like a second skin...

In my quest for warm layers for our wet caving adventures, I spoke to many folks who suggested I check into wetsuit and scuba gear. The way it works, so I've been told, is the horrifically freezing cold water gets into the suit...and then warms up and stays warm thanks to good old-fashioned body heat turning it all into an insulating layer.

I set out to my trusty toy store to see what they had available, and as luck would have it they were running a sale. Most of the stuff in my size was full price (boo), save for a lone pair of NRS Hydroskin Capris. I tend toward the shorter end of the spectrum—rather, I sit pretty firmly entrenched at the bottom of it with my staggering 63" of might—so capris suited me just fine.

They've turned out to be pretty perfect for caving AND kayaking, and something akin to "yoga pants for Other activities." The NRS specs say they've got a .5mm neoprene core with a 4-way stretch PowerSpan™ outer layer and some other fancy stuff (coating, lining, the works to ensure you have a quality pair of stretchy pants).

That puts them at just the right thickness to layer under other clothing so I don't ruin them in a cave when I drag my rear end across a breakdown pile, as well as perfect for layering under my shortie or just wearing over my bathing suit on a sunny day.

I LOVE THESE PANTS. They are comfortable, they are stretchy so I don't lose any range of motion, and they are pretty cute for neoprene pants—probably because they are capris. If you can nab them on sale, even better. I bet they'll last me for quite awhile, too. They really *are* like a second skin :-)

Another well-done product from NRS.

Grade: A+++++

We all need a little stability in our lives...

...I get mine from my boat.

The kayaking bug bit me on Memorial Day weekend. On Tuesday I was on Craigslist searching for a used boat. I found one a little under two weeks later, a gently used Wavesport Diesel 65 for $500.00. Other than some minor, primarily cosmetic scratches and the mild stink of sitting in a garage for awhile after my seller broke up with the ex he had purchased it for, it may as well have been a new boat.

When I say the kayaking bug bit me, I am not kidding around. I try to go every weekend, if not every other weekend, and when I can go both days, I do. Exhaustion, hangovers, neither are a factor. If I can go kayaking, you can be sure I will. The Diesel has seen the Upper, Middle and Metro Chattahoochee, the Cartecay, the Nantahala and the Tuckaseegee, some more than once, in the two months and four days I have owned it.

I am no expert, folks. I have run my share of Class II rapids, and a couple of Class III's, and I typically do not run them in the ideal way. But my boat has almost without fail refused to flip. I can be completely sideways in a rapid (or flat water, mind you, when I am goofing off or caught by a current), with my head under the water, and the Diesel will recover and put me back into an upright position. If you have read any of my previous posts, you know I am a complete disaster when it comes to coordination, so, really, it must be the boat. More experienced kayakers I have met have described the Diesel as "stable but fun", "forgiving", "a great beginner's boat" and fairly easy to roll, though I have not tested that final feature to date.

My advice to the many beginners I know who are thinking about buying a boat and feel like stability is an important feature, I highly recommend taking a test run in a Diesel. It has all the stability of a bigger boat, while still being small enough to maneuver and get the full effect of the rapid.

Fun, stable and forgiving are fine qualities. Now, if only Wavesport made men...

I have a huge J-shaped scar on my foot to remind me not to be an idiot by going barefoot in water, whether it be a muddy pond, a raging river, or a tiny trickle along the trail.

When I was a wee lass of nine or ten, my cousins and I, bored with our family picnic at a local park, went swimming in Lake Lanier in an area frequented more by picnickers and fishermen than swimmers.

Ah, youth.

My cousin carried me out of the water while I was screaming bloody murder, a trail of watery blood trickling out of a very deep gash in my instep. Somewhere between all the laughter and splashing and the joy of feeling the red mud squishing between my toes, I’d managed to find what were probably the remnants of a broken beer bottle in the murky depths.

I felt horrible: I blamed myself for ruining the family gathering, I had to get a tetanus shot, and I got to listen to the ER doc cuss under his breath about the toughness of my tomboy feet while he broke a few needles sewing me up.

Since then, I have worn some type of footwear while in the water, without fail, whether that be a pair of ratty sneakers, or thin, made-in-Asia watershoes of the WallyWorld variety.

Several years ago, while learning to kayak in NOC’s Rapid Progressions Program, someone handed me a pair of NRS Kicker Wetshoes, and I fell in love.

Whoever designed the NRS Kicker Wetshoe was most certainly a whitewater enthusiast who took great pride in developing an all-around water shoe adaptive to most any condition. I’ve worn mine canoeing, kayaking, hiking, tubing the ‘Hooch—heck, even fishing.

With an adjustable locking drawstring around the ankle and a sturdy Velcro strap around the midfoot, unlike the cheap made-in-Asias, they don’t fall off. In fact, they hug the foot. But because they are made of neoprene, which when wet is both insulating and pliable, they don’t blister or chafe. Also, thanks to the neoprene, unlike the times I wore my ratty old sneakers, my feet never get cold.

Because the shoe encapsulates the whole foot, I never have to worry about stubbing my toe on a rock or getting sand or other debris in the shoe, leading to discomfort. (I’m looking at you, Keen.)

The soles are made of a thick, grippy rubber (sort of like climbing shoes, but with tread) and provide great traction on a variety of surfaces – in your kayak preventing foot fatigue while bracing, on slippery rocks (both on the bank and underwater), on trail. The soles also wrap up around the toe and sides of the foot, providing both traction and protection for the tenderest parts of my feet. I have never loved my NRSes as much as when I’ve gotten my foot wedged between two river rocks, though I admit, on occasion, I’ve wished for more ankle protection.

I find them comfortable enough to wear all day, multiple days in a row. I recently took them on a four-day canoe trip down the Alapaha River, and while I brought other shoes with me, I never wore anything besides my NRSes.

Though they’re not that expensive to begin with at around $36 a pair, I am pretty tickled to tell you that I am still wearing the same pair I bought used for twelve bucks at an NOC gear sale almost ten years ago.

That they are still making them, with few discernible updates in design, is a testament to the shoe. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. (Seriously, NRS, don't go messin' with a good thing!)

Comfort, functionality, and durability - it doesn’t get much better than that, folks.

Grade: A+++++