The Dangers of Kayaking

When I think of dangerous sports, kayaking is not usually on the list. Free soloing, of course. Base jumping, yeah. Even American football and rugby have their fair share of debilitating head injuries (my college rugby team’s motto was “Give blood; play rugby). But after an experience a few years ago, kayaking has climbed up my list. 

My office had decided to do kayaking as an outing/team building activity. The ones who were not up for kayaking could take the boat to Sharp Island and meet us there. Those of us who did want to kayak would meet at the town and walk to the kayak rentals together. This is where I made my first mistake. 

After getting on my life jacket and getting wet, I realized that I had not put sunscreen on my legs. I often skip sunscreen on my legs when I go swimming since they rarely burn (unlike my face and shoulders). But when kayaking, your legs are uncovered and laying helpless under the brutal rays of the sun. To make matters worse, this was at the very beginning of summer, so my legs had been hidden away all winter and were in their most white state. I tried applying some sunscreen, but since I was already wet, it didn’t seem to be soaking in properly. 

Since these kayaks could fit two people each, we paired up those who could swim with those who could not swim. Since we had life jackets on, we were not too worried. My partner and I were doing quite well. We made it to the sandbar and then were off to Sharp Island, reaching our destination well before anyone else. We waited and waited. Another kayak or two showed up but there were still a few missing, including a few former dragon-boaters, so we were starting to get worried. 

Eventually, the four stragglers showed up, exhausted. One of the kayaks had started taking on water when they were halfway to Sharp Island. Of course one of the guys in it could not swim. Thankfully the boat with the former dragon-boaters was nearby, so they asked that guy to grab onto the bag of their kayak and they towed him all the way, putting their dragon boating skills to use. The other guy was left to paddle the slowly sinking kayak the rest of the way to the island. To make things even more exciting, as the crew neared the island, the guy being towed was pushed into some rocks by some waves and cut his hands and arms pretty badly. 

What a day! After all that excitement, no one was really in the mood for much of anything except relaxing on the beach and then finally paddling back to Sai Kung. The injured guy took the boat back, and we all made it home. 

I thought our troubles were over, but as I started to go home, I realized my legs had transformed into two lobster sticks. That was probably the worst sunburn I have ever had. As I gingerly walked out of the MTR, I ran into an acquaintance who worked near my home. He gasped as he saw my legs and said I should go see a doctor. I assured him that it was fine; I had bought some aloe vera gel. White people are used to getting burned. 

While that may have been true, I was not used to burning my nerves. The next morning when I got out of bed to get ready for work, I immediately collapsed as soon as my feet touched the ground. The moment I would try to stand up, it felt like my legs were burning and I was being poked with needles and my limbs were going to explode. I couldn’t walk even one step. 

Thankfully I had taken home an office chair when to work from home, so I could just roll to the bathroom. I spent the next five days rolling around my small apartment. Yes, I could not walk for five days! Apparently the nerves on the front of your shins are very close to the surface, so you can burn them! 

Even if I wanted to go to the doctor, I couldn’t even walk out the door, so I didn’t. A few friends dropped food off for me, and after five days everything seemed to go back to normal.

Who knew kayaking would be so dangerous? 

This weekend I finally went kayaking again, this time with a friend who lives in Sai Kung. I wore leggings, put on sunscreen, and we waited until the harsh glare of the sun had faded a bit before setting out. It was a beautiful trip. We saw fish jumping and even five Chinese magpies! We paddled back home under a pink sky. 

After posting a picture, someone commented on my lack of a life jacket. I guess I just like living dangerously (as long as it doesn’t involve getting a sunburn). Some dangers even I am not willing to face twice.