Recently, a friend of mine sent his waders in to Simms to be repaired. Two weeks after he mailed them, he got a message saying it would be another 2-3 weeks before they’d be ready. So that’s a total of at least 4-5 weeks that he’ll be without them. De facto, it will probably be…
I’ve been an advocate of felt wading boots for years because I don’t believe the whole theory about felt transmitting invasive species and most rubber-soled boots just don’t have a good grip in the water. But I recently got a pair of Orvis Ultralight wading boots and think they’ve made me reconsider. The problem with…
When you’ve been married to a sport for over 25 years, you develop a love/hate relationship with certain things. There are plenty of things I love about fly fishing, but there’s one thing I’ve always hated: waders. For the last few years, I’ve been using Orvis Silver Sonic breathable waders. Don’t get me wrong–they’re great.…
A few years ago, I remember seeing a curious piece of gear worn by iconic some Japanese tenkara anglers (including Dr. Ishigaki): knee and shin guards. Basically, they were black neoprene “leggings” worn over waders that had padded knees and were secured with Velcro straps. I had never seen anything of the sort in the…
For my birthday my wife surprised me with new waders! But not just any waders. The new Silver Sonic Convertibles from Orvis! These new waders feature Orvis’s patented SonicSeam Technology. Most waders are sewn together with traditional stitching (i.e. a needle and thread). This creates holes in the fabric that have to be later sealed…
In terms of gear, waders are just about as sexy to me as socks. I’d much rather fawn over new rods, nets, or a really nice wooden fly box. But, waders are a necessary fishing tool. Many years ago, I became a breathable wader convert but I had one complaint–a lack of durability. Even after…
Not too long ago, I wrote a post about my preference for wet wading when tenkara fishing. While it’s great in the summer, with fall fast approaching (even faster in the high country), it’s time to break out the waders for the colder temperatures ahead. Every angler who uses waders has their own system for…
At the risk of sounding overly sentimental or cheesy, I’ll confess that I like wet wading because I feel that it gives me a better connection to the river and fish. I suppose I acquired this feeling a long time ago when I was fly fishing in the surf for Striped Bass and Bluefish in…