handware

[Paddlinhal]

Last Saturday we poled up the Nissitissit in Pepperell MA. Some mild rapids, some smooth but strong current, and a lot of just plain pleasant going. If anyone else was out you'd know it was about 40 degrees out with a fair strong wind. Necessarily, handling the pole means your gloves are going to get wet and the aluminum pole sucks the heat right out of your hands and evaporative cooling is just icing on the cake. I've been poling my canoe for a good 30 years now and I still have no idea what to wear on my hands. Oversized neoprene gloves are about the best I've come up with.

 

[Mnoutdoorfunguy]

I have had great luck with the Atlas 282 Temres gloves.
Warm, surprisingly breathable, durable and good grip.
I have only used them for canoe and kayak paddling, not poling.

 

[TrailBlaser]

Depending on the conditions, I use one of two pairs of gloves when paddling (not poling): a 90% neoprene/10% nylon full glove from NRS or a "fingerless" 58% rubber/17% nylon with leather palms and velcro closures from West Marine.

 

[dougd]

My buddy Scott has a pair of blue gloves that lobster fishermen use, I don't recall the brand but they are thick and for poling that can be an issue. I've yet to find a solution for all the wetness from the pole and a pair of gloves that are waterproof, warm and thin enough to get a good grip on the pole.

 

[alsg]

You obviously should have sprung for the heated pole.

 

[yellowcanoe]

I have old Glacier Gloves. They have pretty good paddle feel

 

[lowangle al]

I would go with rubber gloves from the hardware store that fit over my lined leather Kincos. Look in the masonary dept. They are probably like what Doug mentioned worn by lobster fisherman. I was using my pole earlier this winter and managed to keep my hands dry for the most part. I only used it in a way that kept most of the pole dry and switched to a paddle when I couldn't. This was for maneuvering through ice in shallow water and not ww.

 

[Steve in Idaho]

I have, in the past, sung praises for the NRS Toaster Mitts. Even in the middle of winter with ice forming at the river's edges, they have kept my hands warm. The pre-curved grip shape was comfortable and didn't bunch at the palm. But poling is hard on neoprene gloves, and the seams eventually started leaking. So I went to the paddle shop for a new pair - and what do I find? NRS had changed (read "cheapened") the design. I tried a pair on, and was really disappointed. They didn't seal up as well at the wrist, and they didn't have the pre-formed grip - which now caused them to bunch in the palm.

So then I figured I'd fall back on Glacier gloves. I've also worn out a few pairs of those, and their articulated curved model was almost as good as the old Toaster Mitts in the bitter cold. A trip to the nearest store that carries those was just as disappointing. Also redesigned and not so good.

I contacted NRS and voiced my displeasure. I would rather pay more and have the old design than keep the old price and lower the quality. They informed me that they were redesigning the Toaster Mitts again. I just checked their website, and it looks like they have done that - but they didn't return to the original design. A check of the Glacier Glove site appears to show another change with their product as well - again, not back to the original.

So - I don't know if either are all that great. I think I will order a pair of the Glacier Gloves and give them a try (they're on sale, BTW). I'll at least search out a pair of the new Toaster Mitts and try them on. But I can't recommend at this point.

It's my experience that poling is harder on neo gloves than paddling, so if you find something that works for you, you might want to buy a lifetime supply (I go through a pair at least every two years).

Another thing that helps in the winter is switching to the wood pole. It doesn't suck the heat out so bad, and doesn't ice up as fast. It also doesn't require a treatment of board wax as the aluminum pole does, to keep it from slipping so easily with gloves on.

 

[Steve in Idaho]

Those Atlas 282 gloves look interesting, but I wish I could inspect them before buying. It doesn't look like they have much of anything to keep water from running in at the wrist. That is an issue with the modern poling technique. Hands will get wet either way, but copious amounts of chilled water running in at the wrist kind of cancels out the value of the glove.

