OK which Wading Stick?

[racine]

Go to sierratradingpost.com and find some collapsible walking staffs. Getting an extra long staff is an invitation to wade deeper than you should. I've owned 2 Leki Wunderfrueds and it works for me. Consider your height and that you really only want to wade up to your ribcage. Higher and your body weight is halved by buoyancy and a recipe of slipping swimming. FWIW, I try not to pay full price on anything but I put a high premium on quality as well.

[Bad Luck Larry]

bhof...

I've done what you've thought about: ski poles.

Heck...even me and my friends have even used old broomsticks (Mother-in-law's broke down!HA!)

Poles I have from a friend who bought them at a garage sale.

My friend does have a folding staff which he loves; Kinda convenient 'cause it's out of the way. My ski pole seems to tangle the flyline in the water. Heck, I can do that without the pole's help!

Above all, think practical.

Cheers,
Larry

[leakywaders]

Deep has nothing to do with it, what matters is how swift the current is. You can be swept off your feet in ankle deep water if the current is fast enough.
A customer was cleaning out her garage, and asked if she could put her trash in my trailer, it wound up being half a ton, but there were 2 ski poles in there... I hooked one up to a key retriver (you know the kind the janator used in high school) and it is always there. Just follows me around. Oh, yes, I do spray paint it black once a year.

[brhoff]

Ben using a broomstick that was in the garage...took my son wading for the first time a couple weeks ago and it was just the ticket.

Will upgrade at some point as the wood does float.

[CaseyP]

got a guide very upset one afternoon as we were stalking some big fish. i pulled out my trusty Simms staff because i couldn't see the bottom. he let me know that was a terrible idea because the noise of the staff point on the rocks would scare the fish. told him i put a rubber tip on the point for two reasons: yeah, they're noisy, and that aluminum is very slippery. REI has tips for walking sticks and they work a treat. now not only am i safe, i'm sneaky...

[Backcastwards]

[QUOTE=flybinder;223523]Found this, on line recently, thought it said it pretty well!?!

Excerpted from... A wader belt is as important as a seatbelt. Buckle up every time you go out and cinch it high on your chest in deeper water to trap as much air as possible ...
I have to disagree. Filling your waders with air is really asking for trouble in my opinion. If you lose your footing and end up in the water your feet and legs will try to rise above your center of gravity. Try it in a safe area with assistance and see how difficult it is to regain your feet. Then try it with the wading belt on with as much air removed from inside as possible.
Gary

[Fly Goddess]

Now the visual I get from that is funny. I always comment on the fact my waders make me look like a stay puff marshmellow. FILLER UP!
I don't know about you all, but the minute I step into water, my breathables suck up next to my skin. I would think, if you could hold the air in there like a balloon, then yes you are right, but that just don't happen. The idea is to not leave a gap for water to totally fill up.
I have fallen and filled up. Not bad while I was still in the water. I could move okay, it was getting out and walking on dry land that was a challenge. There is a ZERO buoyancy while in the water.

[flybinder]

"Flybinder, said that"? true, I posted the LINK, where that was said, but it's not a "quote of mine" and I also, highly disagree with "trapping as much air as possible, in your waders"!
But, as FG pointed out, TRY and "trap air in your waders", as it's nearly impossible, at least in moving water with the force of current pushing all the air out, past the chest belt no matter, HOW tight the belt is.
Sorry, to mislead anyone, I mainly posted that link, in regards to the wading staff info.

[Clay]

Two short personal experiences. The stream was 4 foot across and vegatation was 2'' under the surface. With one foot on the land I started to slowly step into the stream. When one leg was up to my calf I was surprised how deep it was and shifted my weight. Yes, you guessed it, I fell in. The moving water filled my waders up and the cold water took my breath away. The current was fast enough that my feet did not touch the bottom as I was clining to the bank with both hands as my feet were being swept off of the bottom and I was more horizontal than verticle. Morale of the story, buy a wading staff and wear a wading belt.

Second story. While coming down a steep bank my feet became intangled in some vines and I went in head first. My nice new wading belt stopped most of the water from rushing in and filling up my waders but my waders were full of air and I could not get my feet under me. The water was deep enough that I could not touch the bottom with my hands so I had to swim to the other size in less than 4' of water. My fishing partner was kind and instead of laughing in my face, he turned around with his back to me to laugh his arse off while I was drowning and couldn't get my feet under me.

I still wear a wading belt, but as I was in the water head down and legs floating up, I wonder why.

Rick

[Fly Goddess]

Two short personal experiences. The stream was 4 foot across and vegatation was 2'' under the surface. With one foot on the land I started to slowly step into the stream. When one leg was up to my calf I was surprised how deep it was and shifted my weight. Yes, you guessed it, I fell in. The moving water filled my waders up and the cold water took my breath away. The current was fast enough that my feet did not touch the bottom as I was clining to the bank with both hands as my feet were being swept off of the bottom and I was more horizontal than verticle. Morale of the story, buy a wading staff and wear a wading belt.

Second story. While coming down a steep bank my feet became intangled in some vines and I went in head first. My nice new wading belt stopped most of the water from rushing in and filling up my waders but my waders were full of air and I could not get my feet under me. The water was deep enough that I could not touch the bottom with my hands so I had to swim to the other size in less than 4' of water. My fishing partner was kind and instead of laughing in my face, he turned around with his back to me to laugh his arse off while I was drowning and couldn't get my feet under me.

I still wear a wading belt, but as I was in the water head down and legs floating up, I wonder why.

Rick

Rick in your case, it sounds like the opening hit the water before anything else. While the material is breathable, air can escape but it takes awhile due to the tight weave. You basically took a pillow case and held it in the water opening first, of course the bottom of the pillowcase will fill with air, but push on it and it would sink. Same would have happened to you.

I personally feel that the belt is more for keeping water out than air in. As you stated your waders filled with water. Increased your weight and you are now trying to climb out with that extra weight...Tis tuff.


I have waded rivers where I have had to grab the shirt of the guy in front of me, because even standing, I was having a hard time getting my feet on the bottom, as the current kept pushing them aside. I was floating, and there was NO air in them there waders. They were like a second skin up to my chest.