Nitinat Jellyfish

[Ryball]

Can't help but notice the increasing number of jellyfish in Nitinat Lake over my last few weekends up there. I know this it not uncommon in the later months of the summer but my question is, has anyone ever heard of someone being stung by these guys? How bad are the stings from the type of jellyfish that we see in the lake?

If I make it up there for one final weekend this summer, I think I'll definitely be wearing booties and hope I don't take an epic wipeout face first into a school of jellyfish!

[KUS]

Not professing to know all the species and what they do as far as stings.....

Even the white ones that hold very little coloration at all can sting though.....I did what was likely a headplant into one with an older helmet once and bits and pieces of it slowly slid onto my eyebrow as I was sailing. I got into my eyes and onto the face, stinging quite a bit, and took a while to realize what was going on and why. I have touched the red ones and they burn pretty good depending on which skin contacts. Not too worried about feet but eyes and face is a definite potential.

[downwind dave]

i once got tangled up with a big orange one (i think they are called Lions) while waterstarting, as i came up out of the water it's stingers dragged across my leg from knee to ankle. pain was similar to stinging nettle, went away in about 1/2 hr. i did stop on the caycuse gravel bar and pee on my leg, not sure if it helped much. so on the scale of stingy things, pretty benign. the little blue one that got me in Baja was way worse.

[more force 4]

I think the big ones are "Lion's mane". I've had minor stings - like a wasp when it just nicks you, its gone in a few minutes (yeh, like stinging nettle). I've heard of some other people getting stung a bit more badly but it seems really rare, given when the lion's mane are thick, it seems like the water is 30% jellyfish. There is another kind of jellyfish occasionally at the lake, but she almost never stings, the bark can be quite bad though

As DWD says, NOTHING like those little blue bastards in Mexico.

[AC]

I saw some Dude crash on his head into one, He was almost in Tears .
the only thing i could offer him was for me to piss on his head:)

[SmallWaveSteve]

I was wondering the same thing about those badboys. I almost face planted on a pizza sized red one on the long weekend when I was trying out/figuring out how to jump (good motivation not to crash though i guess?)

[mortontoemike]

I heard that when the orange ones sting you they capture your soul in their tentacles and the Devil feeds on your vital essence. Your soul wanders the underworld hunting endlessly for a bargain fin or Hotsail from iamvwman. Could be an Exaggeration though.

[Vik]

Two little girls were collecting them last weekend barehanded as they washed up on the beach. Based on their smiles and giggles I'd say they weren't getting stung.

I generally ride with low cut booties and 3/4 legged wetsuit. I've not been stung over the last 3yrs. I've stopped thinking about that and just used the jelly fish to gauge my speed as I zip past them.

[Joostio]

With all this fun we have been having with the windsurfers vs the kiters in the Nitinat rules thread I thought I would offer my services to pee on any kiter if attacked by a jelly fish. I guess I had better start growing my mustache and get me some jean cut off shorts. All in good fun.