Going to pickup a set of Patagonia waders. Was thinking of getting wading pants as opposed to bibs. Anyone have experience with them willing to share their thoughts?
90% of the time I’m not wading deep water but I’m wondering how pissed I’m gonna be at myself the other 10% of the time.
I’ve been fishing with my 1yo son in a backpack carrier & I’m guessing pants are going to be nicer than bibs with a backpack on.
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Posted by Olivenoodler
10 Comments
The first time you step in a waist high hole…probably shouldn’t take too long…you’ll be hating yourself
Really never understood wading pants or hip waders
I’ve never worn wading pants, but I do have experience with front and back baby wearing. IMO – if you’ve got the means, get both. Reason being when you’re not with your son, you’re gonna want the full bibs at some point and be pissed. But when you’ve got the backpack on, assuming it’s like the Osprey bag, it’s gonna be all jamming up your straps and making you annoyed and uncomfortable. At least it would for me.
That being said I’ve never actually put my kid on the bag and gone fly fishing because I’m not competent enough to not hook her in the back of the head, so this is purely speculation trying to put two experiences together in my mind and think about what it would be like.
Plus you’ll have a backup pair for a friend or if you rip one and have to get it repaired or something. If you don’t have the means I’d get the bibs and deal with any bunched up straps for that 10% of the time.
I started wearing pants about 8 years ago and have maybe 120 days on water since then without complaints. I’m usually on tiny streams in Southwest Wisconsin and have zero issues. When I’ve gone out west and had water splash over the top, it just gets my shirt wet and that’s that. Obviously you can’t stand on water over your waist. Honestly, I was surprised they’re this good, but they are. As long as you’re on small water, there really is no reason to get chest waders. They’re not as hot and there’s no suspenders or bulky fabric around your waist to contend with. Were I carrying one of my boys in a pack, it would only be in wading pants. We have the Kelty kid holder pack and I just can’t imagine trying to take a leak or even shift the suspenders around with how tight that fuckin thing is.
The Patagonia waders are set up to instantly change between chest waders and pants. There are tabs on the suspenders that quickly pop them up or drop them down so you don’t have to choose one or the other.
I’ve worn wading pants for about 10 years. I’m out West and sometimes fish in big rivers. I just make sure that I don’t go much deeper than my crotch. Sometimes an issue when crossing a river, but you just need to find the right spot. In the summertime, I don’t even wading pants I usually go wet wading from July through September.
Pants are great until they aren’t.
I picked up some Dryft wading pants a few years ago and I love them. Easy to get in and out of. Easy to use nature’s facilities if needed. I don’t need to drop my pack or anything (no shoulder straps on the pants). Much nicer on those days where you are still needing waders but the air temp rises throughout the day. Even on those cooler mornings you can already be layered up on top and not have to de-strap to de-layer thru the morning.
I have both styles, but def pick my pants almost all of the time aside from dead winter days where the bibs help hold heat in.
I personally didn’t think I would prefer them as much as I do.
I have a pair of Patagonia wader pants that I used last year. Turns out it’s not really my size and it’s taken a year for me to realize it. Honestly I love them, they are fantastic and I’ll sell these and buy an appropriate size.
I picked up Dryft wading pants and prefer them way more than my chest waders. I use them 90% of the time I go out. Im out west and fish a lot