Although atmospheric electricity is one the oldest of the atmospheric sciences, it is also one of the least mature. Two areas in which we are especially ignorant are 'ball lightning' and 'how lightning behaves when it hits water'. First of all, lightning certainly does hit water. There is a wealth of photographic evidence that shows this. We hypothesize that lightning hitting water spreads out mostly along the surface of the water and the more electrically conductive the water is, e.g. salt water, the more it stays near the surface. How far it spreads out along water and remains a danger is even more uncertain. Lightning striking ground can still be dangerous over 100 feet from where it struck. Some believe lightning will go even further in water, because it's a conductor. But lightning in ground often spreads out in 'ground streamers', quasi-radial tendrils of electricity, which allows it to go farther than if it was dissipating uniforming. Some believe lightning is less likely to form these streamers in water, dissipating more uniformly. So the total area affected may be larger than on land, because water is a better conductor, but the distance it remains dangerous may be less, since it may not form ground (sic) streamers. However, I'm extremely confident that "6 feet to the post" is insanely inadequate for safety. At that distance, you're in danger of a lightning 'side flash' from the post through the air to you, even before it finds the water. General lightning safety guidance uses 6 miles as a reasonable compromise between safety and lifestyle impact. So... no splash!!! I hope this helped Source - http://www.mikeholt.com/mojonewsarchive/LSP-HTML/HTML/LightningQuestions~20020716.htm