Safety clothing for North Sea and Baltic

[El Pinguino]

'Teva' brand jandals are my seaboot of choice.... for formal occasions wear with socks.

[UNCIVILIZED]

Choices depend on budget, & how nasty the weather for the trip promises to be. My Fav's, in no particular order are:

- Ocean Smock Top, usually with standard cuffs & neck closure, especially if I'm also bringing my Drysuit along. But the Drysuit cuffs & neck seal on the Smock Tops aren't a bad choice if you're a bowman, or the weather promises to be particularly snotty.
Either type of Smock Top keeps out the wet a LOT better than a jacket. Both due to it's lacking a zipper up the front, as well as the 2-layers of closure/protection around the neck/collar.

Smock tops were developed for & with continuous input from, crewed, & solo, RTW racers. Who happily wear them until it's nasty enough to put on their Musto Survival/Drysuits. Basically they Rock!

- (My) Drysuit's a perpetual fav for off season deliveries, & in areas with just plain old bad weather. Just make sure to get one with internal suspenders, & an external belt. They ride/wear a lot more comfortably, especially when you're swapping out layers of different thicknesses.
FYI: My Drysuit has gotten me some looks which would kill anything which has walked the earth in the last 10k years. Especially from folks without Drysuits, or Smock Tops.
*** Do the Maintenance on your seals, & change them before they need it! ***

The ultimate in Drysuits, is Musto's Survival Suit, albeit with a price to match. They're pretty much standard issue for RTW racers, & have been for 15yrs+ It's a cross between a 1-piece foulie Drysuit, & a full on Survival Suit. With the design nod going to them being setup to let you easily perform deck/sailing tasks, unlike what's possible in a full on (Gumby) survival suit.

- If I can, I like to take along a wetsuit in the 3-5mm range. For cleaning the hull/inspecting things underwater (and surfing + diving). But also as the ultimate ugly weather, under layer. And or to wear under my Drysuit if the call to head for the lifeboat ever came, heaven forbid.

*** One key item which goes along with me regardless of whether or not the wetsuit does, is the hood. It's mega-cranial warmth for when it's nasty.

~ Also, underneath of a wetsuit which is properly fitted, you can often fit a set of long johns, & or rash guards with a layer underneath of them. Which adds to the suits capabilities both in the water, & as deckware.

- One other nice item to have, is a lightweight (unlined) rain Anorak. Like say one from Moonstone, or similar. It's a good layering piece. Plus, it's handy for when there's just spray, mist, or heavy fog, on warmer days.

As to Mustang jackets/coats, & suits. I've heard good things pretty much. Just never had much call to try'em out. Especially given the above gear I own, & the ability to pair it up appropriately; with some of the other listed pieces. In addition to various long underwear, & wool + fleece clothing.
And no, sadly, I don't own a Musto Survival Suit, but then, knock on wood, I've done quite well with the other mentioned attire.

*** Also, a KEY point which hasn't been mentioned, is that in conditions necessitating multiple layers, you're fighting a lot of weight & bulk in clothing & equipment to begin with. But if your foulies aren't up to snuff, then your layers get wet (& cold), thus causing them to triple in weight. So that between their now reduced insulating abilities, & increased weight, you're using up a lot more energy to both stay warm, as well as to move around to perform tasks. Which can get quite draining. So make sure that you test your gear before any long trips.
Especially your; Gloves, Hats, Boots/Socks (and yes, these areas too get layered).


PS: If you're careful, you can get away with drying/warming up some garments made of natural materials in the microwave. I haven't yet been foolish enough, or perhaps brave enough, to try said trick with synthetics.
But starting out a cold damp watch, with toasty wool socks, surely is nice :-)

[Snowpetrel]

Love my beanie, neck sock and Icelandic fisherman's mitts. I also have some Dunlop thermo plus boots. These things add so much warmth that I don't need to overdo the layers of clothes.

The thing is to try to keep your clothes dry. It's to easy to overheat and start sweating. Then the damp gear saps all the heat out. So if I need to do something physical on deck I take off the beanie, gloves and neck sock to help keep cool. Then they can be put back on when you start to cool down, when sitting back behind the dodger half an hour later.

Also when you go off watch don't sleep in wet gear, but try to hang it out, or keep in them in your sleeping bag with you to dry.

