I'm the wader king.. I rarely kayak without waders.
Have worn them in 90 degree temps, have worn them when the temps never got above 29 degrees. For me it all about comfort of being in a kayak for 10 hour days, rain or shine, wind, or storm, anywhere.
My first kayak was a Perception Illusion. The design of kayak was what impressed me the most about it... 27 inch beam, low profile, paddled like a dream.. which meant it wasn't nearly as affected by wind as other sit on top kayaks. The downside was that you sat below the water line, making even less wind profile, and the seat was constantly filled with water.. no drainage until there was over a inch in seat. Seat pads would help raise you up but you lose a lot of stability in rough conditions. Had to find a way to waterproof my azz. Not only did the waders do that, but they kept mosquitoes and no seeums off me. In the hottest months of the year in the Everglades, I would often get an itchy rash from the hydroids that seemed to show up every summer. Another plus was that during summer rain storms, if you got soaked and it was windy, you were going to be cold until you dried up and the temps got back up. Waders were the lessor of all evils. Never cold, never had chiggers, or no seeums, or mosquito bites to worry about, never had to go to shore and change into rain gear... and it even kept the sun off.
Started out with booted neoprene waders, have been using orvis breathable stocking foot waders with relief zipper for the last 8. Will never buy another set of waders that don't have the zipper. The older you get, the more you'll use it. I don't stand in my narrow beamed kayaks so I gotta have a way to whizz from the sitting position. Going to land is not an option as the places I fish I never want to get out of my kayak. Now I did think the booted waders were the way to go until I tried the stocking foot. I never felt comfortable wearing wading boots over stocking foot, especially in the winter time when you'd be wearing a couple of pairs of wool socks. So I just don't wear boots and carry my crocks in kayak if I ever get stranded and need to walk out. Throw in some chemical warmers in the stocking feet, some in the hand warmer pockets of waders, and with a little paddling you can overheat in the coldest conditions. With experience you can adjust the amount of warmers to make life really comfortable.
Now they do get hot in the summer time, but I can pour water on outside of waders and they'll cool right off. I can pull the chest area of waders down too, as long as I've got the waist belt on, you're not going to have water pouring in like Niagra Falls if you go over. Now it might be different if you're fly fishing a cold fast running river and try to stand up facing upstream... I doubt the waders would fill even like that if you had the chest strap and waist strap properly adjusted.
I don't like fish slime all over my fishing clothes... I like to be able to take my waders off, and go straight to the club!
Note: Orvis doesn't make the waders I bought 8 years ago... they must have had problems keeping them waterproof. I don't care, if I fall in water I'm out and back in kayak in 10 seconds. Might take on some water that trickles down but its not going to be enough to end my day.
May be pulling the trigger on one of these soon.
https://www.orvis.com/p/men-s-pro-zipper-waders/20n1https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urrQUx9KALkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFnptxeba4UHere is the best option if you are the type that wear covid masks. Completely seals around neck and wrists... been there done that with the two piece systems and its not for me.
https://kokatat.com/activity/kayak-fishing/