Kayaker uses ChatGPT for weather, what could go wrong?

I'm 'not a fan' of AI, by a long shot.
A few thoughts on that incident from the news video I watched:
His wife planned the trip, using Chat GPT
Everything was OK until they got behind schedule and outside the time window of the ChatGPT plan.
There was no mention of any attempt to do a self rescue or assisted rescue. The man's immediate tactic was to leave his boat and try to swim for shore, according to what he told the interviewer in the video I saw.
So lots of blame to spread around, and not all the fault of Chat GPT!
 
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I was planning a trip to Desolation Sound last week and wanted to launch from Okeover Arm Provincial Park at the head of Okeover Inlet. I asked Claude when the current would be in our favour for paddling to Hare Point, at the mouth of the inlet. It told me three times to launch at low tide and paddle with the flood. I told Claude he's an idiot and he apologized. I took the extra minute and looked up the tide chart.
 
VIKayaker said:
the head of Okeover Inlet. I asked Claude when the current would be in our favour for paddling to Hare Point, at the mouth of the inlet. It told me three times to launch at low tide
Click to expand...
It's hard to have much confidence in AI- scary that military decisions are being made that way, nowadays.
I guess it depends on who you ask - I posed the question to Google (Gemini?) and got this:

AI Overview
The best time to leave Okeover Inlet to paddle north to Hare Point on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, is between 4:30 AM and 8:30 AM.
Because paddling north through Malaspina Inlet means moving outward toward Desolation Sound, a falling (ebbing) tide creates a highly favorable current at your back.
September 23 Tide Schedule for Okeover Inlet
According to Fisheries and Oceans Canada data for Okeover Inlet Station #08006, the tide cycle is as follows:
High Tide: 3:29 AM (13.2 ft) — Current begins to flow north (ebb)
  • Low Tide: 10:23 AM (5.6 ft) — Current stops flowing north
  • High Tide: 5:25 PM (15.4 ft) — Water flooding south all afternoon
Strategic Departure Windows
  • The Ultimate Window (4:30 AM – 8:30 AM): Leaving early in the morning guarantees the strong push of an ebbing tide. Since sunrise is at 7:07 AM, launching between 6:30 AM and 7:00 AM gives you the perfect mix of dawn light and a swift, favorable current. [1, 2]
  • The High-Noon Battle (Avoid 10:30 AM – 4:30 PM): After the 10:23 AM low tide, massive volumes of water begin rushing back into the inlet. You will be paddling straight into a flood current that can reach up to 3 knots around the narrows near Hare Point.
  • The Late Afternoon Option (After 5:30 PM): If you prefer a late travel window, you can launch as the tide turns to ebb again after 5:25 PM. Keep in mind that sunset is at 7:14 PM, leaving you a narrow two-hour twilight window to reach the campsite safely.
Are you planning to make Hare Point your base camp for the night, or are you hoping to push past Zephine Head into Desolation Sound on the same day?
 
Looking at the Howe Sound - Pam Rocks winds for Sunday Sept 13, I see that at 10 & 11 am it was blowing at least 20 kph from the south, and it stayed 17-19 kph from the south for the next 3 hours. The tide fell 1.9m between about 7am-1pm. The ebb flows particularly fast through the Britannia Beach / Minaty Bay area.

I'd be surprised if the waves were actually 5-6' as described in the article, but the conditions were certainly "big" enough to be very challenging for these paddlers.

This was likely a classic case of tide against wind waves, and the paddlers lost, again. Glad everyone got out ok!

Most of us know that paddling a sea kayak can be really fun and easy, and that seafaring, on the other hand, is a craft that must be learned with time, patience and no small amount of luck.

Dick M, aspiring curmudgeon.
 
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