Had a new one for me yesterday. Landed in a pretty narrow river with about a 4-7 kt current, usually it has a crosswind but this time the wind was blowing 10 kts or so upstream (the perfect situation according to the bible "Seaplane flight instructor's notes") So I land downstream into the wind, but have to turn to get back to my parking beach up stream. Usually I just turn into a bank bump a float and let the current bring my tail around and upstream I go. When I did that the wind on my tail was exactly offsetting the current, so there I was - two floats nosed into the bank and the plane not moving, I got out and tried to pull it around but when I jumped in, it went back to that same position. I finally had to get my guide to get out with me and we manhandled it around to face upstream, I started up and he jumped on the float to ride to parking.

Any ideas/tricks to turn around in these conditions?

Remove the LH water rudder and install a kicker.

Before you beach get out and tie a long rope off your back float cleat, nose in and jump out, pull on the long rope and it will spin. I do it all the time when driving into a beach. Bonus is dry feet.

1. That would not have helped in the situation as outlined, and 2. you are the pilot, your feet should never get wet, what is your guide doing? time to kick them in the ass.

Wes...was there a steep bank and a sloped bank? Steep banks usually have faster flow...so if you nose up to the sloped bank the tails of the floats will be in the faster flow...at least in theory...

...but you probably already accounted for that...

What creek?

It's a challenge for sure. Had it happen a few times in a 185 and once it put the wing in the shore brush. The current's faster in the middle river of course, and gets slower along the edges. It gets even slower if beaching where the shore curves into river center than when the shore curves away from river center (outside of a curve). The current follows the river's outside bends which are usually deeper as a result. Typically the shore brush closely approaches the outside bend and the inside bend can have a mud or gravel bar and not much brush.

So if it was too narrow to turn or wind kept the tail from swinging I'd try to nose into where the current was the fastest providing the shore brush wouldn't interfere with a turn. Leave the rudders down and turn them upstream to catch the current and reduce the wind's effect on the rudder. As the tail comes around retract the rudders so they don't get jammed.

Sometimes it's just best to beach on a bar if available, shut it down, get out, and wrestle the plane pointing in the desired direction with one float on the beach holding the plane. Hurry back aboard and power out into the river. If no wind then it gets easier.

If heavy brush lines both shores and it's a narrow spot land with the intent of going straight to your parking and forget the 180 turn.

During the late '70's at Bettles in a Beaver before they built the float pond we landed downstream into a stiff south breeze. No way to turn the plane in that wind and a shallow gravel bar was just downstream across the entire width (crunch and stuck good?). I shut down and my partner threw our anchor tied to the front cleat out which likely caught bottom and the current turned us back upstream. He cut the rope and I cranked up and made it to the shore dock. We later retrieved the anchor and line with a boat and fish lure. I should have landed downstream of the shallows and figured something else out.

Gary