Wetsuit for the winter?

[dgax65]

Originally Posted by Adam12

Is it true that theres a possibility of the waders filling up with water and sinking you if you go overboard?

This should disprove that myth

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYwG52p4yjs

The water inside the waders is the same weight and density as the water outside. It is not going to cause you to sink. If you are floating in still water it won't matter how much water is in your clothes. It is when trying to get out of the water that you will notice the weight. It doesn't matter if it is waders or a baggy jacket; anything that will hold a large volume of water will weight a lot when you try to remove it from the water. Loose clothing will also increase your drag and make it more difficult to swim. This is where the 'killer wader' myth comes from. Guys wearing baggy waders fall into a moving stream or river and the waders act like a drift chute. The moving water acts over a much larger surface area and carries you downstream. You don't have the strength to overcome the force of the water acting over the large sail area of the waders. If you have ever deployed a drift chute, you'll know exactly how the waders would act in moving water. Using the belt with the waders or waders that fit snug will eliminate the danger in moving water. The breathable waders, like the ones made by Hodgeman, don't hold much water. Even if they fill up, there isn't enough weight to make it hard to reenter. I've had more difficulty reentering my kayak wearing cammies than I have with my waders. Any loose or baggy clothing could cause problems in the water. That's why most paddling gear is designed to fit snug.

More important that anything else: always wear a PFD and practice reenty enough times that it becomes second nature.