 

[Paddlinhal]

Looks like the Atlas 282 gloves are the same as the blue lobster gloves. I think I'll have to give them a try. By the way a good coat of Mr. Zog's Sex Wax on the pole reduces the amount of water running down the pole and into your coat sleeve at least 95%, and that is huge when you're doing the windmill technique or other swapping of ends. But with neoprene gloves the waxed grip is so good you can't slide the pole to do a "pool cue recovery" and you can wear a pair out in one day. I wonder how much sliption you get with the Atlas 282, and how much water might get in the cuff. (Sliption is the opposite of gription).

 

[lowangle al]

I only have a little poling experience but I think it would be possible to adjust your technique to keep your hands and much of the pole dry in freezing temps. Even if you have the glove thing figured out you still have to be concerned about getting water in the boat. I don't think that ice forming on the bottom of your boat is a good thing, especially when standing. At least that's my experience.

 

[recped]

NRS had changed (read "cheapened") the design.

This "disease" has infected many of the old reliable NRS products. I bought a new dry suit last Fall, knew what I wanted so I didn't inspect ultra-closely (online after all), looks nice on arrival, more bells and whistles BUT BUT BUT What happened to the zippers? metal is gone, now it's plastic and not a YKK.

I get that dry suit zippers probably cost as much (or more) than the rest of the suit combined but I also paid $300 more than the previous suit (same basic design and fabric).

On the other hand, maybe the plastic zip will work better when it's really cold?

 

[Chip]

Poling is tough on gloves. When I pole in cold weather I use a wooden pole and try to keep one end dry. It's not the modern way, no windmilling the pole, and it's not always possible--sometimes you really need to make quick moves that involve using both ends of the pole. Then you get your hands wet and hope for help from the gloves.

Basic glove is the knit gloves with nitrile coating on the palm side. They offer a bit of warmth and casual water protection. You can grab the wet part of the pole but if water flows onto the back of the glove it gets wet and most of the warmth is gone. I've also used a number of neoprene gloves, but they don't last long.

One of the better gloves for poling came out of a bargain bin at a big box store, costing about $10. They have no brand name, but there are tags reading Positherm and water proof. The palms and fingers are of a tough synthetic "leather" with grippy dots, while the rest of the exterior is canvas-like cotton that is treated for water proofing. These are work gloves, are tough, and have held up. And, they really are waterproof, which, ironically, is their draw back. It's amazing to me how much my hands sweat. Ever use rubber gloves when it's warm? Sweat pours out of rubber gloves after about a half hour. These nameless gloves have a polyester lining that provides warmth and absorbs moisture. After a couple hours the gloves are so wet on the inside they don't provide much warmth. And, I need a special arrangement to dry the gloves. The waterproof coating works in both directions--keeps water out and keeps water in. Still, if I could find them again I'd get a couple more.

Using search terms positherm water proof gloves on Amazon returns some inexpensive work gloves that might be good candidates. So does the same terms at Home Depot. Because poling tears up gloves, I think it is important to look for a work glove and something that is not too expensive.

 

[Steve in Idaho]

Yeah - sweaty hands are a thing with neo gloves and mitts. But if they're thick enough (as in the old Toaster Mitts) the wetness doesn't usually = cold.

Al - I suppose one could switch techniques to keep one end of the pole dry much of the time if one had to. But I find that the river dictates what technique I use, from pole plant to pole plant - and I prefer it that way. It's just an automatic thing, once you're used to it, to apply pool cue, hand over hand, windmill, crossover windmill, kayak stroke, quick stab, etc, wherever each is called for.

Ice forming on the floor is also a thing. I've been on the river at times when the water droplets freeze instantly into little beads and slick spots in the canoe. You don't want those to build up, as they will cause your feet to slip. But it takes a while for it to be a problem, and you can turn the boat over while taking a break and usually knock most of it out. When it's that bad though, the pole icing up is pretty much the limiting factor - even with a wood pole. Pausing to wash the ice off the pole slows things down a lot.