Almost didn't make hunting season.....

[SFC B]

I have been putting off writing this thread for the last week to try and get my head around this. Last TH we took our Senior Leaders on a rafting/leadership retreat outing on the AR river through the Royal Gorge. Long story short (as possible :hump: ), while going through a rapid call Sledgehammer our guide steered us up an onto a rock which dumped the entire boat out and over a small fall with a hydraulic at the bottom. I cam out of the hydro to find myself under the boat. Got out from under and then had it happen again. After the second time I was floating (defensive swimming position through the rapids when I was yanked to an abrupt halt and flipped face down in the water. I was able to turn myself over and get my head above water long enough to let out a little gaspy yelp before being pulled under. I realized I had a "rescue" rope around my neck. The holder of the rope then started pulling me against the current, choking me out and keeping me under water. Another guide got the rope off my neck just as I was going out and got me to shore. I proceeded to yak up half of the AR River. By far the closest I have ever come to cashing in all my wampum. I all could think of at the time was "My wife is not going to believe this". This is the kind of thing that would usually send me off looking for the tool that threw a rope in the middle of rapids without making eye contact with the swimmer for a severe beat down but I have had no interest in that. I just can't get a handle on close it was. Has anyone else had anything similar happen?

 

[Oak]

Yikes. I hate the water. I could get my hat wet crossing a 3' wide stream. Glad it turned out ok for you. I had a very, very scary experience crossing a glacial river in AK and I think I'm scarred for life.

 

[L. I. Yankee]

Thankfully you are ok....God has a different plan for you,it wasn't your time.....

 

[MinnesotaHunter]

I was probably never in the danger you were, but when I was a young Soldier my unit was doing a helocast (going out the back of a MH-47 Chinook, into a river, with a Zodiac boat). Since I was a good swimmer (and low ranking), I got to be tethered to the boat when it went out the door first, then I had to release the ties so that the boat would "un-taco", and my squad could get in.

As soon as that boat hit the prop wash I was ripped out the back of the bird and sent hurling and twisting after it. Chinook rotor wash is pretty strong and that boat was catching all of it. Everyone got a good laugh, but me at first. Like I say probably wasn't in any real danger, but I sure thought I was.

Anyway, glad to hear you are still kicking, Larry.

 

[buckykm1]

That is scary, I am glad you came out OK.

About the worst thing that has happened to me is in 2010 on my Elk hunting trip, I was loading my ATV up on my truck. and as I got half way on, the left ramp broke, the quad rolled over, I was able to get out from under it with just a badly bruised leg, and couldn't hardly walk for over a week.

Kevin

 

[Devil Diver Down]

Glad to hear you're okay - water can be really scary.

About 10 years back, I was on a rafting trip on the Colorado River from Peach Springs down and the guide offered to let some people swim one of the gentler rapids. The catch was that you had to shoot for one of the waiting boats so you didn't end up up on your own to some worse rapids downstream where the boats couldn't catch up with you. I dove in with a few others and it was pretty rough and betas you up good. When I swam to the waiting boats, one of the group was floating about 15 yards away from catching onto the rafts and he was totally unresponsive. I swam into the current and grabbed him and we both drifted down quite a ways until I could get us out of the stiff current. It was about 5 minutes before the boats caught up to us. If I hadn't grabbed that guy, he was gone downstream.

 

[skimerhorn]

Glad your ok, the water can be scary and give you a quick reality check.

 

[tarheel]

I love to tell a story but will try to keep this one short. When I lived in CO my wife and I used to go down to Creede every June and participate in the Rio Grande raft races with a group from work. We'd usually take our trail bikes and rafts down the weekend before the races to gauge the river, find the fast water, rocks, hydraulics, etc. because we all had won money in previous races so had to run in the professional heat against some really good rafters. This practice weekend we took along a rookie who had never been in a raft and while going under a railway bridge he didn't kick the rear of the raft as instructed and it scraped a large crib piling made from cut phone poles filled with rock, ripping a 4' gash in the right side. I'm situated center left, my wife who is deathly afraid of water and drowning was center right. The entire right side deflates, I wrap my arm around the left bladder and grab the wife with my free hand, all the while the raft is spinning right and being pushed down with 6 souls aboard. I shout to her to NOT drop the beers and I can still see her in my mind's eye going under, erect as a parson, holding those two Michelob as high over her head as possible while we're all scrambling to get out and to shallow water.
We had to drag it out on a gravel bar, deflate the left side, and fold it into a backpack arrangement and then make it back to the highway over that self same rail trestle. My poor wife is so traumatized by now that she couldn't walk that trestle from tie to tie because she kept looking at the water moving beneath instead of concentrating on the ties, so she got on all fours and covered about 80 yards of trestle on her knees because I couldn't talk her through her fear.
Fifty two years with that woman now, lots of high adventure on skis and motorcycles, lots of international travel, her getting shot in the leg while pheasant hunting out by Ft. Morgan, more than I can enumerate and those two beers hoisted over her head is one of the strongest memories and is a reflection of the dedication she has to me and she trusts that I'll take care of her. I've really enjoyed being her hero.
Pleased to hear that you survived the fray. I always wanted to make the Royal Gorge run but we didn't have a raft good enough, being just a bunch of working stiffs.

