Dressing For Cold Water

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Trøndelag, Mid-Norway 16/3-2017

To dress well is important. Well, when saying that I don't really mean keeping up with the latest fashion, or to dress fancy when going out in town. As you most likely know already, I'm not big in neither fashion nor clothing in general. Simply give me something that works and is comfy and I will happily wear it until it's in bits and pieces! ;-)




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What I mean with dressing well is to be proper equipped for the adventure you are about to face. If not having the appropriate clothing when out on an expedition, the most amazing experience could instead pass through as miserable suffering or even be dangerous.




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How to dress to stay warm and comfortable is very individual though. What is for sure is that cold waters do require some kind of thermal protection for us being able to enjoy the aquatic world longer than just a quick plunge! I know as I have tried and the bikini-fun-dive obviously didn´t last too long in the 5°C cold winter fjord ;-)




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I often get the question on how to dress when diving or snorkelling in cold waters. As said, this will depend on each individual, but below is a brief description on how I dress whether I'm diving in the fjords of Norway, or spending time among the stunning icebergs in Antarctica.




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Mostly, I dress in three layers. The first one is a normal thin base layer in either synthetic or merino wool.




My second layer is a thicker thermal underclothing. A cozy compressible fiber overall which is as comfortable to wear both before and after, as well as during the dive :-)





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Last but not the least, the drysuit!

Either a shell suit, or one in neoprene, both with their pros and cons. The shell suit is more flexible and easier to dry, while the neoprene is warmer due to its additional thermal protection.




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In addition to the drysuit, I wear a 10mm hood and 7mm gloves in neoprene. Voilà, we are ready for some cold water-fun! :-)



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