Waders Filling With Water

[wongrs]

So I've been reading a bunch lately about how dangerous it is to wade, fall, and have your waders fill with water. Has anybody had this experience? Any lessons-learned to share? More dangerous on a lake versus stream/river?

 

Supposedly you lose mobility and it's tough to kick if you're in deep water. Just curious to see if anyone here has been a situation like that and can offer any advice.

 

Also found an article on flyfisherman.com about wading safety:

http://flyfisherman.com/skills/dgwading/

 

 

It's never happened to me but always figured I could just stand up as I usually fish streams/rivers.

[OneMoreLastCast]

I went down years ago while fighting a fish on the Clearwater River. The waders filled instantly and Luckily, the river was shallow enough for the most part that I could bounce up to the surface for air.

 

I did have my belt on, but obviously, it wasn't tight enough.

 

As I was getting swept downstream, I would push off the bottom to get some air and I could see my fishing partner running down the bank trying to figure out what to do.

The section we were fishing was pretty fast and had high banks, so he couldn't just wade in and grab me.

 

I could see him pointing frantically downstream at something that eventually saved me, but could just as easily have drown me.

I got swept into a log jam and was lucky enough to get a hold of one of the first branches and ended up okay. If I wasn't able to hold on, I know that I would have ended up under the logs and wouldn't be writing this right now.

Oblivious to everything, I somehow held onto my rod.

 

Since then, I have approached the water differently.

I always look for my "Outs", and if I am fishing alone, (which is at least 60% of the time), I will not take even the slightest chances.

What I mean by "Outs" is that if I do happen to fall, I want to have a plan for what to do before hand. I look for things like gravel bars downstream, fallen trees downstream, etc. that I can use to save myself.

I often skip sections of water because of the risk to myself and usually see that even if I hook the fish, I am not likely to land it anyways, so why bother. I just move on.

 

I will also say that if your fishing buddy, girlfriend, son/daughter, etc. gets into a situation, don't panic. Make a quick plan and execute it.

You hear or read so often where someone that tried to save another person dies as well because they panicked and put themselves into the same situation.

If someone is in a situation, they are not thinking straight, so you might actually make it worse by trying to help.

 

It's hard to stomach, but there might be a situation where a person has to use their judgement and not go into help. It would be hard, but it would be better to tell one family they lost a loved one, rather than two families.

[pigl]

So I've been reading a bunch lately about how dangerous it is to wade, fall, and have your waders fill with water. Has anybody had this experience? Any lessons-learned to share? More dangerous on a lake versus stream/river?

 

Supposedly you lose mobility and it's tough to kick if you're in deep water. Just curious to see if anyone here has been a situation like that and can offer any advice.

 

Also found an article on flyfisherman.com about wading safety:

http://flyfisherman.com/skills/dgwading/

It's never happened to me but always figured I could just stand up as I usually fish streams/rivers.

 

It happened to me on the Sheep a number of years ago. I was in a fairly quick run and lost my footing and fell backwards. It didn't seem like a big deal when it first happened. I was only up to about mid-thigh but like an idiot, I wasn't wearing a wading belt and my waders filled up pretty quickly and I was pulled downstream on my back for about 20 m or so. There was quiet water on my side of the river and all I did was point my feet downstream into the quiet water and then was able to finally struggle to my feet and get sorted out.

 

There are a couple of things from the experience that are worth mentioning if you havn't had it happen to you before:

 

1. While my waders were filling, and being caught by the current, there was nothing I could really do to stop from getting swept downstream. It was like being attached to a sail and there was nothing to hold on to, so no matter how strong I was, there was nothing I could do recover and stay where I was.

 

2. Getting upright and hauling yourself out of the water once I got into the quiet water was hard. Water is heavy and it took strength to stand and get out of the river. The Sheep is not the biggest stream in the world and it was later in the summer, so I was lucky. Had I been in a bigger river or not been able to get myself into quiet water, I could have been in more trouble.

 

3. No matter how great the weather is, the water in our streams is COLD. If you fall in and your waders fill quickly, there is a period of time where you are in a bit of shock from the cold water and you probably are not able to think straight enough to make the best decisions. Combine that with a flyfisherman's natural tendency to save your gear, and before you know it, you're on your way downstream.

 

At the end of the day, I was pretty lucky to have been in the right part of a smaller stream. I have since learned that what I ended up doing in going downstream on my back and angling my feet into shore is the right way to deal with the situation, but the only reason I did that was because of the orientation that my body happened to have been in when I fell.

 

While I have fallen in to still waters, I have done so while I wasn't wearing waders, so I can't really comment on that.

