Cold Weather Kayaking

Kayaking, and therefore kayak fishing is an outdoor sport. It exposes its participants to the elements. As we know weather can be unpredictable. If you are caught unprepared the consequences and results could be life threatening. One of the hottest topics asked by people entering the sport is "What do you wear when the weather gets cold?" Actually as important as this question is, it should be "What should I wear and bring along with me?" What we have to be on the lookout and prepare for is exposure. Exposure to the elements in the outdoors is the single greatest cause of death. It far exceeds drowning. The culprit is hypothermia, which is the body's inability to maintain heat. Both wind and water can pull heat from our body but immersion in cold water is the most dangerous. So we must take into consideration the air temperature and water temperature, and the wind. If we only had to deal with air-temperature, it would be a easy, however as much as people don't want to face up to it, kayak fishing is a water sport and you will get wet. It might only be the runoff from your paddle or the spray from waves but whether in a SIK (sit in kayak) or a SOT (sit on top kayak) you will have to be prepared for it. A general rule is that you have to be prepared for the water temperature and immersion in it. That's what you need to dress for.

One thing that we hear oRen here in our home waters of the Northeast is that people decide to put off the purchase of their first kayak in the Fall and wish to wait until the Spring when its warmer. Summer is definitely the best time to learn the sport but Fall is the second best time to get started here. Water maintains homeostasis, which in simple terms means that it retains temperature. After a summer of heating the water is relatively warm. Conversely in the Spring, after a Winter of cooling, we find the coldest temperatures of the year. Also in the Fall the air temperature is often cooler so we dress more appropriately, since we tend to dress for the air temps rather than the water temps. Not understanding this and dressing improperly for immersion is the greatest cause of death in this sport. So before we discuss what to wear, we're going to tell a few stories about some unfortunate people who didn't prepare for their environment, and the consequences. We do so because it's a much better way to get our point across and easier to understand real situations rather then theory.

Example 1 - About 5 years ago we had a very cold winter. In early April the water temperature was only about 45 degrees. As oRen happens at this time of year we had a series of 80 degree days. A young couple decided to take out a jet ski in Long Island Sound and enjoy the beautiful weather. They dressed for the air temperature, never giving the frigid waters a thought. They had typical summer attire when they should have been wearing, at the very least, wetsuits. They ended up getting tossed from the jet-ski, hypothermia set in almost immediately, paralyzing their muscles, which prevented them from swimming back and climbing onto the jet-ski. Both of them died. YOU MUST BE PREPARED TO BE IMMERSED THE WATER Immersion is highly unlikely but you have to be prepared and dress for it.

Example 2 - Another near tragedy happened this past December when a kayaker went out alone on a fairly nice day and on his return back he found himself in seas that were too big and couldn't get back. He decided to wait it out on some rocks in the middle of the Bay, as it got dark he was stuck out there and on the verge of freezing. He hadn't been prepared for the chance that he might have to spend some time out of his kayak and exposed to the elements. He didn't have extra clothing or a cell phone, and only had one flare. Luckily someone on shore saw his lone flare when he fired it and they called for help. I am sure when he started out on his paddle on a nice 50 degree day he didn't think he would have to deal with the dropping temperatures caused by wind which resulted in a 20 degree wind-chill. YOU CAN NEVERPACK ENOUGH CLOTHES!

Example 3 - Hypothermia doesn't only happen when the water's cold or the air. It can happen any time of year and almost anywhere. We go into a situation where we were unprepared for the environment in July in Florida no less. We were kayak fishing the Gulf Coast Flats and the weather was hot and humid. You had to run the air conditioner in the motel room and vehicles. The heat was brutal. We were out fishing and had come upon the first island on our way to a further island. A thunderstorm was off in the distance so we decided to stop and fish near the first island before proceeding further. It started to rain and then we determined the lightning was getting closer. Here we were on a tropical island approximately 20 minutes from our starting point. We recognized that the storm was going to pass over us so we decided to beach our kayaks on the island and take shelter in the jungle. The storm passed right over us and the lightning was all around. The rain was torrential and we got soaked. Here we were wearing only t-shirts and shorts for the sweltering weather that was the norm. The temperature dropped and it was very windy. We began to shiver. This is the first stage of loosing body heat. The storm wasn't showing any signs of letting up and after close to an hour of shivering we realized that we couldn't continue to loose body heat.

As we thought of things that we could do to provide warmth or insulation, we realized that our PFDs would do the task. So we put them on and fortunately they provided enough insulation that our shivering stopped. We saw an opening in the storm and made a mad dash back to the mainland. Shortly after getting back the storm intensified and for the next few hours it was severe. If we hadn't taken advantage of the short weather window and returned to the mainland we were not prepared to spend a few to several hours on the island. The adventure could have been an ordeal; we were very fortunate that it became a valuable learning experience instead. We were both amazed at how cold we got in Florida on a July day. Teeth chattering cold! So you can't really judge what will happen on the water in a couple hours time, so you have be prepared, no matter what the weather is, when you launch.

