Cold weather gloves

[justanovice]

On a recent trip down the Cadron, I discovered that cold hands are extremely painful and quite useless when you're trying to grab onto your boat, someone else's boat, a root system... Therefore, I am asking for a pair of paddling gloves from my husband for Valentine's Day. {I know...how romantic. That's ok. Last year I asked for (and got) a Spyderco knife}. Anyway, I have searched NRS and other sites for some ideas. Anybody have any gloves that you love and can recommend? I am looking for WARMTH that won't restrict my DEXTERITY. Thanks for all of your input.
Sandy

[Lupe]

For gloves, I like Glacier Gloves, specifically the Ice Bay model, BUT I find these are only really good for me in the 50's, maybe 40's...but temps below that then my hands tend to get cold even with these. I can make these work by having 2 pair, and if I stop for a break, I put a new (dry) pair on. I find once I take them off, I can't really warm them back up again. But nice and grippy on the paddle shaft. Depending on how cold your hands tend to get, you might be able to make these work at lower temps than I can...

http://www.amazon.com/Glacier-Glove-ICE ... d_sbs_sg_1

Once it gets colder, then I switch to my Level 6 mittens. These are very thin, but EXTREMELY warm (usually my hands sweat in them). Because they are thin and very flexible, I find I have enough dexterity even though they are mittens: I can get my skirt on/off, work my camera, get my nose plugs on and off, etc.

http://www.amazon.com/Level-Six-Mitts-N ... B002VBXSOQ

May folks will swear that pogies are the warmest, so you might want to consider those too. I find I like to fidget too much and don't like feeling "locked" into the pogies. Plus, my hands get cold so easily, so if I take my hands out of the pogies they are left unprotected. If I needed to drop my paddle to assist someone, I'd have to do whatever with bare hands, and I wouldn't be functional long...that's why I prefer the gloves or mittens so my hands are always protected, whether I'm holding the paddle or doing something else.

Another tip: with any glove or mitten, I have found a good practice for extending the life is to apply a thin layer of Aquaseal along the seam that runs along between the thumb and forefinger. This is where the paddle will rub against the gloves/mittens and can rub a hole. Go ahead and put that Aquaseal on that vulnerable seam while they are still new, and that will make them last even longer.

PS - links are to show you the models only...not necessarily best place to buy them. Note that OOO carries some Glacier Gloves for a local option.

Good luck in your search for the solution to cold hands!

[Jbyrum]

Glacier Glove makes some really warm gloves, but I'm not sure what the exact item name is that they make for paddling. OOO should have them.
You can also get pogies. They're a little different feel than gloves, but they're really warm! You might just not want to wear them on rivers you are unfamiliar with or are uncomfortable with the difficulty level because the pogies can be a little tricky to get out of. I've only used the Snap Dragon pogies, which I really like and have been warm in.

[Cowper]

I am looking for WARMTH that won't restrict my DEXTERITY.

Heather covered it so well, and Jordon put in a good plug for pogies, so there is very little to add.

You're going to lose some dexerity; no way around that. Getting "grippy" palms is the key to minimizing the loss; like the glacier gloves or mitts Heather suggested.

Be careful, what feels reasonably OK in the store, will feel much slicker when wet, and your hands are cold with reduced gripping strength. Also avoid any outer material that doesn't have a smooth skin that "sheds" the water.

I could scare up a couple of different pairs of pogies for you to borrow if interested.

[Richard]

Start with a really good thermos full of boiling hot chicken noodle soup. A backpacking stove is really important for warm hands too.

Gloves? Ohhhh, sorry . . . I thought this was about keeping hands warm.

[Cowper]

Interesting point. Since Sandy and family are in XP's, a backpackers stove for lunchstops, hot soup, etc, are really not at all out of the question.

I don't care for the "disposable" aspects, but as a back-up plan, those hand-warmer chemical packs can make a big difference for days where it either turns out to be colder than you thought, OR, something unexpected happens like an extra swim or two. A handwarmer packet can get things "turned around" for you or stop a downhill slide into a miserable experience.

[Jim E]

Do remember that with gloves on, it will be alot more difficult to feel/find your skirt loop for wet exits!! Practice popping your skirt from the sides just in case. "Grippy" type gloves will help with that also.

[okieboater]

For what it is worth, add my agreement to Jim E's advice on issues with gloves when grabbing the spray skirt's grab loop.

I usually have a bag of zip ties and plastic golf ball dealies with the holes in them at Canoe School. Free to anyone who asks for one. If your spray skirt loop does not have a bit of plastic tubing on it to make the webbing easier to grab - I recommend you add the golf ball dealie or something similiar.

Also, If your spray skirt grab loop is not sewn around the spray skirt rand, I recommend you add a "popper" emergency grab loop, just in case. Again, see me at Canoe School if you want further explanation on how to do this. I do this on all my kayaks. At one time, some spray skirt manufacturers just stitched the grab loop to the neoprene. I know of two situations where the grab loop came loose. One of them almost had tragic consequences.

I am a big believer in pogies. And, for me they are warmer than gloves. Find a model with the short cuff and they are much easier to get on and off. Years ago I switched over to pogies and have never looked back. The first few times to wear pogies, I thought they would hinder me getting a hand out, should I need to do that. With the newer models with the short cuffs, this goes away.

[Dr. Steve Yaney]

At our meeting last night we got a look inside of JR's dry bag....he carries a non disposable (i.e. reuseable hand warmer). He said he got them at hotsnaps.com!!! Thanks JR. My experience with gloves is once you are wet and cold there is no warming up, whereas with pogies you get the chance to warm back up!!

[paddledog]

No matter what pair you decide on
If you stop for lunch and take your gloves off,
stuff them between your lifejacket and your body,
That way you don't have to rewarm them and the water
they hold when it's time to get back on the water.

[gannon311]

Poogies!!!!

[justanovice]

What a wealth of knowledge you guys and gals are!!! I had never even considered pogies really because I was concerned about having "one more thing to get out of" when I took a swim. I am terribly cold-natured so I may try a pair. I had thought more about gloves because they might also offer injury protection as well. One of my swims left me with a pinched/bruised/ripped finger which I didn't notice until later because my hands were so cold. I'm definitely checking out the reusable hand warmers too. Thanks again for all of the info. If anyone has more to add, please feel free.