Cold weather/cold hands

[Gcosloy]

For me the question may be mostly academic, I seem to suffer from tendenitis in the elbows when the temperatures dip below 50 from paddling, but the more serious concern is that my hands get cold and are difficult to warm up. This has happened in the 40's with 10-15K winds first with light neoprene gloves and then later with 3mm NRS reactor gloves which have very tight cuffs. Jason K. has already suggested Pogies. What are cold weather paddlers experiences with them? Are light gloves worn under them? Looking for a solution; please advise.

[Bill Gwynn]

I have also found the reactor gloves too tight and uncomfortable. Thinner gloves and pogies together work well. For real extreme cold you can go with the nordic blue gloves. They are truly waterproof with a latex wrist gasket. You will give up a lot of dexterity, and they are a pain in the butt to get on without help, but they will keep you warm and dry.

[EEL]

my hands get cold and are difficult to warm up. This has happened in the 40's with 10-15K winds first with light neoprene gloves and then later with 3mm NRS reactor gloves which have very tight cuffs.

I know the feeling as I suffered frostbite (real deal black finger tips) on both hands and they are sensitive. I have not used Pogies since they do not seem GP friendly, but agree with Bill G. that the Reactors are too stiff. I like good tactile feedback from the paddle since it is not good to be upside down in cold water and have to guess at how you are holding the paddle and fumble around, or just not getting feedback on strokes. I have heard at least one well regarded coach say he favored pogies for this reason. Chota makes some nice neoprene gloves that are windproof that I have found good when the water is below 50 and the air below 40. I think the convection cooling with typical neoprene gloves makes them limited to modest temps. When it gets cold, I need mittens. You can find three fingered gloves at dive shops and those have worked for me when it is as cold as I care to paddle (when in less lucid and sane periods) which is around 25 with water in the 30s.

Ed Lawson

[jdkilroy]

I have injured and frost nipped my fingers on both hands so they are very sensitive to the cold. Cold translates as pain.

I find that with any kind of glove, my fingers get cold and painful. My solution is Pogies. I use Pogies all winter with nothing underneath and my hands stay toasty warm; even on the coldest windiest days. That said, when my hands have to come out of the Pogies, they get very cold very fast; this can become an issue in cold weather rescues, re-entries etc.

I love my Pogies.

[Bill Gwynn]

I have injured and frost nipped my fingers on both hands so they are very sensitive to the cold. Cold translates as pain.

I find that with any kind of glove, my fingers get cold and painful. My solution is Pogies. I use Pogies all winter with nothing underneath and my hands stay toasty warm; even on the coldest windiest days. That said, when my hands have to come out of the Pogies, they get very cold very fast; this can become an issue in cold weather rescues, re-entries etc.

I love my Pogies.

Hey Jon,

Have you tried just some thin gloves under your pogies? They may be enough to "take the edge off" when you need to do things with your hands out of the pogies.

[Michael_Crouse]

I going to say it before one of our founders does....

Wal-Mart sell neoprene gloves, they're cheap and they're warm.

Another trick is a thermos of hot water, during a shore break fill up the glove with hot water, dump it out, wait.... wait........ now put the glove back on.

Pogies? some people love them, some people hate them, borrow a pair and try them. I like them since I can loan them to someone else if their hands get cold.

Gloves that are too tight and/or wrist gaskets that are too tight might be your problem.

Have you tried the NRS mittens? Most people find that they're too warm!

[bob budd]

"Gloves that are too tight and/or wrist gaskets that are too tight might be your problem."

This speaks to circulation. When you body gets cold it can reduce or eliminate blood flow in the extremities. "If your hands are cold, put on a hat" some would say. That is, your hands may be cold because your core temperature is low.

I use Nordic Blues, yeah they kinda suck in a few ways but nothing else keeps me warm and I just don't want to deal with cold hands. "Chill blanes" (sp?) are painful. No amount of dexterity is going to make up for stiff, etc. hands when they are cold. When you get them, the gasket most likely will need to be trimmed for optimal fit/circulation. Always remember you can cut more off but not less.

Off hand (had to do it) I don't see why couldn't modify chotas to mount in the "regular" GP positions if you wanted to. Rolling from "combat position", etc. can eliminate the need for extended paddle maneuvers for the bulk of the time thus keeping the piggies in the blanket. I hear purists gagging...

