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“How To” Waders
Years of wintertime surf wading led me to refine my gear for safety, function, and comfort. I’ll be quick to share if I ever find a better combination.
Before David Sikes took over the outdoor desk at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, our outdoor writer for many years was Buddy Gough. Buddy had tagged along on an outing with me, fishing down island for wintertime speckled trout in the surf. He came back and wrote a real nice feature article in the Sunday outdoors section about it. I received numerous phone calls from people interested in booking a trip for winter trout.
One call struck me as odd; it was to arrange a trip for five adults from Dallas, but when I mentioned the need to bring waders the individual casually assured me his group would do fine without them. Well along comes charter day and the conditions and water are great although it was in the mid-40s temperature-wise and overcast with a north wind. I knew right where the fish were and what they'd hit, so after a lengthy drive down the beach I stopped and told the customers the correct lures were already tied on their lines and all they had to do was get them off the rod rack and get after the fish.
They all five grabbed rods and went to stand at the water's edge holding their rods and reels, totally motionless. And then suddenly I snapped to what was going on and I hesitantly asked, "None of you knows how to cast; not one of you?"
They all shook their heads no; one spoke up saying they were not aware of the fact they would have to actually do their own casting. Now I get folks who can't cast now and then but not five of them at one time and certainly not on a lure fishing trip. It turned out the guy that booked the trip had been right all along; if you can't cast you sure as hell didn't need waders.
I let them stay dry at first and taught them to cast the spinning rigs from dry sand. Then I nurtured them through the dynamics of the correct retrieve and fighting fish. Then I walked out knee deep and caught and released two nice trout on two casts just to show them the fish were there. Then I told them to not go out past waist deep and left it to them. They cast better than I would ever have believed and they caught quite a few nice trout before the icy water and cold north wind got the best of them. Every year I have individuals who don't wear waders, but very few last all day. Common sense would dictate that you are not performing at your best if you are miserably cold and wet. Nothing is colder than wet wading in denim jeans in a 20-plus north wind on a cloudy day.
Some of the younger kayak fishermen wear wetsuits instead of waders but the rest of us have three options to choose from. The old school, heavy-rubberized canvas waders with built-in boots, insulated stocking-foot neoprene waders, or stocking-foot breathable waders the latter two with wading booties of some sort. Looking at the pros and cons of each type is interesting. The ONLY positive outcome I can see from wearing the old school waders is if you are doing some body building and WANT to haul them around all day. The downside is quite dangerous. If you take a ground swell over your waders, the feet areas are probably going to fill with water, in addition to the rest of the waders, and the next swell will pull you right off your feet. It is extremely difficult to regain your footing once it is lost and the current will pull you along the beachfront. In addition; when attempting to regain your footing you'll find the weight of the accumulated water to be very heavy indeed. The only way I've ever succeeded in regaining my footing is by getting on my knees and bending downward at the waist to empty out as much water weight as possible. Scary stuff; get you dead kind of stuff.
Insulated stocking-footed waders mold themselves to the profile of the wader and this will result in taking on less water if a swell overpowers you but you'll still get soaked. With continued wear, insulated waders tend to develop seeps at the seams and I don't know that I ever took a pair off that I wasn't wet to some degree, either from sweating or leaking.
The breathable waders will take on more water than the neoprene style but the fabric itself won't become waterlogged and add to the weight as the neoprene waders will.
A pair of waders alone do not constitute a surf wading outfit. A surf wading outfit is made up of a hooded jacket and a wading belt in addition to waders. And as far as I'm concerned it offers a fisherman a real rare treat; buying the product best suited for the task affordably, instead of having to pay for high-end products. I have had various high-end foul weather jackets and I've found some to be only water resistant; not waterproof. If caught in a hard, extended rain or getting hit by ground swells, the angler is soon cold and wet. The bright yellow slicker suits available at modest prices almost anywhere are fully waterproof when buttoned up properly. There are two different styles made; one very thin and lightweight, and a heavier-duty one. The heavy duty one is the best choice. A slicker suit is awful handy if you have mechanical trouble and end up crawling around in that sand under your vehicle as well.
So, you've got your waders and your slicker top on and you wade out to cast. An unusually high wave slaps at your knees and continues up between your waders and your slicker top and down inside your waders and you're soaked. And that is the reason for the third member of your outfit; your wading belt. The most important requirement of your wading belt is that it fits TIGHTLY. IF you have buttoned up your slicker top properly and cinched a wade belt over the waders and jacket, you are as close to being a submersible as a human being can get.
Tending to be overly enthusiastic, it's very common for me to realize I'm in water deeper than my waders, yet I am still dry as the slicker top and belt are sealing out the water. The belt can be fitted out with accessories to suit the individual angler. Mine carries a Boga Grip with a float attached to it, a knife, needle-nose pliers with side-cutters, and a storage pouch that can be used for everything from storing "Fishbites" and dead shrimp to a glove for landing jack crevalle.
There are two items that are never on my belt and that is a stringer or a dip net. Actually I never allowed customers to even bring them on a charter. I have seen things down there that no one would believe without seeing them and we'll not trade our status as the hunters in exchange for being the hunted because of a trout on a stringer or flopping around in a dip net. When bringing hooked fish in we point the rod straight at them when they are 15' away and very slowly back up and let the swells beach the fish. The fish is then lipped with the Boga Grip, unhooked and either returned to the sea or put in the ice chest immediately. All done quickly and neatly without ever even having to touch the fish.
