Kayak escort for a swim from Menauhant to Oak Bluffs ?

[lsjswims]

Hi paddlers,

I am so grateful to have found this forum.

My husband and I are planning a swim from Cape Cod to Martha's Vineyard for this summer. We hope to start from Eel Pond in Menauhant and end up near Oak Bluffs. We are in the process of getting final approval from the Coast Guard.

The swim is planned for the week of July 16th; and we are shooting for the 19th, but will be flexible depending on the weather. (We'll be traveling from Virginia; my husband grew up on the Cape.)

We know the waters are turbulent and that success depends on timing the swim with the tides. Any advice is appreciated.

We would also like to have experienced kayak escorts both for safety and visibility and for feeding and understand we would need to provide compensation for your time.

Thank you all for any help or insight you can provide.

Sincerely,

Laura Jones

[Briggsy]

Laura,
The big problem with that area is not only ferries coming from 4 directions (Nantucket,Hyannis, Woods Hole and Falmouth) but the huge amount of private boats buzzing around out there especially July. And they don't always care too much about kayaks !!!
Although I haven't kayaked across to the Vineyard I know the currents can exceed 3 knots at max current flow.
How long do you think it will take to swim over. It is around 6.5 miles to Oak Bluffs from Eel Pond.
Do you have a copy of the Eldridge 2012 Tide and Pilot Book, it has a great map of tidal currents and current charts for the area. The week you have chosen actually has slack current occurring in the middle of the day which would be perfect for you.
You may be better trying to find someone with a powerboat.... what if something should happen and you need to get out of the water for some reason, a kayak may not be the best craft to act as a rescue vessel, especially, as you mention, in turbulent waters, potentially 3 miles from land.
Not trying to be negative, those are just my thoughts.
Good luck anyhow, thats quite a challenge.
Briggsy

[lsjswims]

Hi Briggsy,
Thanks so much for taking the time to reply.

I am sorry I did not make clear that we would have power boats as part of the support crew - kayakers, if we can find / hire any would be our "close-up" escort to make sighting easier and to have food and drinks available. No rescue expected!

In flat water, my husband can swim 3 mph and I can swim 2 mph. Currents and tides change everything, so we anticipate the swim taking much longer. We have heard the currents can be between 3 and 4 knots, which is why we want to time this swim as close to perfect as we can.

We did see that the timing of the tides duirng the week of the 16th is good, but I see now that they are spring tides and wonder if we should target a week with neap tides?

Thanks again,
Laura

[Briggsy]

Laura,
Have you looked at any "Current tables" or do you know how to read them??
Is your time flexible ??
Briggsy

[Adam Bolonsky]

That sounds like a truly wonderful adventure. Good luck with it!

Have a look at UMass Dartmouth prof Chen's buoy-driven current chart of Vineyard and Nantucket sounds. It illustrates the currents' directions and velocity quite vividly, and is pretty mesmerizing:

http://fvcom.smast.umassd.edu/research_projects/Nsound/movies/tide1.html

Here's the home page for his work:

http://fvcom.smast.umassd.edu/research_projects/Nsound/index.html

[Adam Bolonsky]

We did see that the timing of the tides duirng the week of the 16th is good, but I see now that they are spring tides and wonder if we should target a week with neap tides?

The spring tides run incredibly hard in the area. Wow. Maybe better to wait for a neap?

Also, if the wind is blowing hard from the southwest (hardly unusual in July), the chop is going to be quite large should you time your swim with a west tide.

But boy does this sound like fun.

[lsjswims]

Hi Adam,

Oh my god, that is the coolest site - I could watch those arrows forever. It is helpful too. Thank you. And thanks to for the advice on neap tides. I think we'll do that - so we'd be looking at July 11-12 or 24-25-ish.

And thanks for the enthusiasm - it should be fun! We know about the southwest wind and the potential for chop - as a swimmer, I'd take chop over currrent any day, but we know we'll get both. Just want to be as smart as possible about the current and then just deal with the chop when it comes. We're already wet.....

It seesm like the ebb runs east to west and the flood runs west to east (?), so we'd be trying to start an hour or two before low tide and then hope the switch to high kind of slings us around Oak Bluffs, then we just have to cut in. (Most channel swims use a S-shape course...)