[cgr]

Hey Jon,

Have you tried just some thin gloves under your pogies? They may be enough to "take the edge off" when you need to do things with your hands out of the pogies.

I was paddling on the deerfield a few weeks ago(temps in the 20's) and one of the women with us was using pogies. She said that she is finds her hands to be warmer if she doesn't wear gloves inside the pogies.

I have the reactor gloves and the toaster mittens. I've only used the mittens once so far, but I've been happy with them.

http://www.nrsweb.com/shop/product.asp?pfi...amp;deptid=1149

[great_blue]

I am also curious about pogies, although I do think they'd be less than ideal during a swim in cold weather. Thin gloves worn under them would help, I guess, but would they be warm enough by themselves (in the water)? In any case, it seems you would need wear both to be on the safe side and I've been ok so far with just gloves in non-arctic conditions.

What I'm wondering is if people prefer the neoprene or nylon/breathable type? Thanks.

Jon

[subaruguru]

I have the reactor gloves and the toaster mittens. I've only used the mittens once so far, but I've been happy with them.

Looks like NRS has discontinued the toaster mittens as they're dumping the remaining XL at 1/2 price. ($17.50) Nice deal for big hands....

[jason]

I am also curious about pogies, although I do think they'd be less than ideal during a swim in cold weather. Thin gloves worn under them would help, I guess, but would they be warm enough by themselves (in the water)? In any case, it seems you would need wear both to be on the safe side and I've been ok so far with just gloves in non-arctic conditions.

What I'm wondering is if people prefer the neoprene or nylon/breathable type? Thanks.

Jon

Jon,

I very much like the neoprene pogies. When I have attempted gloves under them my hands have been cold. Pogies without gloves are nice and warm. I haven't had a pair to test but fleece lined nylon pogies are supposed to be very nice too.

If it's a cold enough day I will keep a pair of heavy fleece gloves in my pdf to put on when I am off the water or hopefully not swimming but I could use them for that too.

-Jason

[Brian Nystrom]

I agree with Mr. Budd that dry gloves are the way to go. Nordic Blues work well, but are a bit of a pain to put on. If you buy them, you want to get them a bit large, as the added room makes them warmer. You may also need to trim the seals as you would on a dry suit or drytop, or they may cut off your blood circulation, resulting in cold hands.

You can also make your own version of Nordic Blues by gluing wrist seals onto Atlas lined fisherman's gloves, which are available for ~$20 at marine suppliers that cater to commercial fishing. You don't save a lot compared to the price of NBs, but I made mine using the slightly lighter weight orange Atlas gloves, which I find to be more flexible and better suited to paddling.

I've seen Deep See Dry Comfort Gloves mentioned on Paddling.net. They look interesting online, but I haven't seen them in person. It appears that they may be designed to be used under the wrist seals on dry suits and tops.

http://www.deepseeinc.com/products/dry_comfort.html

[Pintail]

Aside from neoprene and "blue" gloves, I read this talk about "pogies"...really? As in: http://goodmorninggloucester.wordpress.com/n?

Hmm: you guys have weird taste!

Ask me: I'm full of useless (but interesting) information...

[subaruguru]

I've seen Deep See Dry Comfort Gloves mentioned on Paddling.net. They look interesting online, but I haven't seen them in person. It appears that they may be designed to be used under the wrist seals on dry suits and tops.

http://www.deepseeinc.com/products/dry_comfort.html

Hi Brian and Jason,

I'm a fan of skin-out neo as a drysuit neck, so these look quite intriguing.

I have both K's thin and Warmer's thick neo pogies to try soon (tomorrow?), and am intrigued by the possibility of use without gloves.

Thanks for the tips.

Ern

[Bill H]

I also suffer from cold fingers when I paddle in the winter, I tried the Reactor gloves and found that thy are either too tight or too loose. On a trip back from Bar Harbor I stopped at

LL Bean and found a pair of 3mm neoprene That fit great and seemed to be warm, but after paddling with them 3-4 some of the seams started to split open and finding on days below

35 degrees that my fingers were still getting cold. I did repair the gloves and will keep them foe a spare pair. Since then I bought a pair of fleece lined neoprene 3mm gloves from a local surf shop ( Cinnamon Rainbows) and a pair of 2mm neoprene Glacier gloves from campmor. I still find with all the gloves I have bought my finger tips get cold, but the neoprene gloves are the best I've found yet. I think its from my hands sweating inside the gloves. So my plans are to bring a couple pairs of gloves with me and change to a new pair half way through the paddle and maybe add a thin pair of liners.

