The Turning Point (11/14)

"A rainbow showed up the day the kayaks arrived", said Kat, and overlooked the ITRANSA (right) moored at Basco port. Photo by Bimo.

"Let's head for Batan Island.", Moira suggested.

"Crazy! Batan Island is 15km away and Sabtang is 7.76km away. Better chance to head for Sabtang than Batan."

"I am not so good with waves coming behind. I am more stable meeting waves head-on. Capsizing takes up a lot of our time.", Moira pursued further.

OK, I can see some sense in her logic. We were making little headways inside the triangle. What little progress we made were claimed back by the waves and we lost precious time responding to capsizes and bailing out water. I took another look at the GPS to make sure the distance was correct. 

"I hope Kat and Bimo are OK."

"I am sure they are. Kat's homing instinct is very strong. Anyway people have strong homing instinct. Ask them to paddle home and they have lots of energy.", Moira was certainly not looking forward to go back to Sabtang.

"You are sure? It would take us a longer time to paddle to Batan. We may be on the water for a long time, against the wind and current.", I was convincing myself.

"I think the current has changed. I am more confident paddling with waves coming from in front."

That was all I needed to hear… more confident, more happy, more energy… hell man…Comparing hot water and clean bed to camping cold on the beach, which would give us more motivation? 

Think a different angle, brain!

"OK, let's go Batan. Follow me!", I turned my kayak towards the wind and waves and paddled forward with some defiance and renewed hope. 

10 minutes later, I found myself climbing a huge wave. Just when I thought it would lift me over its crest, it tipped my kayak backwards. The wave broke and a rush of water came crashing down, rolling my kayak violently over its side.

Normally with a PFD on, it takes little effort to float back to the surface after capsize. But this time, I felt I was underwater for a longer time. My right leg was still inside the cockpit, and no matter how I kicked, I could not dislodge myself from the kayak. 

That extra underwater seconds made me realize I was stuck.