I'm going to use my Feathercraft Java on a kayak guiding course next month. Down here in South Africa, it's winter and the Java is a pretty wet ride. The course will be held on a fairly protected lagoon and consist of some pretty long paddling days. Water temp will be anything from 12-18 degrees Centigrade (about 53-65F). So, not that cold but it does get wearying after a while in a wet boat. Air temps will be mild to warm (16-23 deg C). What kind of gear would you recommend? There will be plenty of practice wet exits/re-entries (not that that is much of a mission with the Java :-)) but I loathe paddling in a wetsuit. Would dry pants be overkill? And do dry pants breathe? I will be wearing rubber booties. Thanks in advance for your advice. Cheers, Paul *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>What kind of gear would you recommend? There will be plenty of practice wet >exits/re-entries (not that that is much of a mission with the Java :-)) but I >oathe paddling in a wetsuit. Would dry pants be overkill? And do dry pants >breathe? I will be wearing rubber booties. Hi Paul, What you should wear is going to depend a lot on your own body fat percentage and tolerance for cold and wet - and your tolerance for risk. I can tell you what I would wear though - perhaps you will find that helpful. At the temperatures you are describing, and given that you will be traveling with an experienced group (thus limiting expe ted time in the water), I would avoid a full dry suit. My (admittedly limited) experience with dry suits is that they can overheat very quickly and there is no easy way to make thermal adjustments on the water. Note that I have quite a lot of "built-in" insulation in my body (fat), rather like a walrus, and overheating is often an issue for me. The fabric tends to make noise with every paddle stroke and the tight clamping at the neck and wrists makes me claustrophobic. You also stand a good chance of tearing your expensive drysuit during all the rescue/reentry drills, particularly if you are working with boats with rudders or other sharp parts. My preference would be a wet-suit with an optional paddling jacket for breezy days Mark G.. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On Wed, Jun 22, 2011 at 5:18 AM, Paul Ash <AshP_at_sundaytimes.co.za> wrote: > > What kind of gear would you recommend? There will be plenty of practice wet > exits/re-entries (not that that is much of a mission with the Java :-)) but > I loathe paddling in a wetsuit. Would dry pants be overkill? And do dry > pants breathe? I will be wearing rubber booties. > > Before I got a drysuit I had a two-piece Kokatat outfit that was lightweight and comfortable in warm weather, relatively inexpensive, and quiet. The pants were made of "Tropos" material which is not as sturdy as the material NRS uses (or Kokatat, for that matter) in their more expensive suits. However the pants were "farmer john" types in that they had a bib and the separate top could be mated with the pants by rolling together the bottom of the top and the mid-section of the pants. My problem with the suit was that it was gasketed at the ankles and because I have difficulty bending my left leg it was difficult (and tiring) to put on and sometimes almost impossible to get off. I'm not sure how they'd stand up to repeated exits/entries on a boat with lots of doodads on the decks. However they are light weight, breathable, comfortable to wear, and less expensive than a complete drysuit. Link to NRS (where I bought mine): Pants: http://www.nrsweb.com/shop/product.asp?pfid=2261&pdeptid=1173 Note: I can't find the link to the Kokatat matching top at NRS but any drytop with a two-part bottom (one around your torso and the other for over your spray-deck) would probably work with the pants. Craig Jungers Moses Lake, WA www.nwkayaking.net www.bigboxbikes.com *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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