayak you are using, etc. How well do you think you can paddle this particular kayak without losing balance in the range of conditions you'll experience today? How easily would it be to do a rescue and then change clothes if you fell in and got wet and cold? Are there easy convenient landing sites nearby? If you can honestly say you have what it takes to stay dry and in balance in this particular kayak all day, then you're ready to make your decision. Make sense?