Under and Going Down

By: Josh Barlow

This article will show the importance of wearing your PFD at all times while on the water. 

Several seasons ago in late November In Southwestern, OK on a fishing trip to Lawtonka Lake to chase some smallmouth bass. I caught a handful of decent ones and broke my personal best, the bite was on fire.The bites were on a jig in the rocks, the wind just happened to be blowing out of the south at 15-20mph which is common for Oklahoma. My fishing buddy and I had decided to take refuge from that wind and fish the wind blocked dam at the South end of the lake. Out of the wind we were able to slay some smallies.

I was on an extremely stable boat, and had been for a couple years. I had become comfortable with its stability, even saying phrases like “I’ll fall off it before I roll it."  It was true for the most part, but that day became the exception to the rule. I had passed out of wind coverage into a windy area, and kept fishing. No big deal, as an Okie, you fish in the wind or you don’t fish. I had got my last jig stuck and was working on getting it out. I had my seat raised up high and I was bent over the side of the boat pulling on it. My boat was perpendicular to the wind direction when a gust and wave hit the side.

There it was, the tipping point I felt it hit my gut like a 30LB weight. The water temp was in the upper 40’s maybe colder. I was dressed in several layers including a rain suit, as it had been misting all day. I had a manual inflate life jacket on and let me tell you, it saved my life.The boat flipped and I went in. At first there was enough air in my lungs to keep me buoyant as I tried to grab my kayak. It was just barely out of arms reach, as I tried to swim I felt my clothes fill with water. My buddy was nearby, I yelled help as loud as I could, and was able to draw one more breathe before my head went under.

I was looking up at the eerie water’s surface getting further and further away, when I reached down and grasped the jerk cord on my PFD. I thought in that moment, “I hope this works."  I had never tested it or inflated it before who knew if it really would? Well built and far from cheap, it blew up just like it should’ve. I rocketed to the surface, where I drew breathe again.This was when I finally noticed how cold I was, it hurt like pins and needles. Very similar to asthma attack it was difficult to draw a full breath. My good fishing buddy had pedaled over, held his net out and was scooping my bags of plastics out of the water. I self righted my kayak as I had practiced, and got back in. Picked up my paddle and started to assess the damage.

I had been so comfortable with the stability on that boat I didn’t really have anything tied down, and to-boot, my dry box was open. I lost almost everything. ALMOST everything... I was alive, embarrassed, angry, and really cold but, I was alive. Ever since, I have manually inflated my life jacket to check for leaks or holes and I frequently check the air canister to make sure it’s ready to fire. I was lucky, I had enough things go right that I was alive.

Just recently a man drowned in a windy day after his boat flipped, it got me thinking back to my scary day on Lawtonka. I asked myself what people need to do to survive something like that. I think for one, respect for the water. It’s fun being on the water, but how many of us actually respect it for the deadliness it has. I wanted to share my story and give a small bit of advice for everyone’s safety.
After giving it some thought I determined that the bare necessities for survival in a situation like that are:

1. Properly wear and maintain your PFD

2. Tell someone where you are/ Fish with someone.

That’s it, pretty simple, enough to keep you from drowning and enough to get you rescued if your day really “hits the fan."  After being under and going down, I always harp on people if they aren’t wearing their PFD, I know they can be uncomfortable they can be hot, itchy and a general pain to wear. When you want to un-zip or unbuckle, just think about never being able to fish again, think about your fishing buddies, think about your pets, think about your family. I don’t wear my life jacket for me, I wear it for all of them. Respect the water, remember what you have to lose and you will live to fish another day.

Josh Barlow with his PFD

One of the slayed Smallmouth