All day long - haul back and make every cast for five lure fishermen. Do I look like rubber band man or what? What a hoot!
If we don't leave any there won't be any. -Cap'n Billy
One call struck me as odd; it was to arrange a trip for five adults from Dallas, but when I mentioned the need to bring waders the individual casually assured me his group would do fine without them. Well along comes charter day and the conditions and water are great although it was in the mid-40s temperature-wise and overcast with a north wind. I knew right where the fish were and what they'd hit, so after a lengthy drive down the beach I stopped and told the customers the correct lures were already tied on their lines and all they had to do was get them off the rod rack and get after the fish.
They all five grabbed rods and went to stand at the water's edge holding their rods and reels, totally motionless. And then suddenly I snapped to what was going on and I hesitantly asked, "None of you knows how to cast; not one of you?"
They all shook their heads no; one spoke up saying they were not aware of the fact they would have to actually do their own casting. Now I get folks who can't cast now and then but not five of them at one time and certainly not on a lure fishing trip. It turned out the guy that booked the trip had been right all along; if you can't cast you sure as hell didn't need waders.
I let them stay dry at first and taught them to cast the spinning rigs from dry sand. Then I nurtured them through the dynamics of the correct retrieve and fighting fish. Then I walked out knee deep and caught and released two nice trout on two casts just to show them the fish were there. Then I told them to not go out past waist deep and left it to them. They cast better than I would ever have believed and they caught quite a few nice trout before the icy water and cold north wind got the best of them. Every year I have individuals who don't wear waders, but very few last all day. Common sense would dictate that you are not performing at your best if you are miserably cold and wet. Nothing is colder than wet wading in denim jeans in a 20-plus north wind on a cloudy day.
Some of the younger kayak fishermen wear wetsuits instead of waders but the rest of us have three options to choose from. The old school, heavy-rubberized canvas waders with built-in boots, insulated stocking-foot neoprene waders, or stocking-foot breathable waders the latter two with wading booties of some sort. Looking at the pros and cons of each type is interesting. The ONLY positive outcome I can see from wearing the old school waders is if you are doing some body building and WANT to haul them around all day. The downside is quite dangerous. If you take a ground swell over your waders, the feet areas are probably going to fill with water, in addition to the rest of the waders, and the next swell will pull you right off your feet. It is extremely difficult to regain your footing once it is lost and the current will pull you along the beachfront. In addition; when attempting to regain your footing you'll find the weight of the accumulated water to be very heavy indeed. The only way I've ever succeeded in regaining my footing is by getting on my knees and bending downward at the waist to empty out as much water weight as possible. Scary stuff; get you dead kind of stuff.
Insulated stocking-footed waders mold themselves to the profile of the wader and this will result in taking on less water if a swell overpowers you but you'll still get soaked. With continued wear, insulated waders tend to develop seeps at the seams and I don't know that I ever took a pair off that I wasn't wet to some degree, either from sweating or leaking.
The breathable waders will take on more water than the neoprene style but the fabric itself won't become waterlogged and add to the weight as the neoprene waders will.
A pair of waders alone do not constitute a surf wading outfit. A surf wading outfit is made up of a hooded jacket and a wading belt in addition to waders. And as far as I'm concerned it offers a fisherman a real rare treat; buying the product best suited for the task affordably, instead of having to pay for high-end products. I have had various high-end foul weather jackets and I've found some to be only water resistant; not waterproof. If caught in a hard, extended rain or getting hit by ground swells, the angler is soon cold and wet. The bright yellow slicker suits available at modest prices almost anywhere are fully waterproof when buttoned up properly. There are two different styles made; one very thin and lightweight, and a heavier-duty one. The heavy duty one is the best choice. A slicker suit is awful handy if you have mechanical trouble and end up crawling around in that sand under your vehicle as well.
So, you've got your waders and your slicker top on and you wade out to cast. An unusually high wave slaps at your knees and continues up between your waders and your slicker top and down inside your waders and you're soaked. And that is the reason for the third member of your outfit; your wading belt. The most important requirement of your wading belt is that it fits TIGHTLY. IF you have buttoned up your slicker top properly and cinched a wade belt over the waders and jacket, you are as close to being a submersible as a human being can get.
Tending to be overly enthusiastic, it's very common for me to realize I'm in water deeper than my waders, yet I am still dry as the slicker top and belt are sealing out the water. The belt can be fitted out with accessories to suit the individual angler. Mine carries a Boga Grip with a float attached to it, a knife, needle-nose pliers with side-cutters, and a storage pouch that can be used for everything from storing "Fishbites" and dead shrimp to a glove for landing jack crevalle.
There are two items that are never on my belt and that is a stringer or a dip net. Actually I never allowed customers to even bring them on a charter. I have seen things down there that no one would believe without seeing them and we'll not trade our status as the hunters in exchange for being the hunted because of a trout on a stringer or flopping around in a dip net. When bringing hooked fish in we point the rod straight at them when they are 15' away and very slowly back up and let the swells beach the fish. The fish is then lipped with the Boga Grip, unhooked and either returned to the sea or put in the ice chest immediately. All done quickly and neatly without ever even having to touch the fish.
All day long - haul back and make every cast for five lure fishermen. Do I look like rubber band man or what? What a hoot!
If we don't leave any there won't be any. -Cap'n Billy