 

[ashersdad]

Oh man, glad you're all right. That scares the heck out of me just thinking about it.

I haven't shared this and wasn't going to but since we're getting things off our chest, here goes. Last day of the bear hunt this year I finally see a bear that floats my boat and decide to take him. Big beautiful chocolate colored boar. Well dumb me shoots him on the other side of a river that I am sure I can cross. After searching 2 miles up and down the river unsuccessfully for a downed log to cross I finally decide to hell with it I'll just try to wade across. One of the dumbest things I've ever done. 2 steps in the river takes me off my feet and down and under I go. After going over the first rapid I really thought I was a goner. Swam for all I was worth and barely made it to the other side. I won't go into the rest but I will say God blessed me that day even though I had made a very stupid decision. Funny thing, when I got out late that night and called my wife she had been having feelings all day that I had died. Not good, and she is still mad at me.

Once again, glad you are ok SFC B. Pretty scary.

 

[RUT JUNKEY]

thats scary for sure, glad you made it out ok! I've never had anything that close happen, fell through the ice on Lake Waveland once as I was checking it for thickness to play hockey. . .i found an area that wasn't. . . cold, wet, scared, but not dead!

 

[1_pointer]

That is spooky! Glad you got to type that story.

 

[NoWiser]

Glad you are alright. That's scary stuff.

A few years back I was ice fishing on Leech Lake in northern MN with my girlfriend at the time, her friend, and another buddy of mine. We were heading off the lake at about an hour or two after dark on an atv pulling a trailer. My faithful Brittany Spaniel in his kennel strapped to the back of the ATV. I can still remember, like it was yesterday, the ice giving away and the wheeler plunging into the lake. The trailer was still hung up so I jumped back to it, threw everyone off onto the ice, and then went back to rescue the dog. We all got onto the ice and walked about 50' when it gave way again. 3 of us went down. We were swimming with all we had but the ice kept breaking away. The girl that was in the water with my buddy and I finally gave up, looked me in the eye, and told me to tell her mom she loved her. I screamed at her to just hold on to me and not let go as I fought to keep her up and find some solid ice. Finally my buddy was able to climb up and, with me pushing and him pulling were able to get her onto the ice. He then dragged me up. By this time I knew exactly where we needed to go to get to safe ice so we started belly crawling towards it. I can picture looking down with my headlamp and seeing the ice crack like a spiderweb below me before I plunged in again. I ordered my friends to get as far away as they could as I fought to get back onto the ice again. I had no strength left. There was no snow on the ice so it was completely slick. I finally made piece with myself, sure that it was the end. Luckily, it was bitter cold and my gloves froze to the ice I was clinging to. This allowed me to barely crawl up onto the ice again. I had been in the water for probably 10 minutes total by this time. We crawled our way to safe ice and then had a 2 mile walk to the nearest cabin in sub zero weather. By the time we got to within about 1/2 mile of the cabin I had hypothermia bad. I could barely talk and my legs all but quit working. With the help of my buddy we finally crawled to the front door of a house with lights on. They let us in and helped us out. I think I shivered for about 8 straight hours after that.

It was the only time in my life that I was almost positive I was going to die. I have no doubt He helped pull me out of the lake that one last time. I had no strength left to do it myself. I still love ice fishing but won't go without a flotation suit on me at all times and ice picks in my front pocket.

 

[Jwill]

I thought I read somewhere about an increase in accidents on the Arkansas this year due to the high snowpack. Glad you're alright!

 

[brownbear932008]

Man glad your okay! I had a close encounter with almost drowning though not as close as yours when I was a teenie on the New River in VA. Bunch of us boys went tubing without the proper gear just some ole backwoods boys floating the river doubled up on tube. Long story short me and buddy got flipped in some rapids in the middle of the river no life jackets(really stupid) he freaked out climbed on top of me in the water almost drowning me had to throw him off before he did. We both swam to shore 100 yards later and couldn't even stand we were so weak..... Scary times.

 

[SFC B]

Thanks for all the well wishes guys. The whole thing really freaked me out and I was really wanting to see if I was alone in that. God was good to me and looks like I will still make my first hunt of the year, prongy doe in SEP

 

[MT_elk]

Glad you made it out ok. I had a friend that had a similar experience rafting this year (not with a rope around the neck) but with getting dumped overboard.

 

[SFC B]

Here is a clip (taken from youtube) of the rapid. The water level was different so you can see the rock that flipped us but the rapid in question is at about 5:20 in the clip.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sgHoS4PuQU