After taking a gander at the extended forecast through Thanksgiving I thought it'd be a good idea to re-open the topic about hypothermia and proper attire for kayaking in cold waters. Whether you realized it or not when you joined this great sport you exposed yourself to greater risks of suffering hypothermia.

First and foremost try to avoid any wearing cotton if at all possible. It's a poor insulator, holds moisture against your body, and takes a long time to dry; all bad things in the winter. Wool is excellent at insulating (even when wet) and wicking moisture away from your body. It is a bit expensive, but luckily polyester based synthetic fibers (think fleece) can replicate the properties of wool at a much more affordable price.

When I was living in Corpus I could get away with wearing blue jeans and a couple layers of socks under my neoprene waders. It sufficed for the 2 or 3 trips in cold weather we would have down there. I fished with a lot of ex-military guys and they would always try to persuade me to wear wool and fleece and avoid cotton, but I never did. My first winter up here I thought I could dress the same way as I did in Corpus; I thought wrong. I froze my butt off. So with knowledge from my military friends and doing my own research I was going to be more prepared for my second winter.

So now this is how I dress for kayaking and wade fishing during the winter.

I start with knee high silk weight liner socks along with silk weight boxer briefs and under shirt. Then it's a baselayer pant and long sleeve shirt followed by knee high wool socks. The next layer consists of a fleece 1/4 zip sweatshirt and fleece wader pants. Then I'll add one more layer of pants which are kind of like your standard fishing pants but made with slightly thicker material. Everything I wear is designed to pull moisture away from my body. You'll also notice that I wear multiple layers which allows me to remove layers as the outside temperature or my body's temperature rises through the day. While on the water I wear breathable, stockingfoot waders, wading boots, and a lightweight, breathable, windproof rain jacket. This may sound cumbersome and bulky, but I don't feel restricted at all. A fleece beanie, glomitts (fingerless gloves that have the mitten cover flap), and a buff finish off my winter garb.

That's how I dress, and it's done very well for me these past few seasons.

An important thing to remember is when washing wool, fleece or similar clothing don't throw them in the dryer with a dryer sheet like Bounce. Dryer sheets put a film on the fibers and prevent them from wicking moisture. I actually air dry all my winter and summer fishing clothing because of that.

Wearing a PFD is probably more important during the winter than summer. You're going to be wearing more clothing which makes it more difficult to swim and you also don't know how your body is going to react with the shock of entering cold water. You could easily become disorientated or the shock of the cold water could cause you to instantly inhale while under water.

Waders are OK to wear during the winter. If properly worn with a belt they are hard to fill up. If they do fill up with water they don't weigh you down like most people think, however they could make it more difficult to swim or get back into your kayak so you may have to ditch the waders to increase your mobility.

It's also handy to have a second change of clothes in a dry bag in case you go into the water you can immediately change into new clothing.

Anyways, that's how I approach winter fishing to prevent hypothermia while also staying comfortable on the water. There are other ways to dress for winter fishing so hopefully others will chime in.

Great tips Josh

Good thoughts. Thanks Josh!

Thanks Josh. Good reminder!

Great reminder! Even when I'm planning to fish close to launch when its cold I have a drybag with everything I need to continue a trip should I get soaked. More often than not I end up much further from launch than planned.

I'm picking up one of these . 2-Pack: Neoprene Winter Ski Masks...can't beat it for 10.00.

When I first read this title all I could think about was Game Of Thrones lol

Thanks for the tips and reminder.

LOL, yup

I fish year-round from aluminum canoes in DFW area. Certainly don't have quite the challenges of keeping dry (warm) as you yakkers! During winter, in addition to a dry bag containing a COMPLETE change of clothes, I also have lighter, matches, fire starters in waterproof container. Also have extra tear-open type hand warmers. (Typically have two of these activated inside pockets in my over layer prior to start of fishing on cold mornings.) Also, I always have an additional change of clothes always kept in my truck - you never know!

Nice write up my only word of caution is a note on fleece, some is made to perform under wet conditions some is not be sure to get performance fleece.

Awesome information, Josh.

Stay safe out there folks.

About this time of year I stick a tube of liquid nails in my hull. It is so flammable that you can pull a water soaked log out of the lake squirt that liquid nails on it and get it burning.

Good idea. Hand sanitizer works the same way. I don't know if its AS flammable, but being alcohol based, it will definitely burn.