The ocean as winter wonderland.

I have been researching dry suits for the past two years. Each winter I have opted to spend money on travelling to the tropics instead, usually to downwind camp. This winter, as I stay at home due to the corona virus, I decided it was time to take the polar bear plunge and invest in gear good enough to carry me through a long, socially distant winter, in my local ocean. I do not make the decision lightly, as paddling in cold water drastically increases risk in our sport.

Every time I thought I was heading toward a bona fide review of winter paddling gear, I ended up on one of those websites that is really a shopping channel. After reading every seemingly real paddler’s review on storefront websites and watching the few videos out there, I really had my heart set on a Stohlquist with a built in jacket. Alas, there wasn’t one in my size available anywhere. Inventory is also scarce in this winter of 2020, and there seem to be a lot of newer brands out there I am not familiar with. As much as I looked and looked, I also was not able to find a high-visibility, preferably orange or partially orange suit in my size. Ultimately I defaulted to a color that really is not a good idea in winter water gear - blue - because it was one of the only ones out there in my size and made by the brand I finally decided was my top choice, even beyond Stohlquist. And though I did not prefer blue, the body of the suit is light colored, which is a lot better than black. But it is still sandy colored, so it would be impossible for a rescuer to pick you out of the waves or off the shore in bad conditions.

Kokatat.

UPDATE: Winter of 2022 approaches, which will be winter three in the dry suit. Not only has it held up with frequent winter use (December-April), I also took up SUP surf last winter. This means I submerge every time I go out, as a wipe out in surf is generally guaranteed. The great upshot of the dry suit investment is that the ocean sports do not come to a seasonal end. My fitness level remains high all year round.

I finally rejected the idea of a drysuit with built in jacket, because I can always add layers. I knew that for the freedom to move fully, to rotate through all of my paddling motions, less was going to be more. Stohlquist does not offer a lifetime warranty and Kokatat does. Kokatat also has nice videos on how to maintain and repair your dry suit. The price point on the one I selected was $620 USD and is a Hydrus Swift Entry. When it takes just as long to gear up as you plan to spend on the water, putting gear on can be a bummer. Believe me, it takes longer to put my NRS winter gloves on that it takes to get the Swift Entry suit on. You will be in and out of this in a jiffy.

When I first tried it on, the choking tightness of the latex neck was terrifying. After some internet research, I discovered that Kokatat recommends you just put up with it for your first few paddles. I couldn’t wear it for three minutes let alone three hours, so I defaulted to their other suggestion, which is to use cans to stretch the gaskets in the neck and wrist for 12 hours. I did not need to stretch the wrists, and after an overnight of stretching the neck around a small paint can, the difference was just enough to make the first paddle tolerable. After a few more paddles, the latex remains ever so slightly uncomfortable when I first put it on, then I don’t notice it. TIP: measure your neck then make sure whatever you use to stretch the gasket is a little smaller than your neck, so that you don’t overstretch.

There are considerably more expensive drysuits out there, but as a novice winter gear consumer with a fairly advanced understanding of how much I paddle, under what conditions and also a commitment to taking care of my gear, I figured I would get enough wear and tear out of an entry level priced Kokatat and know enough in 2023-2024 to upgrade if required. But since this suit is repairable, even that may not come into play. But let’s say I wear it 100 times over the next three seasons: that come out to $6.20 per use, which is a far cry from a $620 single use plane ticket to the tropics. Ok, so the reality is, I will use any math to justify my paddling addiction. But in reality that $6.20 is my ticket to a safe paddling in an ocean that would otherwise kill me. Almost every winter someone goes out in my local ocean in blue jeans on a kayak and doesn’t come back. A dry suit is an investment in your life. Never second guess the temperatures. If getting too hot is your worst case scenario (because you literally are sealed inside the suit) then you’re in luck.

The Kokatat Hydrus performs very well while paddling, as it does submerged in water. This suit has built in feet or socks. For me, the key to staying warm is keeping my extremities dry. You will find that air gets trapped in the suit. I realized after a couple of uses I could open up the easy access zipper and bleed out the air, then rezip. I bought “waterproof” socks, which have about a 1mm fleecy neoprene texture and outer seal of some sort. They look like socks and feel like thick socks. Of course you don’t need waterproof socks inside a drysuit, but for me these socks are gear and are not bulky like full neoprene socks. The ones I bought are no-name “Randy Sun” socks I bought on Amazon.

These are my underlayers: I don’t plan on swimming with these socks, but I can say that after getting out of my drysuit I can walk through puddles into my house and no water is absorbed by the socks. $24-$29 USD. As I already have a hard time with the ankle zippers on my NRS farmer John wetsuit, I figured I needed tapering gear to get into my winter paddle boots, so I bought Vaikobi Vcold Flex tights. My legs don’t tend to get cold, and inside the watertight and airtight drysuit, I don’t think I will need thicker neoprene this winter. These tights are a light neoprene like material with fleece and have the uni-rear end to keep you from chafing on seams. They are pretty much the same thickness and softness as the no-name socks. The NRS hydroskin top has lasted me many seasons and still looks brand new.

OUTER GEAR:: I selected NRS Boundary boots and ordered a size up so I could fit my socks and excess drysuit socks (they run puffy big) into them. These boots are waterproof up to the ankle. It is impossible for me not to get water into them, so when I was done and portaging my Kahale across the beach, I was not happy with the water sloshing inside. Water runs out of regular NRS paddle boots, so no sloshing. But before I discounted them entirely, I decided to try them with my NRS farmer john wetsuit on a warmer day. Water still gets in over the top, but once your body warms up that water, that is the water that stays in your boot. With regular, ankle high paddling boots, cold water is constantly exchanging. So, ultimately, the boundary boot offers a significant advantage in keeping the extremities from getting too cold. Since they are mostly neoprene, they are very flexible and do not get in the way of my leg pushes, which is a major factor in paddling power. I love them. $80-$100 USD.

I have owned the NRS Mavericks for a few years, and my first pair has taken on some small holes. The latest versions are thicker or tougher and were very difficult to get on. But this I suspect is part of their newness. I had never experienced them as waterproof. My hands always seem wet. But once the new liquid seam wrists were sealed over the latex gaskets in my Kokatat dry suit sleeves, my hands were indeed dry. The dampness I felt afterwards is the dampness you will feel from paddling in your drysuit: from sweat. As for headgear, I have a neoprene beanie that always rides up, so I don’t use it anymore. I’m sure I will need a full hood at some point this winter, but for now a skimask will be topped by my neon orange Puakea trucker hat. I would still prefer an orange suit, but I’m staying hi-visability with my neon orange PFDs (Vaikobi for now, my more buoyant and thicker Mocke for the cooler winter), and I have switched to my MetaLeash belt. The MetaLeash cuff still easily fits around a drysuit, but the higher the quick-release is, the less you will have to submerge in cold water if you get into trouble.

My Apple watch still connects to GPS and gives me my paddling app features, but without heart rate. You can’t have everything! And you can’t use the touch screen etc. But the upshot is, with the right investment, you can paddle all winter long. Please remember to study the weather and do not go out if there is risk. I can comfortably carry my compact Standard Horizon radio and my bulky ACR beacon in my Vaikobi race PFD. I hope I never use them! Be safe and see you on the water,