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Old 06-06-2018, 12:39 PM
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steelslaver steelslaver is offline
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Ya, I would ditch the plastic box. A metal ammo can would be better, you can boil water in it or carry water in it. A small back back would be best because it would leave both hands free.

Some big plastic contractor bags would be better than a sheet of plastic. I would switch mine out.

I used to commercial fish in Alaska, sometimes in areas with no boats around for miles. Every crewman had a tough foam survival suit. In the bottom of each leg of my suit Was an old low top tennis shoe and inside each shoe I had a plastic soap box taped shut. Inside one was a small folding knife, fish hooks, some heavy line, waxed matches wrapped in saran wrap, some fire starter. The other one was full of hard candy and had a space blanket wrapped around it and taped to it. The suit itself had a small flash light with a fresh dated D cell and a whistle connected to it with a big safety type pin. At the top of each leg was a empty opened plastic garbage bag. The sipper was waxed all then the suit was folded and rolled up and put inside a bag. According to Coast guard rules we had to practice donning our suit once a month. Jerk it out of the bag, roll it out stick your feet in the setup garbage bag (not required but if you had any kind of shoes on they made you feet slip in the legs way better) arms in arms and hood up, grab zipper and close up suit. The zipper went over your chi right up to your mouth. The feet were huge and had one way valves to allow any water that got inside out. Plenty of room for the extra gear. The arms had attached mittens and there was a blow up collar tohelp you float right. Suits are orange. I think you were required to don it and have it zipped in 90 seconds. I had the shoes in case something happened at night. I think once you got to shore in SE Alaska food and water were no problem. Rained all the time. Low tide would revile all kinds of marine life. The suit would keep you warm. . But, no shoes would suck.. Its mostly rocks there.

Biggest fear? Boat rolling over at night, power would go out, dark water flooding in, disorientated, have to make your way from for'sle to ladder way in engine room up (now down) to galley and out galley door? Probably drown like a panicked rat in a sack.

I fished out of Anacortes WA. In Feb 1983 2 crabs boats from there rolled over. The Americus and the Altair and 14 good men never made it off them God bless their souls.
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