What to wear...

[PeterB]

on a weekend such as this past one ?.

For paddlers, April can indeed be ""the cruellest month", apparel -wise : With the temperatures in the 70’s and 80’s but the water under 50 degrees, i.e. cold enough to kill you before you can swim 200 feet to shore, what to wear on the water becomes a unique challenge. If you dress for immersion, you can get hyperthermic, if you don't ,well...

I got on the water (Portsmouth area) for a few hours this Sunday, and this is what I did: I wore my drysuit with virtually nothing underneath, just a pair of undies. I was pleased to find that the Gore- Tex fabric was not abrasive or uncomfortable against my skin , so my paddle was comfy . I dunked before launching, burping the suit and cooling off for the bargain. And a few more dunkings along the way kept me thermally comfortable. Dunking while underway (I just did some sculling) was no problem, but if it were, I wouldn't have had a problem with landing somewhere and dunking again. Sometimes, I think I'm in a hurry while paddling but I don't really know why.

I brought a hypo kit (pretty simple: one piece fleecy union suit in a drybag) in the event of any unforeseen wet & cold scenarios,.

On glorious early spring weekends such as this, lots of rec boaters were out and about, lured by the first glorious warm air weekend of the year . With such a sunny & festive scene , It’s hard to imagine coming to grief , but a chance capsize : a sliced stroke, caught in some current or eddy (always a possibility on the Piscataqua) , or wake from a power boat could change the mood of the day very quickly.

I talked with gentleman at my put -in who said once he had capsized thirty feet from shore on a similar day and his muscles immediately cramped up, and said only his pfd saved his life. Everybody is a bit different in how they react to immersion.

With so many paddlers around and about in t-shirts, blue jeans, some wth pfds, some not, I found the best approach was to exchange pleasantries and just start a conversation in which info about the water could be inserted in a non-judgmental, friendly way. The pious, I-belong-on-the-water-and–you-dont approach I find to be less useful.

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[gerry s]

I agree Peter. Last weekend was a real test for proper apparel. I stood on the beach debating with myself whether to where a drysuit, wetsuit, or birthday suit (I was so hot standing there trying to decide) I opted for caution, donned the drysuit (aka portable, personal sauna) with minimal under layers. When I entered the water to burp the suit I quickly realized I made the right decision as the cold dry fabric pressed against my skin. I would have been under dressed if caught in an immersion situation. Moral of the story.....it's easier to cool down if needed than to warm up if under dressed.

[djlewis]

I agree Peter. Last weekend was a real test for proper apparel. I stood on the beach debating with myself whether to where a drysuit, wetsuit, or birthday suit (I was so hot standing there trying to decide) I opted for caution, donned the drysuit (aka portable, personal sauna) with minimal under layers. When I entered the water to burp the suit I quickly realized I made the right decision as the cold dry fabric pressed against my skin. I would have been under dressed if caught in an immersion situation. Moral of the story.....it's easier to cool down if needed than to warm up if under dressed.

I faced the same decision last weekend. But given my capacity to generate sweat, I was worried that a dry suit would actually be counter-productive -- I'd be swimming inside, in my own sweat, and then would get evaporative cooling via the breathable gore-tex. So I went with a wet suit -- an NRS Ultra -- with a hydroskin top, figuring that even a dry top might be too much. I rolled, sculled and waded a bit, and was fine. I certainly wouldn't want to spend many minutes swimming, but I think even then I'd be OK if a bit uncomfortable.

I do have doubts about a dry suit with just polypro underneath or no under layer at all. It strikes me that that might actually provide ~less~ protection than a solid wet suit, especially after a few minutes. After all, the gore-text fabric has essentially no insulating power and polypro not much more. All it does is prevent direct contact for immediate heat conduction. But especially if burped (you'd have no air layer inside) you would pretty soon begin to "leak" heat almost as fast as a bare body. At least in a wet suit you have a couple mm of trapped water, which actually is quite a good insulator.

If you only took a momentary dunk in your un/under-insulated dry suit, you may not have felt the effect.

Anyway, I considered that option, and that was my thinking. Make any sense?

--David

[jdkilroy]

I think that this is still very much drysuit weather OR well put together wetsuit outfit. Surfers play in the water all winter in their wet suits. It gets to be a matter of comfort in motion with a wet suit that has adequate thickness to provide protection. With water temps still below 50, I would be concerned that a farmer john could do the job even with a dry top (once you're in the water a dry top is no longer dry)

That said, David's point about insulating layers is essential. Without them the drysuit is marginal protection at best against heat loss.

I have found through a lot of experimenting, discussing the problem with Kokatat and talking to others more experienced than I, that many of the synthetic layers, do not work well to get moisture away from the skin inside the drysuit. I always feel "wet" with synthetic next to my skin. This seems especially true for garments with higher percentages of nylon in them.

