Frankfort, KY - Being stranded on an island is something we’ve all pondered. What one music CD would we want to have with us? Which celebrity do you wish could be marooned along side you? Sun, sand, and sea seem like paradise. All the while, the true perils of being lost and helpless on an island rarely enter the picture.

Such was the case one December day on a barren stretch of Barren River in south central Kentucky. Not the first place you’d think to find an island, but two Kentucky sportsmen are sure glad they did.

Steven Gray of Glasgow and Ed Jarriel of Magnolia learned first-hand what Kentucky Wildlife and Boating Officers have long cautioned when boating in cold and cooler seasons.

"Winters can be deceiving. We had 60-degree days in January, but a sudden jump in air temperature in no way translates to ideal boating conditions." says officer Brett Zalla with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife. "That water is still cold and is an unbelievable shock to your body if you get tossed overboard. Hypothermia - freezing to death - is a risk that too often gets ignored," he says.

The off-season doesn’t put boating off limits. It is still an exhilarating time for anglers, for those running whitewater rapids, and for waterfowl hunting, as was the case on this particular Friday when the temperature climbed into the 50s.

Because of the high release rate of water from the Barren River Lake dam, the tailwater flow was swift. Gray and Jerriel are longtime hunting companions. They knew this stream as well as they knew the mallards they sought. But they didn’t know that a virtual obstacle course of trees, current, and debris were waiting miles downstream that would render them more likely to bag a catastrophe.

"We went under one tree, around another one, and were trying to dig into the water to veer left. The current didn’t let us do that," describes Gray. "The current forced us to go parallel with yet another tree that had fallen into the stream. When we hit the tree, the canoe tipped and started taking on water. In seconds, the canoe was on its side. It was pinned against the tree, we couldn’t pick it up, we couldn’t do anything."

It was early afternoon, the men were straddled atop a downed tree trying to free their canoe that was trapped and partially submerged beneath them. After an hour of failed attempts and their bodies numb from the cold, their only refuge was the small island from which the tree had fallen. To reach it meant a splashing dash through even more bone-chilling water.

"From the root wad to the bank was about 10 feet. I figured I could swim that far even fighting the current. I told Ed to sit tight and I’d see if there was a place we could get off the island but there was really no place for us to go, " recalls Gray.

As reality set in, they saw their predicament deteriorate from embarrassing mishap to bona vide debacle. The men were physically drained with no provisions and no escape. Their island was surrounded by swift current and stiflingly cold water.

Jerriel said, "We thought we were prepared but we weren’t. We had food, water, a few emergency items, we even had a cell phone but it was in a flotation bag. When we lost the canoe, we lost it all. So all the preparation was for naught."

Gray shared his polyester fleece with Jerriel who had worn mainly cotton attire, another caution for the off-season. Cotton has no insulating value and does not dry quickly. Cotton, as well as cotton blends, are a danger if relied upon for cold/wet recreation. Hypothermia was a threat and a near certainty if the either tried to swim the frigid river to either bank and nearby farmland. Days are short in winter, and night and falling temperatures were approaching.

At the end of the work day, Gray’s wife, Sheila, came home to an unexpectedly empty house and began to worry. After all, Steven was scheduled to work second shift and it is not his character to run late. She made several calls and drove to the put-in and take-out points along Barren River. She found their trucks untouched. Shaken, she turned to Ranger Bob’s, a popular bait shop, to notify authorities.

"It was night fall when I got the call," Zalla said. "We were almost three hours into the search. Both wives and some of the family members were growing concerned and I was too. I couldn’t get it out of my head, if they were ok, why hadn’t they contacted someone? We kept up hope and kept up our search but it was starting to look grim."

Meanwhile back on the island, Jerriel and Gray had found some plastic and constructed a makeshift lean-to for protection from the wind. Underneath, they huddled next to their dog for warmth. The men fully expected they would be found but believed it would be the next day before a search would be launched. Mentally, at least, they were prepared for a long night.

The Corp of Engineers slowed the release from the lake allowing the Allen County Rescue Squad to make their way down the dark river corridor. Search lights beamed bank to bank as searchers shouted their names. "Steven! Eddie!" They paused. "Can anyone hear us?" The night air gave no response.

Radio cross-talk between Rescue 1 and Officer Zalla who was positioned at the dam with the family, revealed no promising news that the hunters had survived. Minutes seemed like hours. And minutes were many.

Zalla said there was a bright spot in this ordeal, "They had planned their hunt and hunted the plan. One of hunters’ wives knew where they were going and what time they were expected home. When that didn’t happen, she became concerned. Knowing details of where they were supposed to be made it a whole lot easier on us as rescuers to know where to look."

"On the island, their mental self control was probably their life saver," Zalla believes. "They accepted their predicament. They talked to stay alert and upbeat knowing they were likely in for an extended stay."

The search continued though the probability that the men would be found alive was bleak. Then, the shouts from the Allen County Rescue Squad caught the ears of the deserted shivering men and they shouted back with all their might. At 11:00 p.m., the patrol radio report cut through the gloom, "We have them. They’re alive." Family members who had feared the worst, feared no more.

Even without the stressful events of the day, this was still no ordinary Friday, it was New Year’s eve. "What a way to celebrate. It basically went unnoticed." Gray said, "When we arrived at the Highway 101 bridge where the Allen County Ambulance was waiting, we glanced at our watches and noticed it was nearly midnight, but we were just so happy to be alive and getting warm that New Year’s Eve didn’t matter at that point. We were just happy to be with our families."

Jerriel says with all his years in the outdoors, "this brings to the forefront that accidents can happen in a split second and you have to be ready for that. Even though we thought we were prepared, we weren’t."

These island images are far from those in our tropical imaginations, but are ones water safety officials hope we’ll remember. We never expect tragedy to happen to us and the presumption that it won’t is often what puts us in danger.

"Water safety is a water tight idea," Zalla reminds us. He and fellow law enforcement officers around Kentucky recommend a check list: Tell someone your plan and stick to it. Keep emergency items, including your lifejacket, securely on you. Wear proper clothing and realize that very cold water is waiting just below that unseasonably warm air.

Mid-May through the heat of summer is Kentucky’s recreational boating season but for many Kentuckians, the love of the water and the thrill of the outdoors is year ‘round. The message in a bottle found in all of this is be prepared.

You never know what’s around the bend.

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