Mixed Blessings ? Boating Accident

LAKE MINNEWANKA

Some days are written off as bad or terrible days, when in fact, while they may have been, they also let you survive to go on and made you stronger and wiser hopefully.  There is as much to learn from a bad day as there is a good one.  One hot summer day years ago. I went canoeing with a friend to a glacial lake surrounded by mountains. We paddled a fair distance to explore a lot of the lake with the intent to fish.  Although my partner was by all accounts an extremely intelligent person, I soon learned that this doesn't mean that common sense goes hand in hand with it.

While about 400 yards from a rocky vertical cliff at the shoreline, he suggests we trade places in the canoe. I say," You are kidding right ? " He fails to listen to reason so I caved in finally and I went stealthily past him and sat down in my new position and settled waiting for him to do the same.  The next instant I was catapulted into the icy water as he unbalanced the canoe flipping it.

I was in instant shock from the cold water after basking all afternoon in 85 degree weather.  There was nobody in sight anywhere to rescue us.


I grabbed the side of the boat and clung to it. he starts screaming at me that I'm sinking the boat.  I panic and look around.   I see the little  day cooler floating nearby and a paddle. I grabbed one in each hand and swam for my life to the shore. I made it and was barely able to get out of the water as there was no beach there. My heart was beating madly and rising in my chest so much it looked and felt like it was going to rip it's way right out.


My partner in the meantime dragged the boat to where I was, and while standing on the few rocks there under the cliff we managed to get back in the boat and start heading back to the boat launch chilled and in need of warmth. That should have been relatively easy but out of nowhere a storm cell arrived and started whipping up the waves so much that again we were in grave danger of ending up in the water again.  As we finally approached the boat-launch we could hardly even squeeze in as all the big boats on the lake were trying to get off and wouldn't give way.  We made it in and sat in the car for about 2 hours with the heater full blast before we could shake the effects of hypothermia and leave.

It may well have been a bad day, but it was also a good one, because I survived and cheated death.  I learned never to cave into anyone's selfish demands when it's my life in the balance.  I learned that it's never a good idea to take off your life jacket because you want to get a tan.  I learned that my self preservation mechanisms were alive and working that day as I was determined not to drown that day.  Another important lesson was that I was not going to make the same mistake my father made by being to terrified to be near deep water after he had almost drowned in a boating accident years before I was born.  I went on lots of adventures afterwards on and off the water.  I've never been a particularly strong swimmer but I can get by when I have to.

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Do have a good day !

Jeffrey R Hilton