wetsuits

Not sure how cold the waters get in Australia or SA but here in North Florida the Gulf gets down to 52-55 F (11-13 C)
Never having been on a ski in the cold not sure about what to wear. My search here turned up CAG , some type of dry top I'm not familiar with.

If any of you paddle in cold waters what do you wear?
Please bear in mind that being new to all this I fully expect to be swimming from time to time.

In my kayak it's neo booties, poly pants and poly top. I imagine being in the water will require more protection. Does anybody wear a wetsuit when they paddle ?

i paddle in France , now the water is about 10 ° and about 3° in winter time , so i wear a Hiko wetsuit (www.hikosport.com/jobline-fly-1897/), if i swim and i swim sometime i'm shure to be dry and safe . i just choose the underwear to be not too warm or not too cold .

I think there was a thread a few weeks back on cold water paddling. One tough thing about fitness paddling is overheating while you're out of the water and getting hypothermia when you're in the water : (
especially when the air is warm and the water is cold (common on Lake Superior MN where I occasionally paddle in the summer)

But there are a lot of options.

Sleeveless "farmerjohn" wetsuit
- Arm movement not restricted at all, rotation works well too
- most "vented" won't overheat
-not as warm when in the water, lets more water in at large arm openings

Full suit
- much warmer than farmerjohn and a given thickness (both in and out of the water)
-depending on the suit, movement might be more restricted
But I use a triathalon suit with really stretchy thin (2mm) neoprene

-If the air is warm, I would recommend a few "planned swims" to keep from overheating. It's easy to cool off in 50 degree water (and safer than paddling in something that will not keep you warm)


Drysuit
-much more expensive than wetsuits ($500-$800)
-Can be much warmer
-can adjust how warm they are by your insulation layers underneath
-super slow to swim in


-In the other thread a lot of members mentioned polypropylene. But I would not be comfortable in a tippy boat and 50F water in something that will not insulate you while swimming

gets pretty cold down here (NZ)






We wear a variety of gear, usually a thermal layer "craft" make some good cheap ones. then a top like sharkskin from aust ( i usually use the vest and a light wind proof cycling jacket). or the silvery "titanuim" (not sure of brand)
a paddle jacket if it enough below zero air temp.and pogees if its like -5 to-10 deg out but i've never fallen off and had to swim.
legs, i wear either cycling long thermals/leg warmers, a lycra type with a micro fleese inside.
or sharkskins, and a light wind proof pants if there is some rain or choppy water. If really cold some wear NRS drypants, they make a good range of gear for cold, but this can get too hot.

regarding wet suits...I've been using a 3mm john style from XCEL along the Central California coast with the water in the middle 50's. The advantage of the farmer John style is that you can roll the top down and wear it like a pair of neoprene pants, which is what I do most of the time. If the conditions are big and nasty and the water is cold having the John all the way up with a thin poly shirt and a paddling jacket can get you plenty warm. If you get a wet suit try to make sure that the seams are sealed. Cheaper wetsuits like the ones from NRS are not.

Had a mild winter last year in Pennsylvania and I paddled in 28 f weather using NRS Hydroskins and their tall waterproof boots. I'll do it again this year if the waters dont freeze but this time Ive got the Hyrdoskin gloves to match. No more chilly fingers. NRS makes some pretty good stuff if you want to check them out.

Physio wrote: gets pretty cold down here (NZ)

We wear a variety of gear, usually a thermal layer "craft" make some good cheap ones. then a top like sharkskin from aust ( i usually use the vest and a light wind proof cycling jacket). or the silvery "titanuim" (not sure of brand)
a paddle jacket if it enough below zero air temp.and pogees if its like -5 to-10 deg out but i've never fallen off and had to swim.
legs, i wear either cycling long thermals/leg warmers, a lycra type with a micro fleese inside.
or sharkskins, and a light wind proof pants if there is some rain or choppy water. If really cold some wear NRS drypants, they make a good range of gear for cold, but this can get too hot.

could your stroke be too long?. i start pulling my paddle out of the water when i am at my knees.

wintermutt wrote:
could your stroke be too long?. i start pulling my paddle out of the water when i am at my knees.

I'm the one at the back. I'll pass on your comments to jkk
paddling at 1 kph is prob not the time to analyse stroke, and since he's been paddling, teaching people to paddle and building boats since I was at school I'm prob not the person to correct him.

LOL. I think JKK should go for paddling lessons! Maybe get a faster boat too... (Love my UFO)

Slightly off-topic but what precautions do you take with your ski when storing your ski in below-zero conditions. I use my ski almost daily throughout the winter and am worried about ice damage (about-8ºC at night).

Bloody hell! What's the approx water temp? Likelihood of ditching on any given paddle? Worst experience?

Winter Perth mean approx 18ºC, below double digits from time-to-time with river water temp maybe 15º-17ºC (low 60'sF). Absloutely bloody freezing as far as I'm concerned compared to our summer water temps of 22ºC )low 70's). I find it mind-buggering how others paddle regularly in temps way below this.

Agree with all above for our cold (sleeveless wettie, sharkskin or maybe poly pro top as well). While one does heat up during a paddle I just wonder about safety (hypothermia) of paddling in the freezing cold you describe after going for a swim or three.

Rod, good point I have never considered how the cold effects the ski in storage, mine is always stored inside, but jkk has a sea of boats on his back lawn often under inches of snow.

Watto, the water temps dont vary too much, but I have never fallen off in winter, so usually cold from freezing rain is what we are dealing with.

Swimming in the rivers in spring more of an issue as the glacial melt can make water temps freeezing and often 3-4 hrs before you can get to a warm car.

Hello, I live in sweden and most common to use down to 11-13C is neoprene pants and thermal layer + a light windproof jacket or a thin 0,5mm neoprene shirt with windproof jacket.

I used NRS Rodeo pants and two thermal layers, one wool and one polyester with a windproof cycling jacket over. This worked well for me in 12C air/water even if I had to swim a few times. The pants are quire high in the waist so they protect your belly and lower back.

Temperatures are currently around +5..10 C (air) and 10C water.
For flat conditions I use running or cycling tights and thin running shirt with a windbreaker on top, if windy.

For choppy conditions I've been using 4 mm farmer John wetsuit with lycra shirt and for cooler days a Helly Hansen paddling top.

Today I went out with my Palm Aleutian Exp drysuit and it felt like paddling in a sauna. After 1.5 hours of paddling (no swimming) I could pour liquid out of the integrated socks and the Odlo mid-warm base-layer was completely soaked. Hope this will be reduced when approaching 0 C. Makes me think that Gore-Tex is the way to go for more intensive paddling...

Thin neopren gloves have been perfect up to now (down to +1 C) and have't needed the bogies yet.