The warm weather is pretty much here for the summer, with maybe a couple of cold nights left, so I felt it would be a good thing to remind everyone of the potential bad things out there, that could ruin more then just your trip. These things are so much more important if you tend to kayak solo, because you are your support network.

The Basics:

• Make sure someone knows where you are going, and when you plan on returning, and if your plans change make sure you communicate that change.
• Communications, take your cell phone with you, and leave it on. If you know how to, you may also want to turn on the E911 feature, which essentially turns your cell phone into a radio beacon, it is essentially on, all the time, but as I understand it, it makes it easier to find your phone. BTW VHF is still the recommended method of requesting help from the Coast Guard, and Cell Phone 911 call is secondary.
• Weather, a lot of people do not realize how fast the weather can change this time of year. You should check your local forecast from the National Weather Service and also check the Storm Prediction Center for and potential severe weather in your area. Don’t rely on the local TV weather person, that would be stupid.
• Water water everywhere, and not a drop to drink. Always bring more water then you need, and drink it, getting dehydrated in the middle of a lake would be stupid.’
• Sunscreen and a hat.
• Oh yeah, Take your PFD and Wear it.

Nasties and Bities, Flora and Fauna

Insects are everywhere you will be kayaking, use a good bug/mosquito repellant, and keep a watchful eye for spider webs, and check for ticks when you get home.

Then there is the fun of Poison Ivy, which will add to the fun of any trip. I believe the saying is leaves of three let it be. The simple fact is that Poison Ivy can grow just about anywhere. So pay attention, not only to what you are going through, but also what all your equipment is touching and bumping against, because you don’t want to bump into some poison ivy while turning around in a small creek, and not realize it until much later after you have loaded up the the kayak, and get secondary contact, as I understand it, the oils can remain active for up to 5 years.

So now we come to everyones favorite snakes, there 4 species of venomous snakes indigenous to Virginia, and they are the Cottonmouth, Copperhead, Canebrake Rattlesnake, and the Timber Rattlesnake. the Cottonmouth, Copperhead and Canebrake are all capable of being in the areas that you may be kayaking, and the most likely encounter will be with the Cottonmouth or water moccasin. I regularly encounter Cottonmouth, almost on a weekly basis, usually at a distance when I see them crossing the water ahead of me, and I have had several closer encounters. I have not had to deal with any real aggressive cottonmouths, but have had them hold their ground.

There is a lot of confusion with Brown Watersnakes, Northern Watersnakes and Cottonmouths, and in many cases they can look like each other, with two exceptions. Cottonmouths have a triangular head that is common to vipers, where watersnakes heads blend into the body. When swimming, a cottonmouth will float on top of the water, while the watersnakes swim with majority their body submerged or below the surface of the water. A good rule of thumb, treat them all as if they are venomous, and give them a wide berth.

A Comparison of Watersnake and Cottonmouth.

This is a watersnake, not the head blending into the body.

This is a cottonmouth

And an angry Cottonmouth

Here we have a pair of Copperheads

I have been asked several times about Alligators in the places I kayak, and to the best of my knowledge there no WILD Alligators in Virginia, there may be some that were pets and released into the wild, but no naturally occurring gators in Virginia. The closest Alligators to Virginia are in Merchants Mill Pond in North Carolina, and I have heard rumors of gators on the Pasquotank River, but never any proof.

So what we have left, is things with hair, and for the most part anything you come across with hair, is going to avoid you, and if it doesn’t, be sure to avoid it. There is a bear preserve just across the border in North Carolina, and I have no idea on how many animals there may be there.

Just be careful, and don’t be stupid, look but don’t touch.