Air and water temp both 44 on Thanksgiving. Lately the importance of sun and wind are pretty obvious. Low/mid 40s can be great paddling weather if the sun is out and the wind is calm. I was surprised to see a couple of happy and dry turtles out.
The importance of being able to add or remove layers also seems pretty dramatic. If you lose the sunshine or if the north wind picks up one needs to adjust. And don’t be surprised when you get blinded by the late afternoon sun and start losing the heat of the day at 2 pm in the afternoon!
You are more charitable than I, but no, it’s not a good habitat for waterfowl due to lack of cover, forage and fish.
There’s a thin coating of ice across most of it this morning so my 39 deg water temp estimate the other day was probably generous.
I paddle every month but I avoid the Huron River during the heat (and deer flies) of summer. Biggest months on the Huron are April, May, October and November.
It’s all too common that adults make sure that their children are wearing PFDs, but they do not. When the children get into trouble the adults drown trying to help them, whether from cold water, lack of swimming ability, rough water, etc., and the children survive just fine.
A beautiful day (for December) on the Huron in Island Lake Rec Area for a paddle, probably mid-30’s water temp. Other paddlers were a blaze orange hunter in a canoe and a SUP wearing a wet suit.
I have always had the neck gasket blow - albeit repairable - or delam or pinholes or foot seams leak long before any of my drysuit zippers ever leaked at all. Overall the zippers are the most durable part of them. The fabric is much more vulnerable. I adore Goretex but nothing is perfect. Just darned good.
I know people who swear they will always overheat in a drysuit. I personally don’t get it - my roll needs repair each year so when alone I am more likely to do something like a static brace or just pour water all over myself. But I have never been unable to cool off in a drysuit.
There are various reasons a wetsuiit is less practical for me in dicy temps anyway, but even if that were not so I would stay with dry as a preferred solution. Two part separates and allow that some water may come in at the waist also OK.
I’m curious if you do much climbing around at a paddling destination? We do quite a bit of that and I’d need to be taking it off in rocks and sand. Thin neoprene and booties work well for climbing.
Not here. I will often take a break for lunch and hang out, and in Maine you are talking rocks with some sand. But more rocks. But just to walk over to get to something like a picnic table. In warmer weather two piece systems are my preferred solution these days, because I am paddling very conservatively in terms of conditions now going soslo.
Our temperatures made the decision for me. Thanksgiving day I was in Nevada visiting my Mom and Sister. My house-sitter told me we got 22" of snow, and when I came home the next Tuesday night it was still 17" deep.
Lakes are iced over now. Lows at night in the single digits and highs in the low to mid 20s.
I’d hoped to get in a few December trips, but ------- NOPE! Not going to happen!
I’m dun! D U N, dun! It’s hard enough under ideal conditions or when the temperature gets to 85°. When the temperature fmdrops to 60° air and 60° water temp, I don’t like it. Nobody needs to show me stats or convince me to use a PFD. All y’all can have the waterways to yo seffs!
I don’t think its physically possible here in no-salt land for the water to get any colder. The skim ice along the shore today made that cool moving crack-rip sound behind me as my bow wave ran along it. Also pissed off a mink. Ended up with numb fingers and toes but the air wasn’t cold enough for frostbite. No other crazies out today.
Boats with vertical bows like my wife’s QCC 600X or the Epics tend to be stopped dead by even skim ice. My Arluk 1.9 with the typical upswept bow can be paddled through skim ice.
