Not an issue I thought I would have to deal with when I moved to Florida in 2004 but the fact is, it can get quite cold here in the winter and when your plan for the day is to stand waist deep in river water for 6 hours, keeping warm becomes a lot more important.
Within my first few visits to the Peace River in autumn 2012 it became apparent that I would not survive the winter in a wet suit (no matter how thick) and tennis shoes with wool socks.
Chemical handwarmers put out limited warmth in the open air so I quickly started wrapping them inside a fleece top that was then placed inside a plastic trash bag thus creating a little hothouse environment for my feet every time I had to get out to warm up. But I hated getting out of the water! It cut into my digging time and I had to remove all the wet gear on my feet, dry them, warm them, then pull everything back on every time I needed to get warm.
I went to Gander Mountain, a store I actively despise, to purchase a butane hand warmer. Three different sales associates acted like I was trying to buy crack cocaine off the shelf, avoiding eye contact and saying things like, "We've never had anything like THAT here." Really?!
A local friend sent me a link on FaceBook for the Caddis System waders made for women. I initially balked at the $130 price tag but I had a little Christmas money burning a hole in my pocket and it was very chilly out so I decided to splurge. OF COURSE the only place in town I could buy them was Gander Mountain but I drove to the store with a bad cold, dressed in sweats, and bought a set. The salesman asked what size I wanted and I said "large" because I am 5'9" and it seems like most adult clothing in sporting goods stores is sized for tweens but to the credit of the Caddis System company, the "large" was actually LARGE and I had to drive right back and trade them for a "medium".
It's no accident that "Caddis" sounds somewhat like "Caddie" coz these waders are super sweet! While everyone around me is blue-lipped and shivering, I am toasty warm, cradled in dry wool socks, heavy fleece leggings and a warm shirt. My arms get a little wet, since I am digging in a river but that's manageable.
By the time it got warm enough to switch back to a wet suit, I had ordered a thick pair of dive boots off of Amazon and when the forecast is chilly, I throw everything in the back of my truck and sort it out when I get there.
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