Clothing

Reviews of clothing.

  • Three legs with shoes and boots sitting around a campfire.
    Clothing,  Reviews

    LaCrosse Grange Boots Review: Best Boot for Canoeing?

    For the last couple of years, I’ve been using the LaCrosse Grange Boots for canoeing when I want a rubber waterproof boot. If you’re a long-time reader, you may remember that back in 2019 I wrote The Best Boots for Canoeing. I recommend the Xtratufs boots, and I still think that’s a good recommendation. But I found that after a couple of trips that they didn’t fit my feet well. I sold them and then bought a pair of LaCrosse Grange Boots. To make this review short, these are the boots that I’ve been using for canoeing, shoulder seasons around town, when going into wet areas for photography, and for…

  • Bryan Hansel wearing KUHL clothing.
    Clothing,  Reviews

    KÜHL’s Renegade Pant (the perfect paddling pants) and Fall Collection

    Earlier this fall, KÜHL sent over a few of pieces from their fall collection. That included the Renegade Pant, Interceptr Vest and the Invigoratr Merino 1/4 Zip shirt. Together they create a warm and cozy fall outfit that functions well during the shoulder paddling seasons. It also looks great. When wearing them, I feel like I’m living up to my Appalachian Trail thru-hike name, which was Fashion. All kidding aside, I love KÜHL clothing and have written about their clothing before here. One of the things that I love about the clothing is the thought that goes into the design of the features and the fit. As an example, I…

  • Xero Aqua X Sport water shoes in blue on a log.
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Xero Aqua X Sport Shoes for Canoeing and Kayaking

    Back in July Xero sent over a pair of Aqua X Sport water shoes for me to test out over the summer. I’ve been using their Z-Trail sandals, so I was excited to try out this pair of water shoes. I had considered the Aqua X in the past, especially for paddling in moving water where I may want a closed toe and for sea kayaking. During the summer, I used these on canoeing day trips. Features of the Xero Aqua X Sport The Aqua X Sport water shoe features an open mesh upper that breathes well and sheds water out of the shoe. The tongue is non-absorbent. When combined…

  • A man wearing a blue Marmot Ether DriClime Hoody under a blue life vest.
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Marmot Ether DriClime Hoody Review

    I’ve been a big fan of Marmot’s DriClime Windshirt. It has been a staple of my outdoor clothing system for years. I think it is one of the best layers for shoulder-season canoe trips. It’s warm, breathable, and blocks the wind. You can use it as a base layer against your skin, as an insulation layer under a hardshell, or as an outer layer to block the wind. Over the last two or so decades, I’ve owned multiple and have worn them constantly and year-round. I usually wear them so much that they become threadbare. Earlier this year, I went to buy a new one and discovered that Marmot discontinued…

  • kuhl sun-protective shirt review
    Clothing,  Reviews

    KÜHL Sun-Protective Shirts Review

    Being outdoors and on the water exposes us to harmful UV from the sun. The leathery outdoors person is a typical cliché, but if you spend a lot of time outdoors, that’s the look you’ll get. According the the Skin Cancer Foundation, “An estimated 90 percent of skin aging is caused by the sun. People who use sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher daily show 24 percent less skin aging than those who do not use sunscreen daily.” This doesn’t even touch on the health issues, such as skin cancer, caused by sun exposure. That’s where men’s sun-protective shirts and women’s sun-protective shirts come into play. They help…

  • REI Co-op Screeline Pants 2.0 review
    Clothing,  Reviews

    REI Co-op Screeline Pants 2.0 Review

    With my REI Annual Membership Dividend in hand, I went on a blow-it-all-at-once shopping spree at REI last month. I had recently ripped a pair of pants in a place where repair wasn’t possible and was looking to replace them. I ran across the REI Co-op Screeline Pants 2.0 online. I’m usually picky about the pants I wear. I usually search for months to find the perfect fitting pair of pants, so I’m often skeptical about fit when shopping online. I like to try clothing on in person, but I needed the pants. With my dividend in hand I figured why not? If they didn’t fit, I could easily return…

  • best boots for canoeing
    Clothing,  Reviews

    The Best Boots for Canoeing

    My go-to boot for shoulder season day tripping has always been the NRS Boundary Shoe. But, on longer trips, especially those without a dry suit, I’ve found the shoes to be too flexible for portages and not waterproof enough for long days. They weren’t the best boots for canoeing, especially during the shoulder season. I polled my friends and fellow paddlers, some of who have spent years guiding canoe trips and have paddled on expeditions all around the world, about what boots they typically used for this. They recommended the following most often: Xtratufs Legacy, Kamik Bushman and Muck Wetlands. The criteria for the best boots for canoeing was as…

  • NRS Boundary Shoe review
    Clothing,  Reviews

    NRS Boundary Boot Review

    If there’s one thing about early season paddling it is this: your feet get cold. This is especially true if you have the wrong gear and keep sticking your feet into icy water. Over the years, I’ve tried different methods of keeping my feet warm and have settled on using a dry suit, warm socks and the NRS Boundary Boot, which is a classic piece from NRS. Every year, I think about writing a review for these shoes, but never get around to doing it. So here’s my NRS Boundary Boot review. The way that NRS describes the NRS Boundary Boot makes you think it is a shoe designed for…

