Good fortune, intuition and timing helped in the rescue of a kayaker stranded between Moreton and North Stradbroke islands last week.
North Stradbroke Island Volunteer Marine Rescue's vessel was already in the water and docked at One Mile when they received a distress call to scour the South Passage last Monday afternoon.
It's believed two kayakers were trying to paddle from Moreton Island to Straddie when they became caught in the current.
One of the men made it safely to shore on Moreton, but the other became stranded when a wave sunk his kayak.
The Rescue 500 and Polair 2 helicopters were tasked to search the area from above while the Stradbroke VMR boat was immediately deployed north.
When Polair 2 spotted the man floating with a life jacket south west of Moreton Island, the VMR vessel was given coordinates to pick him up.
A North Stradbroke VMR spokesman said the earlier decision to leave the vessel in the water rather than towing it back into the shed saved 15 to 20 minutes of valuable rescue time.
"If we hadn't been out there, they would have needed to send a helicopter from the mainland with a winch and harness," he said.
The kayaker, aged in his 50s was taken to Amity Point for an initial health check, then transported to Manly.
