Have you thought of what would happen when you kayak in very cold water?
Excellent periods to paddle are spring and fall. However, the cold water temperatures during these periods keep paddling significantly more harmful.
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What should I wear for 60 degrees kayaking?
Paddlers who get into cold water lose their body heat four to five times faster than when they are in the same air of that temperature.
With such fast heat loss, it could give rise to cold shock, cold incapacitation, hypothermia, and death.
Convection is the primary mechanism of heat loss in cold water. Hence, when water frequently flows over the skin, it then takes away the body’s heat.
Then, cutting down the flow of cold water over the skin, by putting on the right clothing reduces the user’s risk.
What should I wear on 60 degrees kayaking?
| WATER TEMPERATURE | Hypothermia Risk | Appropriate Clothing |
| 60°F and up | low | Clothing for the weather |
| 55-59°F | moderate | Wetsuit or drysuit |
| 45-54°F | high | Drysuit recommended |
| below 45°F | extreme | Drysuit strongly recommended |
Layering for paddlers
Getting dressed to paddle is like any other outdoor activity: in need of layers that can be joined and removed throughout the day to fit the clothing to the changing temperature outdoor.
All clothing chosen must hold back very little water if it gets wet.
Hence a large amount of body heat warming the water in the clothes will be lost. Because of this, cotton clothes must be avoided no matter the price.
Wetsuits and Neoprene paddle wear
A wetsuit is a neoprene cloth that captures a thin layer of water between the skin and itself and also minimizes the distribution of this water.
If this water layer should remain thin, the wetsuit should suit in snugly to fully give the user protection when dipped into water, and then the paddler must not wear clothes beneath the suit.
Wetsuits Pros
- It is not expensive
- It can resist treatments that are rough.
- Provides warmth in cold air.
Wetsuits Cons
- In warm weather, it is hot.
- It cannot keep the user dry
- It cannot breathe (it retains sweat)
- The protection it offers has a limited range (best in the water of 50*F and above)
Dry Suits and Paddling Suits
A dry suit is a garment that is made of waterproof with latex gaskets in all its openings (ankles, wrist, and neck) to hinder water from getting in.
No water undergoes distribution under the skin when it is dipped and the insulating layers worn beneath the suit reduce heat loss to water.
Drysuit Pros
- It offers comfort in a wide temperature range
- it is breathable (releases heat)
- It offers protection from very cold water
- It ensures the user stays dry
Drysuit Cons
- Expensive
- If it tears, it must be fixed speedily.
Under the dry suit, there’s a need for wanting the layer mentioned above. Its danger remains wearing off speedily, giving way to overheat.
Sometimes one lightweight or mid-weight base layer seems enough, one can think about fleece layers during cold conditions.
There are lots of waterproof/breathable fabrics used in dry suits these days, like Gore-Tex or other brands’ proprietary materials.
The most essential qualities of this kind of fabric are life span, abrasion resistance, ease of patching at the field and resists clogging in saltwater.
Dry tops and paddling jackets
A dry top is a jacket that is waterproof, having neck and wrist gaskets and (most times) an over skirt.
It shields from cold water, as far as there was no wet-exit from the kayak. Once the wet-exit is done, reliance then is placed on the clothes worn on the leg and beneath the garment for warmth.
So then, dry tops are excellent for the paddler with a bomb-proof Eskimo roll.
Drytop Pros
- It is less expensive when compared to dry suit
- It offers more comfort than a dry suit in temperatures that are warm
- It is breathable (it releases heat)
- Ensures the user stays dry, accept the user wet-exit.
Drytop Cons
- It is expensive
- Tears must be speedily fixed
- It does not offer cold-water protection, after wet-exiting.
A less expensive choice is the paddling jacket, with coated-Lycra wrist cuffs and a closure at the neck, to shut out most water.
Paddling jackets do not commonly get sealed at the wrist, although, during Eskimo rolls a paddler is certainly going to grab water. So then, paddling jackets cannot be reliable on protecting the user when dipped into cold water.
Is 60 degrees too cold to kayak?
Kayaking remains amongst the safest activities around, specifically on flat water, currents that are mild and in good weather.
Then most times around water there are a few risks.
Wearing a PFD (personal flotation device, or life jacket) assures safety even if there was a capsize
unless the water’s temperature is harmfully cold.
Harmfully cold can certainly mean a different thing for various people.
Someone who swims in cold water and is physically fit would be able to go through being dipped into colder water better than one who has not.
The national center for cold water safety states that any water below 70 F/21 C with cautious.
For water temperature below 60 F/15 C may be threatening to life because of “cold shock.”
The individual would not be able to control his/her breathing, the heart and blood pressure gets affected and the ability to think clearly is lost.
Kayakers are able to kayak in harmful cold water- in very serious cold weather conditions – when they get dressed for it.
Can you kayak in cold water?
Kayakers are able to kayak in harmful cold water- in very serious cold weather conditions – when they get dressed for it. On no situation should you kayak in cold water with warm clothing.
How to dress for kayaking in cool or cold water
- A wetsuit is the least protective tool needed in those conditions.
- A dry suit should be for colder water (and air).
- In hot air but cold water, what seems to be needed is still a wetsuit.