  • Mana Loa Cambodian Buddha t-shire worn in the BWCA
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Mana Loa Cambodian Buddha T-Shirt Review

    While in Cambodia clothing company Mana Loa visited a Buddhist monastery near Siem Reap. They donated food and toiletries to the monastery and were taught chants. In the temple, the monks allowed them to make a carbon copy of a painting of Buddha. They used the copy they made as artwork on their Mana Loa Cambodian Buddha T-shirt. I received a sample to review. So, why review a fashion t-shirt instead of a high-tech wunder-shirt on a website about paddling? I asked myself the same thing when the opportunity arose. On low-mileage canoe and kayak camping trips, I like to bring along a shirt to wear in camp. Typically, it’s…

  • reviewing the Mythic Gear drysuit in waves
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Mythic Gear Drysuit Review: a Budget Drysuit

    The water temperature on my home waters of Lake Superior seldom rises above 55°F. For most of the year, it’s much lower. It’s not unusual to have temps in the 30s even on the summer solstice. The warmest I’ve seen the big lake is in the 70s after unusually calm stretches of weather in August when the air temp reached into the lower-80s. It doesn’t stay that warm long. It can literally drop from the 70s to the 40s overnight. I’ve seen that happen several times when 5 to 6-foot waves mix the surface water with the colder water just a few feet lower. Because the lake is so cold,…

  • northstar magic and canoeist with best canoe pants
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Under Armour UA Storm Tactical Patrol Pants Review: Best Canoe Pants?

    Late this summer, I was in a store looking for a first aid kit (I left mine at home) and I stumbled across Under Armour’s UA Storm Tactical Patrol Pants. I wasn’t aware that Under Armour made pants or anything other than underwear, so I was surprised to find the pants. Over the years, Under Armour has formed strong relationships with the hook and bullet stores, and these pants are geared towards the hook and bullet crowd, such as hunters, sport shooters or people who fancy themselves some kind of tactical-militia person. They have all the features a pistol-carrying enthusiast would desire, such as an offset belt loop to allow for proper…

  • watson's merino 150 long underwear logo on the neck
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Watson’s Merino Wool Long Underwear Review

    Starting in late winter and early spring, I’ve been testing Watson’s Merino 150 Wool Long Underwear. Watson’s, a company I wasn’t familiar with, is part of Chateau Lingerie, a company based out of Quebec, Canada. While I used the long underwear mainly for walking around and on photography outings instead of paddling trips, I feel like I’ve used it enough to provide an honest review. For canoeing, it will function basically the same as it does for wearing around. For kayaking for me, it’s all about whether or not it’s comfortable under a drysuit (see below). The two pieces I was provided with for review were the Merino 150 Long Sleeve Top and the…

  • using the Orange Mud Transition Towel and Seat Wrap to change in the snow
    Clothing,  Reviews

    Orange Mud Transition Towel and Seat Wrap Review

    One of the awkward parts of paddling happens after you finish kayaking and need to change out of a wetsuit or wet swim trunks. If you’re like me, you usually forget bringing a towel, but if you have one, the worst is when you have it wrapped around your waist, your wetsuit is around your ankles and then the towel lets go. It’s a quick naked shuffle to the car door and you hear lots of jeering from your friends. This is where Orange Mud’s Transition Towel and Seat Wrap comes into play. Orange Mud’s Transition Towel and Seat Wrap is a towel with a built-in belt clip and a…

  • doing a roll in a tuilik
    Clothing,  Paddling Gear,  Reviews

    Comfort Paddling Tuilik Review

    I’m a huge fan of tuiliks (read The Tuilik: a Perfect Bit of Kit for Winter Kayaking), which are a combination of a hooded paddling jacket and sprayskirt. I like them because they’re warm, they give you a larger freedom of movement vs. a neoprene sprayskirt, which helps with torso rotation. They make rolling easy, because they’re buoyant. They keep your head dry, which in the cold water I paddle in (usually doesn’t get above 55°F), makes rolling more fun and warm!. Until this spring, I had only used neoprene tuiliks, but this spring, Paulo from Comfort Paddling approached me about his waterproof/breathable tuiliks. I was excited to try one and write…

  • the best shoes for kayaking
    Clothing,  Reviews

    The Best Shoes for Kayaking: Two Great Wetshoes You Should Own

    Over the 15 years that I’ve kayaked, I’ve used a bunch of different shoes and I’ve had my favorites, but I haven’t found a shoe that I loved enough to buy it twice until now. And, now I have two shoes that I consider the best shoes for kayaking. I’ve purchased one twice and the other one, after it wears out, I’ll purchase again. NRS Comm-3 Kayaking Wetshoe NRS’s Comm-3 Wetshoe is designed for outfitters and guided kayaking trips. It’s made from 3-mm neoprene with titanium, which means that it’s durable. I bought my first one out of a used commercial shoe fleet, guided in it for a year and wore…

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