Byline: Lochinver RNLI Lifeboat launched shortly before 11:50 am on Tuesday 14th May 2013, within 4 minutes of the crew being paged for the shout by the Stornoway Coastguard.
Page Content: Two persons, one in an open canoe and the other in a kayak, were reported by the Coastguard’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Stornoway as having difficulties in Gruinard Bay and a red flare had been sighted.
One of the two men, both whom were staying in the area on holiday, decided to take his canoe to sea off the beach at Mellon Udrigle on the west side of Gruinard Bay. Unfortunately his open Canadian style canoe caught too much of the wind and he soon found himself being blown out into the bay. His friend could see the canoe was having difficulty in the strong winds and decided to join him in his kayak. However, despite their best efforts for over an hour, the pair found themselves unable to make any headway back towards the beach against the wind, which by that time was blowing offshore at up to 25 miles per hour.
The men, seeing people watching from the beach, then tied their craft together and set off a red flare, recognised at sea as being an emergency distress signal. They also carried a mobile phone with them and used it to call the coastguard on 999 for assistance, resulting in the launch of the Lochinver lifeboat.
The lifeboat arrived in Gruinard Bay and located the two men about 40 minutes later, after a slightly rough passage down through the Summer Isles in a choppy sea. As the lifeboat came into view, the pair let off an orange smoke flare, also recognised at sea as an emergency distress signal. This made locating them significantly easier for the crew of the lifeboat and the two men were quickly taken aboard and their craft recovered from the water. Appropriate casualty care was administered in the form of a number of chocolate biscuits as both men were warm in their dry suits and appeared to be fit and well and in good spirits, just a little peckish.
The coxswain of the lifeboat on the day, Bruce MacKenzie, said; ”The two men were prepared for being at sea; wearing dry suits and carrying lifejackets and flares to attract attention. The only other equipment they might consider carrying in future is a VHF radio as an essential piece of kit for communicating at sea beyond the range of mobile phones.”
The lifeboat then returned closer in to the beach at Mellon Udrigle and the two men were taken ashore by the lifeboat’s smaller inflatable boat and landed on the beach, followed by their canoe and kayak.
When asked what his plans were for the rest of the afternoon, the canoeist insisted he would not be going back to sea and instead would be walking his dog very much on dry land.
The lifeboat then departed Gruinard Bay at 01:45 pm and returned to Lochinver and was tied up alongside her own pontoon ready for service again at 03:50 pm.
One of the two men, both whom were staying in the area on holiday, decided to take his canoe to sea off the beach at Mellon Udrigle on the west side of Gruinard Bay. Unfortunately his open Canadian style canoe caught too much of the wind and he soon found himself being blown out into the bay. His friend could see the canoe was having difficulty in the strong winds and decided to join him in his kayak. However, despite their best efforts for over an hour, the pair found themselves unable to make any headway back towards the beach against the wind, which by that time was blowing offshore at up to 25 miles per hour.
The men, seeing people watching from the beach, then tied their craft together and set off a red flare, recognised at sea as being an emergency distress signal. They also carried a mobile phone with them and used it to call the coastguard on 999 for assistance, resulting in the launch of the Lochinver lifeboat.
The lifeboat arrived in Gruinard Bay and located the two men about 40 minutes later, after a slightly rough passage down through the Summer Isles in a choppy sea. As the lifeboat came into view, the pair let off an orange smoke flare, also recognised at sea as an emergency distress signal. This made locating them significantly easier for the crew of the lifeboat and the two men were quickly taken aboard and their craft recovered from the water. Appropriate casualty care was administered in the form of a number of chocolate biscuits as both men were warm in their dry suits and appeared to be fit and well and in good spirits, just a little peckish.
The coxswain of the lifeboat on the day, Bruce MacKenzie, said; ”The two men were prepared for being at sea; wearing dry suits and carrying lifejackets and flares to attract attention. The only other equipment they might consider carrying in future is a VHF radio as an essential piece of kit for communicating at sea beyond the range of mobile phones.”
The lifeboat then returned closer in to the beach at Mellon Udrigle and the two men were taken ashore by the lifeboat’s smaller inflatable boat and landed on the beach, followed by their canoe and kayak.
When asked what his plans were for the rest of the afternoon, the canoeist insisted he would not be going back to sea and instead would be walking his dog very much on dry land.
The lifeboat then departed Gruinard Bay at 01:45 pm and returned to Lochinver and was tied up alongside her own pontoon ready for service again at 03:50 pm.