[rhuseby]

The only times I've gone wader diving, it was relatively shallow water so I wasn't washed away. However I had to crawl out of the creek cause the waders were so heavy I couldn't stand up. However after I got everything dumped out and wrung out, first cast in the pool I'd just wrecked gave me a 10" brownie. It probably figured that anything making that much disturbance had to be a cow and not fishing.

[Grizz]

Done this plenty of times over the years.

 

Ok as outlined here is the dangers:

 

As mentioned - freaking COLD! After you get out you have to worry about your body temperature.

As mentioned - danger in current dragging you downstream

 

When you're waders fill with water, they DO NOT drag you down. This is of course impossible as you are now neutrally buoyant, NOT heavier all of a sudden. It seems that way because you suddenly can not move as freely and are restricted by the water. Trying to stand up, you are trying to LIFT the water above the natural water level so it seems you are heavier. IN THE WATER you are neutral. If you don't believe this, put on your waders and jump in the pool and swim (then try to get out - LOL!).

 

The problem is when we fall in we freak out (read: panic) because our above water mobility is hindered all of a sudden (and we're suddenly freaking freezing cold!). If you can stay calm, you can swim or crawl/work your way to shallower water where you can deliberately stand up (lifting the extra weight out of the water) and then walk to shore and curse and swear as you pour out your waders, try to find ONE SINGLE DRY cigarette, and make sure your scotch is not full of river water.

 

In a heavy current, your best bet is to forget standing up, and just start swimming as if you didn't have the damn diapers on you - this will save your life.

 

Now to avoid all this, wear a freaking belt! It's that simple. I've forgotten my nice wading belt several times and resorted to a chunk of rope/twine, bungees, etc. All in the name of both safety and the fact that changing my shirt is easier than changing my shirt/pants/gonch/socks/etc.

 

My experiences with this have been 90% in high gradient mountain streams and rivers. Although I've never fallen in the Bow, Crow, or Oldman, although I did get a good soaker on Stauffer one day and pretty much wrote the browns off for the rest of the afternoon with all the clatter, splashing and cursing I did (damned beavers!).

 

Anyway, that's my 2 cents. Take it or leave it.

 

EDIT:

** Of course I just read some more after posting this and most of this has already been said - apologies for the duplication of info.

 

Good point in the article link! Buddy wading is great! It works with the most feeble of folks. Also don't be afraid to do long chains of folks buddy wading! I've done it with 6 people linking together and crossed some amazingly fast currents with little worries. Rules of buddy wading: 1. Don't let go 2. Strongest on the upstream end weakest on the downstream end (or progression) 3. Move at a steady pace and don't rush or drag it out.

[wongrs]

Thanks for the replies.

 

Your experiences are helpful as it puts a personal element to the subject. Reading about it in an article is tough to judge how important it is. I had not bothered to wear my wading belt over the past few years on my old waders and my breathables and I have fished the high gradient mountain streams as well as the bow/oldman/crow etc.

 

I'll make sure to take the 3 seconds to put it on from now on. Thanks again for the responses.

[Castuserraticus]

I have more experience in swift water from whitewater kayaking than fishing. The following is what I was taught and passed on when teaching newbies.

 

Clothes do not "drag you down". The air trapped in the fibers will help keep you afloat.

 

When floating, orient yourself with your head upstream and feet downstream to protect yourself from obstacles. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO STAND until you are in quiet, shallow water. If you can sit on the bottom, it's safe to stand. The number one risk is foot entrapment (boulders, submerged logs, ledges, cracks). The Red Cross did a canoe safety video many years ago where an instructor died on film due to this - even with all the knowledgeable people and equipment present.

 

Back stroke towards the nearest shore.

 

Logjams were always my biggest fear. They're death traps with all the branches and roots. I had several friends have close calls.

 

We used to jump into rapids and float short sections in our life jackets to practice.

[Harps]

Excellent Griz and Cactus!!

 

Its the panic that causes the trouble (or the bang to the head).

 

I have swum with waders too many times, no worries except trying to stand in shallow water.

 

I think I've posted this before:

Exploding the Killer Wader Myth

 

Cheers,

[dube]

do neoprenes hold less water? A guy should really go for a swim in them just to see what it feels like?

[flyangler]

Here's another question: if you wear bootfoot waders wouldn't it be faster or easier to just take them off before you try to stand up?

[MMAX]

Since they're tighter and less baggy I would imagine neoprenes would hold less water. I've never gone all the way down while wearing them so I can't tell you for sure.

[Castuserraticus]

Neoprene = floatation

 

To empty waders - when you've reached water depth you can sit in, roll onto your stomach, get on hands and knees, extend one leg at a time up behind you allowing the water to drain down through the chest opening, repeat with the other. OR unclip your shoulder straps and stand up.