Good article on clothing options for staying dry

Came across this last night on another kayak fishing forum while doing some research on dry suits... good reading.

Here's an excerpt from an article that I recently wrote for a magazine. It covers the subject.

"I’m not telling you how to dress. As of my writing this there isn’t the perfect clothing to wear in a kayak. The safest thing to wear would be a one-piece, breathable, waterproof dry suit. A good one will cost as much as a kayak. Each individual has to weigh the merits of each article of clothing they put on and acknowledge that this is a risk sport. Cold water is extremely life threatening and to ignore this is asking for disaster. I can only tell you how many others and I tackle this important subject. We do so by wearing underlying insulating layers and an outer layer that keeps us dry. Some people wear wet suits as a first layer and then wear outer layers that I’ll describe a bit later. Should you decide to go the wet suit route I recommend that you get one that allows for good movement. I would think that suits made for surfing will do nicely. I wear items that are versatile. I’ll describe what I prefer to wear. So let’s work from the skin outward. There are a lot of things that you can wear. You want a layer next to the skin that’s comfortable but also as the ability to wick away moister. Paddling is exercise and you will sweat. Moisture if it’s allowed to accumulate next to the skin could and probably will cause you to become chilled when you stop and fish. You can wear polypro underwear, etc. but by far the best base layer I have found is a product called Mysteriosoä. It’s a high tech clothing system that’s simply amazing. Everyone I know who uses it feels the same way too. It’s hard to describe as it does so many things extremely well. For this application I wear it like long underwear. It has a fleece inside that feels fantastic next to the skin. It dries very quickly and wicks moisture away from the skin. It has the insulating equivalent of a 1-mil wetsuit and can be used as such or under a lighter wetsuit to increase it’s insulation. (If used as a wetsuit or underneath one its best used in a size smaller then you would for an underwear application. You’ll want the tighter fit. It has a great deal of stretch.) It even has an anti-bacterial treatment that really works. You can wear it days on end and it stays fresh. It’s a terrific feature when going away. No need to bring lots of clothing along. You’ll end up washing it when you get a chance and it’s very easy to care for. Cold water washing that you can do practically anywhere because it dries so fast. I can go on and on but you get the point. If its really cold out you can use fleece as your next layer. Check out flea markets as you can get both bottoms and tops at great prices. I find when my base layer of Mysterioso isn’t enough some fleece or a Mysterioso short sleeve or vest as my next layer to be just the ticket with Mysterioso again being my preference as it has less bulk and affords great range of movement.

I feel very strongly that the outer layer needs to be waterproof. You don’t want to get wet. The best thing you can wear is a one-piece dry suit. I use what is essentially a 2-piece dry system which I feel for my purposes provides a high level of protection and a much greater degree of versatility. As I mentioned earlier there isn’t specific clothing made for what we do. Wetsuits are designed for use in the water and require a layer of water between the suit and the skin that is warmed by the body. Our primary objective here is to stay out of the water and keep dry. Should we happen to end up in the water we want to get out ASAP and continue to remain dry. Kayak fishing is a relatively small sport and a great deal of its participation is in warm or temperate environments where this discussion isn’t necessary. As it grows in popularity there’s going to be more participation in colder climes. Eventually the sport will have its own specific clothing. Until that day comes we must borrow from similar sports. Since specific clothing for our purpose doesn’t exist we look to what is closest to our intended purpose. Whitewater kayaking has clothing designed for extreme environments and dealing with cold water and total immersion by its practitioners in the water. In white water kayaking there are tops that are made specifically for the sport. Participants of white water are often upside and the system they use keeps them dry. These tops are called dry tops as they’re designed to prevent water from entering. They consist of wrist and neck closures that keep water out. These closures consist of latex, neoprene or both. Often Velcro is used as the outer layer on the wrists. The waist is a 2-part system consisting of an inner sleeve and then an outer closure system. They’re used in conjunction with a skirt. Some use elastic outer and I back these up with a wading belt. The best ones have an elastic and Velcro pull system that cinches the outer layer over the skirt. If your kayak happens to be a Sit-In design then you can use this system with your kayak.

Most of us are using SOTs (Sit On Top kayaks) and the skirt isn’t an option, however we can use this to our advantage. There are a few different pants options we can employ with these dry tops. There are specific waterproof/breathable pants made for whitewater kayaking. They have terrific ankle and waist closures. For the feet you use neoprene socks and kayak boots. Instead of kayak pants I’ve been using breathable waist high waders. They have built in neoprene booties and a belted waist. The waist closure isn’t as good as the kayak pants however they still work well and I prefer having the attached neoprene booties of the waders. I do a lot of wading when I go kayak fishing and with the waders there isn’t any possibility of water seeping in. Both are used the same way. The inner sleeve gets tucked into the pants and then the outer closure system goes over the waist. The third option is to use chest high breathable waders. They’re not as good as pants or waist highs mentioned above because they only offer a single seal mechanism for the waist. The first two bottoms provide the security of a double system. Most anglers already own a set of chest highs and with the addition of a wading belt I’ve found that they make a very good system for our purpose. If you plan on fishing a lot either early or late in the season seriously consider the first two options if you want the best protection. Stocking foot waders are preferred for this as the boots are then a separate item providing a snugger fit. (Depending upon the environment I plan on fishing I can then choose from a few different pairs of kayak and flats boots.) Here’s how I set them up. Keep in mind that you won’t be able to tuck the inner sleeve into the chest highs. When using a dry top with chest highs I use a wading belt over the inner sleeve above where the closure system of the outer sleeve is secured. This provides a good seal but I must reiterate that it’s not my first choice and with extremely cold water I’d opt for the first two. I’ve used chest highs for years with only a splash top in moderate weather and for the time that I’ve spent in the water it has kept me dry. The splash top I use doesn’t provide as good a seal as a dry top but one’s that I’ve used have a similar waist seal as the better dry tops. The wrists and neck seals aren’t nearly as good with most splash tops and hence the name.

There are some additional items that you either should or must have along. Always wear a PFD. There are some incredibly comfortable units on the market so there isn’t any excuse not to wear one at all times. We loose the majority of our heat through our heads. The best headwear on the market is the Aquaskinz. This is a very serious unit. Mysterioso makes headgear too. At the very least you should have a hat made from a material that’ll keep your head warm when wet: fleece or wool. Also have a pair of gloves or two along. Neoprene that keeps you dry is best. There are many manufacturers of good gloves like NRS, Stearns, Glacier, etc. If it’s warm enough that you don’t need them keep them keep a set handy just in case. Weather is fickle.

So now you should have a better idea on how to outfit yourself for the early season. After a long winter everyone’s anxious to get out on the water and catch some fish. Don’t make a careless mistake. Prepare for the worst, hope it never happens, and enjoy a longer season. I do."

baja55@optonline.net

baja55@optonline.net is registered here as JonS here.  I just happen to be fishing with him up in AK this summer.   

-Allen

wow, teaching, the way it should be.. from experience, and from the heart..

Seems like there would be at least a small market for a wader company to take their standard waist highs and add a tall neoprene closure system at the top, ala whitewater dry pants,  and sell them for kayak fishing.