Just got my first blister from paddling.
No, I’m not complaining, it tells me that I’ve really been out there. I enjoy every moment, when I’m out there- if I gotta muscle through a blister or 2 over time until my skin builds a callous, that’s fine.
It’s like when I started playing guitar, my fingers were on fire and hurting for a couple of weeks or months, I forget, but then it just didn’t anymore.
I might need a day off tomorrow though, I’d include a picture but it looks pretty nasty and would be less than classy.
[quote=“Barbertrails, post:41, topic:46817”]
No, I’m not complaining, it tells me that I’ve really been out there. I enjoy every moment, when I’m out there- if I gotta muscle through a blister or 2 over time until my skin builds a callous, that’s fine.
It’s like when I started playing guitar, my fingers were on fire and hurting for a couple of weeks or months, I forget, but then it just didn’t anymore.
[/
Wow…Interesting to read this tread again after 12 years. I’m still not a glove-fan unless it is cold. In that case I wear Glacier Gloves and I buy then at least one size large to aid in pulling them on over wet hands.
I tried different gloves early on, mostly because I saw experienced paddlers wearing them. Turned out they didn’t work for me. If I am on a trip and develop a blister but the conditions don’t call for gloves to stay warm I use duct tape. Takes care of the abrasion protects the blister.
YMMV
Not any more. I never liked wearing gloves while paddling. If they were protective enough to be warm, they felt really weird for a while. Then, after getting used to using them in the cold, when warm weather arrived, going barehanded felt weird.
The best gloves I used were Glacier Gloves designed for ice climbers.
But I still avoid wearing gloves. One of these days I’ll end up living in the South Seas if this preference for minimalism persists.
1 Like
For years I never considered wearing gloves, but finally I got tired of some of the callous issues. My wife found some low cost partial fingered gloves that she thought looked about right. Well they turned out to be just right and I’m still wearing them after more years than I can recall. I even bought another pair of them at the same store my wife found them at. So far the original pair is still holding up, but they are beginning to wear down. The brand is PowerTex and Style-2200 is the designated type. I wish I had picked up a couple more pairs. I think the price was around $5,00 a pair.
I looked around on the Internet, but couldn’t find those gloves. Anyway if you have a Dollar store in your area, you might check out their polyester work gloves. I use them for wood cutting and they hold up pretty well at one buck a pair.
I don’t WARE gloves but I do wear them, when its cold or if I feel a blister coming on, usually after 10 or 15 miles.
I prefer cheap cloth work gloves, < $5. Favorite is orange “Max Grip” from Menards. Helps to bring a couple of pair when its raining because wet gloves just soften your skin up.
My pair of warm neoprene paddling gloves ($45) wore out after maybe 50 miles, pretty disappointing. The largest size was too tight which may be why.
I also have Buff paddling gloves ($30), OK but the rubber grippy nubbies peel off, no big deal. And deer flies can bite right thru them, who knew?
Also pogies when its cold.
I wear a similar pair of sailing gloves. Made to be wet. Made to protect your “grip” parts of the hand. I find it nice to have the leather when in the swamp around trees and bushes with thorns.
I like not wearing gloves so my hands look like those of a 100 year old farmer after a long trip.
They are excellent for a lot of different uses. Like my sox thread, another tip to walmart–they sell them in something like packs of six. The thicker ones they sell singly, but the thinner ones are in bulks packs. They might seem a bit stiff at first, but as you use them they quickly soften up.
Sun will tear up your hands.