I go for merino wool thermals and polarfleece layers, normally a thin inner, and a heavyweight outer. I've found the cheap stuff seems to work as well as the expensive stuff. I've not had much luck with the windstopper fleeces. They don't seem to breathe well under wet wx gear.

Sent from my HTC_0PCV2 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Roy M]

I use REI silk long underwear for the base (so I can sleep in it), and if it's really cold, topped with a layer of Patagonia-type fleece top and bottom, and thick wool socks. As I get out of my bunk, I slip my feet into the legs of the Mustang work suit which is piled, fireman-style, over my Dubarry sea boots (well-oiled), stand up in the boots, pull up the work suit, pull the balaclava out of my pocket, then the gloves, then up on deck, ready for anything.

[MartinF]

I don't think anyone would wear Crocs on the N. Sea in October. You need wellies or wet-suit boots or something as warm. Think skiing. Skiing temperatures are a bit lower but you don't have to sit in a puddle for four hours in a stiff wind when skiing. The Baltic is not warm either. Last year I sat in a sheltered cove near Stockholm on midsummers eve, wearing a foul-weather jacket for warmth.
Good Luck - M

[deblen]

Grundens Rain Gear - Commercial Fishing and Foul Weather Rain Gear at Go2marine

This is what N.Atlantic commercial fishermen wear. There are various brands,but all are similar-basically rubber over canvas. $100 will buy a suit of "oilclothes". They are 100% waterproof & break the wind. You wear layers of your choice of insulating clothes under them. Cheap & tough.

Look at commercial fishing calf length boots & gloves also.

Check out commercial fishing suppliers-no need to spend big $$$.

Cheers/Len

[El Pinguino]

Sea boots... in Chile any visitors I have get send round to the local farmers' co-op to buy white (Canadian) BATA boots the same as the workers wear.... cheap and cheerful.. normally abandoned on board when they leave...
My favourite "wet use" gloves are a pair of Canadian ones as just described but with a 'fluffy' warm inner. I also have big warm ones for 'cold and dry' conditions plus possum wool ones for formal wear.
With the rest of the OPs kit there isn't a lot of bulk involved for travel or wearing... 2 sets merino fleece.. medium density... maybe 150.... Fleece legs and jacket.
The bulky bit is the WWG itself ... I've always been happy with mid range stuff.

These are good people to deal with... Icebreaker Men's Next-to-Skin Layers - Bivouac Online Store
Unfortunately Icebreaker seems to have gone a bit 'trendy' with 'this year's styles' and other nonsense... used to just come in black/100/150/200...

[barnakiel]

I think a full set of Musto HPX will hurt no-one. Skins in anything breathable and mid layer up to your liking (I like fleece but many prefer down). GTX seaboots one size up too.

Survival suits are another good thing to wear once in the North Sea.

b.

[El Pinguino]

Musto MPX?..... at 700 UKP recommended retail a bit exee for a 6 week hol....

[Snowpetrel]

I wouldn't touch down jackets. Warm until they get wet then lethally cold and impossible to dry. Much worse even than cotton.

Sent from my HTC_0PCV2 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[barnakiel]

You think MPX will be good enough? I find HPX lasts better - the outer shell is polyester in HPX and poliamide in MPX. The MPX stretches more but the membrane goes first too. Since each kit is a bit on the pricey side, I would opt for the best.

We are lucky to be sailing where a tee, polarized shades and some 50+ sunblock is all the gear we want.

Then again I found quality gtx parkas from outdoor shops at least as good as anything built for the discerning sailor, ban cuffs perhaps. Also, maybe third of that price.

Stay dry. Stay warm. And that's that.

Get at least two pairs of underwear and mid-layer: things tend to dry slower than advertised ;-)

Cheers,
b.

[Snowpetrel]

I've always got away with near the cheapest wet wc gear. All four Antarctic trips my wet wx gear was mid range cheaper supplier like Burke and westcoaster. You need storm cuffs. And a good dodger. My only musto experience was not good. Since then I've boycotted them. One dose of salt water sores is enough for a lifetime.

Sent from my HTC_0PCV2 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[jkindredpdx]

My daughter bought me some Columbia Sportswear OmnoTherm base layer before last ski season... I was skeptical, but now I'm a believer...