Bill H

[cathyfoley]

For me the question may be mostly academic, I seem to suffer from tendenitis in the elbows when the temperatures dip below 50 from paddling, but the more serious concern is that my hands get cold and are difficult to warm up. This has happened in the 40's with 10-15K winds first with light neoprene gloves and then later with 3mm NRS reactor gloves which have very tight cuffs. Jason K. has already suggested Pogies. What are cold weather paddlers experiences with them? Are light gloves worn under them? Looking for a solution; please advise.

Gene:

Try Glacier Gloves. I have used them for 3 years and never had cold hands. You have to make sure you get a pair that fits. They give how to measure on their website.

[PeterB]

I am also curious about pogies, although I do think they'd be less than ideal during a swim in cold weather. Thin gloves worn under them would help, I guess, but would they be warm enough by themselves (in the water)? In any case, it seems you would need wear both to be on the safe side and I've been ok so far with just gloves in non-arctic conditions.

What I'm wondering is if people prefer the neoprene or nylon/breathable type? Thanks.

Jon

Hey Great Blue,

Poagies usually are affixed to the paddle shaft (velcro and/or snaps) so they would stay on the paddle in the event of a swim; to use your hands you would extract them from the sleeves.

I bought a pair of poagies several years ago, but they had long fairly tight fitting nylon sleeves, so you have to pull them on and off like gloves; no good, nay useless for paddling , IMO, since at any time you might need to free your hands from your paddle quickly.

I would recommend neoprene poagies with stubby sleeves. I just got a pair of Wildwasser neoprene supra shorties, which are awesome; the sleeve even has a ring in it so it stays open, so getting hands in or out is fast and easy.

http://www.sierraoutdoorcenter.com/PoGloves.html

[cathyfoley]

my hands are warm just reading all this good advice

[Ken C]

my hands are warm just reading all this good advice

Not a lot new to add but what the heck....

I've always used the Chota 3mm Flece/Neo Gloves, or the Nordic Blues. I always carry both and various weight liners for the Nordic Blues.

The Chota's have always worked well in all but those cold windy days. But sadly all neo gloves suffer seam failure eventually. Thus the spares.

I have found myself using my Nordics more lately. I have found the liners supplied are a pain due to their length. I use 2 different weight liners depending on conditions. I will second Brian's comment that they can be a pain to put on. But shorter liners do help that a bit.

Ken

[jdkilroy]

One of the most frustrating and, in my experience, compromising aspects of gloves for paddling is that if you need to remove them during the paddle and your hands are wet (or even damp) it can be very difficult to get them off and then back on. That is one area where the short neoprene pogies shine. We use the Snapdragon brand pogies and they have been flawless as long as your hands remain within them.

Jon

[Brian Nystrom]

I have found myself using my Nordics more lately. I have found the liners supplied are a pain due to their length. I use 2 different weight liners depending on conditions. I will second Brian's comment that they can be a pain to put on. But shorter liners do help that a bit.

I toss the stock liners and use wools liners with the cuffs cut off, to eliminate any length problems. If you want to use the stock liners, you can do the same thing with them, cut off the cuffs and hem the edges. Carrying multiple sets of liners allows you to change to dry liners partway through the day (your hands will sweat in the gloves), or to adjust for different temps.

[cgr]

I was at the Bass Pro shop in Foxboro tonight and when you first enter the store they have a bin of gloves on sale. They have Glacier Gloves for 7.95. (m,l,xl) These are the ones that have the thumb & index finger that will peel 1/2 back, most of them seemed to be fleece lined.

[Gcosloy]

Thank you all for the good advise. After two episodes of cold and painful hands around the middle of November last year it was with some trepidation that I launched for the first time this year yesterday. The air was about 40 over the water with about 6k wind. I found my 3mm Warmer Pogies amazing. Hands were toasty. So much so I switched to 1mm gloves after a few miles. However, same problem happened stopping for lunch. On the beach bare hands got cold again and the wet neo gloves offered no comfort. After launching in the mild surf I switched back to the pogies and my hands warmed up in no time at all. Bare hands seem best under the pogies. Now I'm sorry the cold weather is over and I can't test them in colder air temperatures. I think I'm a convert. Thanks again!!!