My own formula (a person that sweats a lot)

High quality thin wool layer first. (Smartwool) These do well to get moisture away from the skin and out to the next layer (some thickness of fleece usually) for conversion to water vapor and transport through the dry suit membrane.

The torso area (especially for those of us that sweat a lot), will always be a problem but your PFD adds additional insulation to help reduce heat transfer due to being wet.

My legs are covered completely with thin wool long underwear and a thin later of fleece atop that. Feet inside medium socks, again wool.

When water temps are below 40, a one piece fleece "onesie" goes over all of it. I simply have to adjust my paddling; allowing gradual warm-up to prevent excessive sweating.

I spent enough time IN the water this winter to know that I've found a combination of under layers that work to keep me functioning well in very cold water for a length of time that provides a fair margin of safety.

A thin neoprene skull cap (NRS Titanium) is good to at least have in a pfd pocket to get on hour head if you're in the water as heat loss from this area is substantial.

My thinking is that you must dress for immersion. Our trade is littered with stories of those who did not and are no longer here to tell us about it.

Jon

[bob budd]

The drysuit and the layers probably do a fine job of wicking under proper circumstances.

The wicking process in your legs is defeated by putting your legs in your cockpit. The environment inside warms up and reduces/prevents the wicking process of the Gore-Tex which is driven by the inner warmth against the exterior coldth(?).

Next you put on your PFD, which by the way, is a rather substantial insulating layer. This blocks most if not all wicking on a large portion of your torso. Headgear and handwear end up having a substantial effect on your comfort. I carry a (synthetic fabric) vest to tweak whatever I might be wearing, especially if we stop awhile and I catch a chill. I also have a Kates-sized paddle jacket that goes over my PFD so I can quickly alter my dress on the water.

Thus, dampness or even wetness inside the suit. However, do not despair, those who have paddled with non-wicking suits can attest to being much wetter.

Excluding surfing, where at least this paddler gets plenty of opportunities for cooling, when you travel in groups I would suggest that dressing on the warm side is the most responsible thing to do. If you don't have a roll you can dip from a bow. If you do you also have a ready supply of spotters. Also realize that when traveling in groups your hypothermia will effect the rest of the gang. Drink plenty of water and manage your temperature the same way you would on a hike.

[Bob C]

Good thread!

It was at least 75F when we left home in Gloucester, reluctantly wearing drysuits to be dressed for the 41F water rather than the 75F air.

The temperature dropped another 5F at the put in and as we paddled out we crossed a thermocline with another temperature drop, to about 60-65 in the sea breeze, where we remained comfortable. I wore my "lightest" long underwear under the dry suit to have a layer between it and my skin.

Remember, you can always cool down but you can't always warm up -- dress for the water!

[John Martinsen]

I always go warm when I wear the drysuit; the one piece fleece suit over a mid weight top, with synthetic underwear and wool socks. There is usually the too warm phase of the paddle, then I sweat and get things a little damp, then I'm good to go for the rest of the day. When and if I end up in the water in this combo, I feel comfortable enough, and don't feel cold water sucking heat out of me, as I have with lighter under layers in cold water.

[Suz]

Two ways to dress while on the water...

Protected or Unprotected.

Paddling in a dry suit w/o insulation is unprotected.

Only value in paddling with the dry suit on is that when you are out of the water on a warm day, you are dry and comfortable. Without insulation though, you are totally unprotected and would have been safer wearing a wetsuit.

It still comes back to dressing for immersion regardless of whether you are wet or dry. Remember you can always cool off but not warm up. Better to wear a drysuit with appropriate layers and cool off by rolling, scooping water and dipping your wrists in the water.

Suz

[rick stoehrer]

the convention is to dress for the water...if you are wearing a drysuit sans any insulation and the water is 50-ish then i don't see the point in wearing the drysuit personally...wear long sleeve wet top and a pair of of neo bottoms and i'd think you'd be better off should you go into the drink...at least that way there is SOME insulation between your core and bits and the water...with a drysuit san insulation i'd think you'd be dry but just be getting colder and colder.

and then of course you have those days that are 70 or 80 degrees and the water is still chilly as hell and you ponder what to wear? am i going to dress for the water and sweat my face off or dress comfortably and take a chance? i generally think about WHO i am with, WHERE we are going and WHAT is LIKELY the worst that will happen given the day....IF my friends and i are likely to just mess around close to shore in conditions that are unlikely to really really kick our ass AND i am comfortable with them being able to put me back in my boat (we are all just in between swims) THEN i might just wear something appropriate for the air temp BUT i am understanding the likley risks involved.

as ever, risk is personal - wear what you want BUT i personally wouldn't think i have that base covered with a drysuit sans insulation layer.

have fun.