Example 4 - There is a phenomenon in southern California called the Santa Ana winds; warm inland heating and the exchange between the hot land and the cold ocean create them. These winds can form quickly and can come roaring down canyons towards the coast. They can be very powerful and wind speeds of 50 mph or higher are common. The waters of southern California are cold considering their latitude. That's because its currents come from the north and bring the cold water from there. Also the waters, even very close to shore are extremely deep, so the sun has little opportunity to warm them much. Wetsuits are normal attire for water sports because of this. I don't recall the specifics but I believe that 2 people were out kayaking. They had wetsuits on but unfortunately they got caught in a Santa Ana. Its 50 plus mph offshore winds were impossible to paddle against. They even had a cell phone and called for help. The result was that they were blown far from shore. The winds created rough seas and they constantly got soaked. The wetsuits they were wearing were incapable of protecting them from the wind chill. Their bodies couldn't heat the trapped water layer fast enough to prevent hypothermia. Before rescue agencies could find them they had succumbed to exposure.

There is a formula that is often used which combines the air and water temperatures. It's called the rule of 120. Supposedly if you were to add both values and get a figure over 120 you should be fine. This is nonsense. One can be very safe well below this value and in trouble well over it. It all depends upon what you wear and what you take along with you. The Florida example was probably over 160 when we started the day and still easily 140 while our teeth were rattling.

So what should you wear? There are several choices and combinations of those choices. What's great is clothing has come a long way recently and we are the beneficiaries. No longer are we limited to some rubber-band feeling wetsuit that irritates the skin. We now have new materials, which are lighter, warmer, more flexible, and much more wind and waterproof. Gear that not only provides greater protection, but its comfortable too. No one piece of clothing or system will cover all situations. All have their strengths and weaknesses. By understanding them and utilizing a variety of options you can safely fish in practically any conditions.

There are many considerations to think about when picking kayak wear. Two are especially important. They are weather and where you're going to fish.

Weather: Obviously you have to take into consideration the weather. This consists of a few factors: air temperature, the wind status and precipitation, or the likely hood of either or both. None of these variables are singular. By this we mean that they are interdependent. You can't dress for only one. Review the stories above if you have any doubts. You need to dress for the most severe of the factors that you will encounter or bring along appropriate items should they arise. In the Spring, for instance, you can have a wide variety of air temperatures, but your constant, which you much recognize, is going to be the water temperature. So this is what you must dress for. The wind can significantly change how you feel. Wind chill is the event where wind passes over living things. It pulls moisture away and has a cooling or chilling. So wind chill is a function of temperature that isn't indicated by a thermometer. It's dangerous when you're wet especially when it's combined with low temperatures. As the Florida example shows it doesn't have to be very cold to be a concern.

Destination: How close will you be to shore and what is your access to somewhere that you can stop at to change clothes? Some of our local waters where we fish a lot have many small islands, and rock piles. There are many places to go ashore, whether to add or peel off layers and dry off and change if necessary. We also have a lot of shallow water areas that we call flats. Often you can stand, even though you may be miles from shore. If you need to add, or take off a layer of grab a shell, etc. you simply hop out of the kayak and do so. Conversely if the area I'm fishing doesn't give me this ability I have to plan with more thought to the subject to better prepare myself.

Now that we've considered and discussed these factors, let's get to the clothing.

Dry suit - This is the big daddy of thermal protection, a dry suit is waterproof, and the better ones are breathable. It's essentially a body suit to protect you from the elements. It certainly has its place but for most situations its overkill. You could create too much body heat within the system and overheat. That brings up something important. Paddling, which is our means of locomotion, does produce heat and perspiration. We need to wear under garments that have the ability to pull moisture away from the skin. One needs to use fibers that can transport the moisture but not stay wet. If you do decide to get a dry suit it's also important that it be breathable. The moisture you create must have the ability to escape. A dry suit is a great choice for winter use especially if you're going to be far from shore.

Dry Top and Pants - Same idea as the dry suit with the seals around waist, ankles and wrists but can be worn separately or together. You definitely have more of a chance of water getting in with a top and bottom set as opposed to a full dry suit.

Waders - Many people think in the event that you should end up in the water waders will fill and pull you to the bottom. This is a misconception. The specific gravity of the water inside the waders is exactly the same as the water around you. So they won't pull you down. ESPN recently did a segment showing this. Should you end up in the water with waders on and they fill up you will find it difficult, if not impossible, to get back on your kayak. So what you need to do is keep the water out. All waders, to begin with, are not created equal. There are several materials that are used. The neoprene or breathable style of wader makes a very good item of clothing to wear when additional clothing is used with it to form a system. For kayak fishing stocking foot models are better than boot foot ones but many simply use what they have. The stocking foots allow you to wear more kayak specific boots that will function better than boot foot modes. In the event that water should enter the system it won't enter the boot. A system that is used by many is breathable, stocking foot waders and a kayak dry top.

