It is my sober expectation that the answer to the question of to drysuit or not to drysuit is “it depends.” I’m curious if anyone has specific guidelines or random thoughts for bikerafting and/or packrafting expeditions (let’s say… week+). Of course, there’s the “dress for the water temperature” axiom, but that’s set against the immersion risk. Both of the Lost Coast bikerafting iterations, Andrew Skurka’s Alaska-Yukon, Alastair Humphrey’s Iceland crossing, and others have chosen to go sans water-specific suits in favor of waterproof-ish hiking clothing.
But my main question is… If you do go the drysuit route, which are the top options? For the sake of discussion, assume we’re talking bikerafting and a 90 L pack isn’t an option. As per usual, it seems to be that magical unicorn of lightweight vs. durable. The idea of cycling in a drysuit gives me nightmares so I’m assuming separate clothing on land/water. Perhaps there’s something I’m missing.
Thoughts: 1) I’ve paddled in a Kokatat Expedition suit, but it seems on the bulky side. 2) The Aquatherm suits by Reed/Chillcheater intrigue me. I have a spraydeck and sea sock made of the Aquatherm material for my TRAK kayak and love the feel of it, but they don’t seem to get much attention/press/commentary… at least not in the U.S. I’ve never talked to anyone who has actually used their paddling suits… especially on mixed expeditions.