Unique Perspective This will be an unusual post for me as a WK Ambassador. I am writing this about 7 hours after almost paying the greatest price for the passion we all love. I wanted to share what happened in hopes that others could take safety items away from it. It was 3/19/13 and My friend Mitchell and I drove hoping Big Creek was at a good level. We arrived to find the level at 2.2. A low but doable level for Upper Big Creek. A class IV-V run in the Smokies. Our hike up and run down through the difficult rapids was exciting, but uneventful. It wasn’t until we got about 1/2 mile from the takeout when trouble happened. I finished a class II boogie section and turned bow towards river left. I was checking to see if Mitchell had cleared the rocky mank that was in his path. Suddenly i hit something with my boat that was so jarring that I started to flip down stream. I braced and expected to bounce off but instead I felt the pressure of the water building against my hull. I was hung on something and didn’t know what it was, but suspected it was wood. I reached down and felt a 3″-4″ diam. log that ended in my skirt pinning me against it and it was not breaking loose. I was downstream down and had air so my first instinct was to shimmy off the log. This was a no go. About this time Mitchell floated by and grabbed my paddled asking if I was OK. I yelled help and he was heading to river left as fast as he could. I finally decided to pull my skirt hoping that the boat would flush around me and I could get off the log, At this point I was struggling to stay above water. But when I pulled my skirt synched around the log and it moved against my left leg just below my thigh brace. At this point, as the boat filled with water, I was being pulled down. Realizing I was nearing my last good breath of air I physically and mentally prepared for what was about to happen. I was going to go underwater, maybe for a long time and I had to fight to get out. I grabbed my Knife and took my last breath as I slipped under. I tried frantically to pull the skirt off the log one last time. Then I decided to cut my skirt. I put the knife on the skirt at the log and pulled. It slid right over it, I then realized I had the knife in the wrong direction. The peanut butter spreader edge was against the fabric. I quickly worked to readjust my hold on the knife while being careful not to drop my only lifeline. Just as I got it turned around Mitchell grabbed my PFD and got my head barely above water. I was able then to give him instruction on how to free me. Either the boat needed to come off or the skirt needed to be cut. He tried to move the boat while holding me up but in the end we both decided it was best for him to let me down and to try and move the boat. I took another deep breath and went under. I was holding the log to keep the pressure off my leg and as Mitchell nudged the boat it pinned my hand between the boat and log. I screamed underwater and Mitchell, hearing that, Jerked the boat up a few more inches and it broke free. As it moved past the log my leg was freed and I returned to the surface still hooked to the log, but back to being an air breather. Mitchell had been pulled off the rock into the pool below with the boat, but was quickly back at my side to help free me. Together we were able to pull me forward enough to slip the skirt off and I swam the 5′-7′ in a pool to shore. I wanted to share this story not only to tell boaters of all skill levels to be aware of even the easiest of flow, but also to people an opportunity to look at how they would handle the situation. I gave myself a few seconds to panic when I yelled “Help” to Mitchell. I then told myself that it is time to get to work saving yourself. The skills I have learned in Swift Water Rescue, working with other boaters and experience in rescue situations became invaluable. This is my first swim in 3.5 years and I will swim again. I got up, I paddled out, and I got back on the horse and rode, even if it was just class III. I may not stop paddling, but I did learn from this and I hope all of you can as well. Report with photos: http://regions.worldkayak.com/smokies/2013/03/19/an-unique-perspective/ Video after I was on shore and warming up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ypEUyrHuhg&feature=youtu.be See you on the River Tommy Clapp World Kayak Smokies Ambassador