There are several configurations of tops but the common denominator if that they have very good waist and wrist seals. Some models have rubber, neck gaskets, just like a dry suit, and some have a Velcro closure system. If you're wearing a life vest, and you should, than your head will be above water and the weaker Velcro system will work fine. A pair of breathable waders when combined with a breathable dry top forms a very versatile system that works extremely well for a wide range of conditions. The waders actually trap air and act as additional flotation. The other nice thing about waders is that the kayak fisherman often uses the kayak as transportation to go wade fishing. Waders are designed for use while wading and all other forms or clothing don't do this job as well while keeping you dry.

Wetsuits - Wetsuits work by trapping water between your body and skin and heating it up, the problem with wetsuits use to be that when you are out of the water and water flushed out you were cold again. Also most wetsuits are designed to function in the water. As kayak fisherman, we spend the majority, and hopefully, all of our time out of the water. Some of the new suits are made to block wind and have fleece on inside to wick moisture away from the body. There are some terrific suits out there now. They come in a variety of styles too, and you have to choose between full, farmer john, shorty or even in just shirt or pant types. The Farmer John type is the best because it doesn't restrict paddling.

Spray Jackets and Pants - Nobody should be without some spray wear and its important to buy spray wear that is breathable or you will heat up and perspire. This moisture won't be able to escape and at the very least you'll feel clammy, but it can also chill you. Spray jackets and pants can be used in a variety of ways. They can be used in the summer, when an extra layer is needed. In the Florida adventure told above they're all that would have been needed to prevent our shivering. We would have remained dry and warm and would have had been protected from the wind. The two of us always have a set along now. We often find that the addition of a jacket is all we need on summer nights in the northeast. They can be used over a wetsuit to provide wind, and or rain protection. This way the wetsuit protects you should you go in the water and the spray gear does the same when you're out of the water. A hooded jacket can even be used over a dry suit or system to keep the rain off. Many of them pack up quite small and come in their own carrying bag. So there really isn't any excuse not to have a set in a dry bag, just is case.

First Layer Insulation - The only time you won't need this is when its warm out otherwise this is important. This is where you will start any clothing strategy. If your core gets wet and moisture stays there you will be cold no matter what you are wearing on the outside. You want to wear modern synthetic fibers. These fibers have a myriad of functions, but most important is that they retain their insulation properties when wet. Fleece, polypropylene, capilene, etc. are great to start with because they wick moisture away. There have been recent advances and one such item is a product called Mysterioso. At present this is the best first layer material on the market. Mysterioso is so advanced that our military uses a version of it for their cold weather operations. It has many terrific features. It works great when wet and is super fast drying. It has a wind barrier too. Surfers have been using it for years and is can add up to 2MM of warmth to a wetsuit. It can even be worn as a light wetsuit. Some of the synthetic materials like polyester are OK for first later but stay away from cotton.

Hats, Booties and Gloves - Not that you don't have enough to think about but you will need to keep head, hands and feet warm. Booties are mostly Neoprene and work like the wetsuit, you should wear some fleece socks, at the very least wool, or something similar to keep from feeling clammy. Your head is responsible for 50% of your heat loss. So if its cold out a hat can be vital. At the very least bring a wool hat along. Wool, though a natural fiber, still insulates when wet. There are better ways to protect against heat loss. Modern caps made out of high tech materials will keep you warm and dry. It's not smart to wear high tech clothing and then forget about your head. Gloves, again you may need to protect your hands, and for optimum protection in cold weather, and fishing, you need to bring some along. There are essentially 2 styles of gloves used in kayak fishing. It's a very good idea to bring along both styles of gloves: those that expose the fingers and normal gloves. Both have their use. For fishing, an exposed finger or fingers are oftentimes necessary. Paddling in inclement weather is much better done with a closed, waterproof system. For cold weather fishing, we recommend having both along.

Now you should have a broader knowledge of some the clothing out there that you can use for colder weather situations, you still might wonder what is best for system for my kayak fishing situation. Since we're all different with different needs its something that only you can determine. See what other kayak fisherman are using in your area. This is a great place to start. Here in the Northeast we use most of the time either a wetsuit or wader and dry top system. We then layer appropriately for the conditions. We bring along a dry bag with extra layers and items which increases the range and flexibility of the system. Sometimes we need to shed a layer as the day warms or conditions change. We have gone out for as many as 12 hours in one day's fishing and encountered several environments. Up at Cape Cod we would start in a sunny bay in the morning, fish the out going tide and eventually ending up out on the ocean. Conditions changed a lot and we needed a variety of clothing to be both comfortable and safe. Here a dry bag is invaluable for both storage, and keeping items DRY. Should you dump and get wet its nice to have a spare set of dry things to put on. This has saved more than one day on the water.

As you participate in this sport, you're going to encounter a lot of environments and weather. By giving the subject some for thought, you can safely and comfortably fish most situations.

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Provided by: Joe Cambria
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