The New Weather Watch

So yesterday evening while recovering from a day on the star setting gear and an afternoon of shore work prepping gear for the water, I decided that my new gage weather watch jacket by Grundens needed some personalization. I spread it out on the long kitchen table and sat back in the chair gazing at the canvas before me. As I sat and thought, I remembered a conversation with a friend who had fished off Monhegan Island. Monhegan, is an island off the coast of Maine with a year round community of about 60 people. Their lobster season kicks off on December 1st each year. Anyways, as a means of marking his oil gear, this fisherman stenciled the bones of our human body on the back of his bibs and rain coat, giving him the appearance of a skeleton from behind.

I liked the idea of some bones on the jacket but my artistic talent is severely limited. How about a nice old battered pirate flag?

“there comes a time in every rightly constructed boys life when he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for buried treasure”

Storm Surge Review

Storm Surge review

New from Grundens is the Storm Surge jacket a great addition to the Gage technical line of gear.

Negatives:

The cuff and and strap on the wrist started to get worn down after reaching into traps and rubbing against the mesh heads; that part of a jacket on the water gets a lot of wear.

Accessibility of arm pit vents were a challenge. Found some confusion in the 2 zipper system when trying to open the vent more than closing it. Single zipper with strap running off it would make opening that vent quickly pretty easy.

Positives:

Vents; Awesome! Honestly, I can’t say enough how great it is to just be able to open up those vents in the middle of the day when its warm in order to cool down rather than taking off the jacket, peeling off a layer and putting the jacket back on.

Cut- love the cut of the coat, running down to give extra protection during bad weather.

Chest pocket- great for gum, cell phone, whatever. Convenient and waterproof. easy to find.

Chest Zipper (middle)- wasn’t sure about this when I first wore the jacket, I thought it may get caught on gear. It did, but the velcro ripped open and the flap was intact. I think Grundens made a PVC coat with a button flap and I’ve heard great things. good concept.

Inside of the jacket- Cant pass up an opportunity to comment on how awesome the inside the jacket is. Very cool.

overall I’m really excited to wear both over the winter. I really love the Storm Surge Jacket. The vents are huge. I think that a big zippered pouch pocket on the back of the jacket would be pretty sweet. A good place to stash a hat if the weather changes or another pair of gloves. Some ski jackets have that back pocket that stretches the width of the jacket, I think they use them for goggles.

Get your Grundens on- can’t beat the drive this company has to be the best.

Grundens

Last year a chance was taken and and email was sent to the Grundens to inquire about testing new products. Well almost 9 months later…. I was pawing through the new Maine Lobstermens Association newspaper and saw this add from Grundens.

Should have a review on Grundens new foul weather jacket- storm surge- sometime this afternoon.

Winter Attire

UPDATE!

After a curious comment. Here is a pic from last winter off shore shrimping in some cold weather.

Winter attire. Guy

The phone call came. So that means, pending confirmation on my scholarship from the MLA, I will be attending the Lobster Symposium in Portland. Thats not bad news.

In honor of my favorite season of fishing, the winter months, below I’m going to talk about what I like to wear while working on the water during the colder months. This is a process that continues to be refined and altered but a lot of what i’ve learned about dress came from the great storm king of Harpswell.

For temps typically from 30-high teens. And as always- Its all about layering. Best rule to know.

Feet: wool socks

Pants: Grundens Viking fleece pants. Really had to get over my distaste for sweat-pants after a pair of these was sent to me from Grundens last winter. These pants are ridiculously comfy and do a good job of keeping you dry. I’ve had a few pairs of skins rip over the course of a day on the water, but these sweats kept me warm all day. When temps fall into single digits or when the task requires less continuous movement (shrimping), I’ll add a pair of Under Armour leggings underneath these Grundens sweats.

Bibs: After the warm months pass by, I want a pair of skins that are going to be rugged, warm and offer great protection. Grundens has come out with their Gage line of foul weather gear and this isn’t your grand pappy’s foul weather line. These skins are made from 600 Denier Nylon making them pretty darn tough. But also VERY different from the traditional. A worker at the Hamilton Marine store in Searsport, was quite shocked that someone was asking for these bibs with the intention of using them on a lobster boat but the truth is that the Deck Boss bibs passed the test for me last winter and earned my respect. Different from traditional PVC type of foul weather gear the material won’t rip, or tear anywhere as easily. And they dry quickly in the sun. Be a trend setter.

Upper Body: Hands down the BEST I’ve worn as a base layer (rather or not it was meant to be) is Patagonia’s R1 hoodie. The best. Warmth, protection, and comfort. The long waist on the hoodie runs low enough to be able to tuck easily into your lower layer without giving up the freedom of movement. Also, the neck of the hooide when zipped up offers great protection from wind and cold. This hoodie, even when wet continues to keep you warm and wears like iron.

Over the R1, I’ll throw a combination of a any fleece with 3/4 sleeves (usually this is just an old quarter zip fleece from Goodwill that has been customized to meet my needs) The 3/4 sleeves are great because they fall just below the elbow and won’t get wet and weigh you down over the hours on the boat.

To top off the under layers is a vest. Fleece usually. These can be found at Goodwill for $4.00 although currently my two favorite are LL bean and Woolrich, although I am really anxious to spend some money for Patagonia’s R1 vest. The vest is nice because it brings warmth to your core and it is easy to take off when you begin to warm up. You don’t even need to un-clip your bibs.

Outerwear- Back to Grundens. Can’t beat what these guys make. Foul weather IS their business. Over it all the Weather Watch Jacket by Grundens offers everything you need. It is light so it won’t drag you down after hours on deck, and that also offers the ability to layer well underneath. I really like the dark colors (black, forest green, navy) because those dark colors draw a lot of attention from the sun on clear days helping to keep you warm. I also see the value in the Hi-Vis Yellow. If there ever was a scenario where I did go over the side of a boat, especially in the winter, the Hi-Vis Yellow would be darn hard to miss. Many guys working on the Bering Sea wear the Weather Watch jacket and thats argument enough for me. I am looking forward to trying the Storm Surge Jacket by Grundens.

Head: On the cold, breezy days when the sea spray is flying the Maine Warden hat by ll Bean is real hard to beat. Gore-tex shell and high loft fleece lining. So nice. Also just picked up Gage knitted brim beanie. Worn on the water only a handful of times the hat is really warm and the bit of visor is good for ducking spray and as a quick shield from the glare of the sun. Keeping your head warm is very important.

Hands: Wool glove liners, found at Army-Navy Surplus stores, worn underneath vinyl gloves.

Dark colors are hard to beat during the cold months, because while they do not offer a lot of visibility they will draw a lot of heat when the sun is out even on the coldest days.

Layering is the big one to shoot for when dressing for the cold on the water. Staying dry is the next. I prefer to be on the edge of being uncomfortable when it comes to dress. I like to make sure I have extra in the event I get wet or temps drop but usually, if I am just a bit uncomfortable that means I will have less of a chance of sweating underneath my outerwear and sacrifice my warmth. Be tough, be smart!

Happy Adventures!