clapper~
enjoyed hearing about your explorations
wearing waders.
but i especially liked reading this line:
Twas a learning experience.
that's what counts.
waders are cool, but you have to take care
when wandering around in streams in them.
if they ever get filled with water from the top
they aren't so cool anymore.
i've often heard people who work around
rescue stuff at lakes and such
warn never to wear them in a canoe.
in fact, big rubber boots have a bad rep too.
filled with water, they can be like wearing cement shoes
if you happen to have your canoe tip over.
and always be careful walking in moving water,
regardless of what you're wearing on your feet.
paddlers have been knocked down after getting an ankle
caught between a couple of rocks
while lining their canoes through knee or thigh deep rapids.
Sometimes the flow can make it so hard to stay standing up
that it's easy to get pushed down and maybe under the water.
you probably know that none of this was said
to keep you out of the water.
in fact, by all means, get out there wading.
just some words from someone who has spent a lot
of time paddling, wading and wandering around in rivers.
by the way, when it gets warm enough, it can be fun
to just put on a pair of pants with fairly close-fitting legs
(ones with a waistband that won't give in and fall down
when the legs of the pants get wet),
pull a pair of socks up over the cuffs,
then put on an old pair of hiking boots that you don't
care what happens to
and go out wading around in those...
like, walking up rivers looking at stuff.
yes, you get wet, but it's surprisingly comfortable...
much more agile than wearing rubber boots or waders
and yet keeps the leeches off of you while you're
having fun exploring.
Last year, i was looking at those wading pants
that have a built-in sock..
they just look like regular pants, but are waterproof
and you wear them with wading shoes..the kind with
a gasket at the ankle.
i think i saw them on the L.L. Bean website.
Boy, they look like they would be excellent fun....
especially for someone like me that wanders around
doing river survey stuff and just exploring in general.
~freshwater croc |