Anyway, thanks for all the help - any other ideas or advice would be most welcome!
Have a good day everyone,
Laura

[Mark]

Hello Laura: The route you have chosen has some clear advantages - namely, out of the ferry traffic for the most part, but it is also a considerably longer route than the shortest crossing from Cape Cod to the Vineyard. As a veteran of many crossings via kayak between the Cape and the Vineyard (the above-referenced Adam Bolonsky once jokingly dubbed me the "Viceroy of the Vineyard", lol) I can tell you that slack tide is almost non-existent in the narrower sections of Vineyard Sound. You might want to consider a route and timing that uses the currents to your advantage. For example, jump in at Nobska Point near Woods Hole and swim for West Chop on the flood tide. Once in the shadow of West Chop, current becomes largely a non-issue. Or, ride the current all the way around East Chop if you are Oak Bluffs bound.

I'm not a swimmer, and not privy to the "rules" for channel crossings - maybe this is "cheating" - but it is what I would do.

You seem to know what you are doing, but also seem to understand the value of local knowledge. Feel free to private message me on this site if you would like to discuss other details.

By the way, I might be able to help with the escort that you requested. I would not want to be paid. I would do it for the fun and adventure.

Mark

[Adam Bolonsky]

Oh my god, that is the coolest site - I could watch those arrows forever. It is helpful too. Thank you. And thanks to for the advice on neap tides. I think we'll do that - so we'd be looking at July 11-12 or 24-25-ish.

And thanks for the enthusiasm - it should be fun! We know about the southwest wind and the potential for chop - as a swimmer, I'd take chop over currrent any day, but we know we'll get both. Just want to be as smart as possible about the current and then just deal with the chop when it comes. We're already wet.....

It seesm like the ebb runs east to west and the flood runs west to east (?), so we'd be trying to start an hour or two before low tide and then hope the switch to high kind of slings us around Oak Bluffs, then we just have to cut in. (Most channel swims use a S-shape course...)

Anyway, thanks for all the help - any other ideas or advice would be most welcome!
Have a good day everyone,
Laura

Yup, it's ebb east to west, flood west to east.

Looking at the chart, it seems you're likely to have the most trouble around Hommedieu Shoal and the Hedge Fence. They create large eddies, and back currents, in the main current flow, that are very erratic. But that should only add to the fun.

I have some electronic gear you can borrow if you need it: a Spot beacon (yours to keep) that your escort can use to text message your GPS position back to your crash boat. Also useful should things go ka-flooey and you have to call your crash boat for a mid-crossing pick-up. Also useful if you have to call the CG for help via vhf.

Of course, a gps and a VHF and a cell phone (assuming there's service) in your kayak escort's boat will do just as well, but will require more work on their part.

Half of this you probably already know: but I'd be sure your kayak escort has a good vhf radio to keep in touch with your crash boat. But keep in mind, there's a VHF Issue on the Vineyard in summer: vhf radio traffic is really heavy on 68,72, etc. So if your kayaker's radio is underpowered (also, the antenna is low), their broadcasts to your crash boat will likely get garbled or stepped on.

Again, you probably know this, but it will help if your kayak escort makes periodic securite calls on VHF 16. Securite calls extend about 1/2 to one mile. You use them to ask other boaters to proceed with caution near you, and why. But to make a securite, your kayak caller needs to be able to describe where you guys are: okay with gps coordinates, but better with landmark descriptions (bouys, channel and shoal names, etc.), as they require less effort on the part of the listener.

Also, should your team make one of those securite calls about a swimmer (or a kayaker, for that matter), they should be prepared for nasty backlash from other boaters...seriously.

Shoot me an email (adambolonsky@yahoo.com) if you want the Spot beacon. It just needs to be activated - one year's use for something like $50. Who knows, publicize your swim through Spot and maybe they'll give you the service (and the latest unit) for free.

I also have a vhf radio you can borrow.

And if you have a successful trip, count me in to try your next one! I did a lot of open water swimming off Gloucester last year. Always within 100 yards of shore (afraid of sharks), and never in strong currents, but challenging nonetheless.