All right, I finally got down here to San Diego and need to get out on the water. The couple time I’ve been in the Pacific, it was pretty cold. What does everyone wear? Is a dry top suffiecient?
Thanks,
Chris
Wet suit
usually works. Farmer Jane / John, and a paddle jacket are pretty good. Booties help the feet, and you may want a neoprene head thingy for your brain freeze.
wetsuit
or fuzzy rubber. The water was still pretty warm last weekend.
For what kind of paddling?
If I am just going to be seakayaking I wear a NRS hydroskin farmer John and rash guard. I layer it with a hydroskin longsleeve top, a very light polarfleece shirt and a NRs splash jacket/semi dry top depending on the temperature. Water is actually pretty warm still. 63 -65 F. Gets pretty warm paddling with more than the rash guard and farmer john if its sunny.
For surfing I’ve started wearing my 3/2 wetsuit for cooler mornings, it gets kind of warm in the sun though. When the water is colder Dec - March I have Oneil 2 mm neoprene shorts I wear under the wet suit and I’ll wear the NRS semi dry top on cold mornings. If it’s really cold I wear a hydroskin top under the wetsuit.
This time of year,
– Last Updated: Oct-19-06 9:40 AM EST –
I am starting to put my shorts and lycra rashguard away and start using a shorty farmer john, muklucks and occaisionally a semi-dry top.
As it gets colder, I will start using a full length farmer john, hydraskin rashguard, mukluck, semi-dry top, and sometimes a hood if I'm going to do a lot of rolling.
Birdwells, t-shirt ( yes cotton) over
capilene long sleeve or cut off sleeves depending on day / time.
Getting wet, still Birdwells + NRS L.S. Hydro.
Cut down O’Neil freak sneaks on the ski or canoe once air gets colder.
Pat, you’re gonna die.
Everybody knows cotton kills, no matter what the water and air temps are 
Neoprene bottoms or FJ
with 1 layer 200 wt fleece under a spray top.
Last time I paddled out of the channel
it was kind of cool morning with a good breeze I met a guy on a paddle board who had come about 15 miles in board trunks that morning he must have started well before it was light. … brrrrrr
The longer you live here the wimpier you get, I used to swim in November in swim trunks, not a very pleasant thought now.
Not worried, the swimming threads +
everyone says skills will keep me in the boat anyway … ; 0
Yeah, the paddle board guys are pretty hardcore year round … and they are the most exposed IMO … half in, half out of the water 100%.
Guess I need
to get some gear!
A Thong…
most of the year. Probably 3 mm FJ, .5 hydroskin or neo top and a drytop for added vesatility at this time of year.
Of course, there is also a matter of individual tolerance and adaptibility to the environment. I go to Santa Cruz in March and everyone is complaining about 50 water as being cold. Coming from New England where water is usually hovering in the 30’s., SC water felt incredibly warm.
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