The Stohlquist Toaster Kayaking Pogies are a great way to protect your hands from wind and water while retaining precise control over your kayak paddle. 2mm neoprene gives you a great combination of warmth and comfort. The skin-out outer finish reduces evaporation and allows water to roll, reducing heat loss. A lightweight waterproof cuff makes for easy entry and exit, and webbing straps make quick work of rolling or storing the Toaster pogies. For those who prefer the direct contact feel of their kayak paddle shaft, Stohlquist Toast pogies are a great way to stay warm and in control.
B**K
How do these fit into all the options? My thoughts and ramblings
So my girlfriend and I both have hands that run cool, mine a little bit more so perhaps and these will suit your needs if super cold conditions or water isn't your thing but more of an extended paddling season. On the Great Lakes and WI these feel perfect for air temperatures ranging from about high 40F to 30F. At the upper end of that range they are great without a glove and depending on wind and ones overall warmth you can roll them around the paddle handle when not needed (a really cool feature for cusp pogie usage conditions or when using a light weight glove in cooler conditions). If it were going to be in the lower range of that temperature I would use them with a 1mm glove. For reference for me anywhere in the 30F air temperature and modest wind (regardless of water temp) a 2mm neoprene gloves will leave my hands cold most of the time aside from continual good pace paddling with. However where these shine is combine the pogie with the gloves and you have a system that you can use when the conditions are chilling your hands or roll up and stow away on the center of your paddle if the conditions change or you heat up enough to keep your hands warm. For someone with cold running hands these offer a lot of flexibility compared to other pogies. They also are quite small rolled up so you can always just take them with you on the water in the cooler months compared to a heavier pogie. All in I am extremely happy with these and see them as a option for those who need to block wind and add some warmth but I wouldn't expect these to be as warm as a 5mm neoprene model for winter paddling. With that said they are easy to get in and out of. You can cuff up the nylon part (it doesn't button cuffed) as an option as well. I hope this helps someone as these have been a blessing and as a backpacker I think in terms of layering as opposed to a one solution and I wasn't interested in winter paddling so the heavy ones seemed like they would rarely be used but wanted to have a 3+ season paddling solution. My winter months are devoted to traveling to the far north in search of deep snow to play in and camping out. Cheers!
C**F
Winter Paddling Game Changer
These are seriously the best things ever. An avid winter paddler, I've always struggled with keeping my hands warm. The rest of my body - no problem, but my hands and fingers inevitably became wet and uncomfortably cold and immobile. Enter pogies. I stumbled on these guys with no idea what they were or how they worked. Now, they are a fixture of my paddling gear. They velcro around your paddle, allowing you to have full contact. You slip your hand inside with the sleeve of the pogie extending up past your wrist. Sure, they look a little like oven mitts, but your hands will be dry and warm. I take a lot of pictures and was always pulling my gloves off with my teeth to take a picture then putting the gloves back on - on and off and on again. With the pogies, I paddle, I slip my hand out, take a shot, slip my hand back in. There's enough room inside if you wanted to wear a pair of light gloves, but I love having contact with my paddle and the ease of moving my hands in and out of them. I've worn them paddling in snow and wind and freezing temperatures. These things are a true winter paddling game changer.
A**E
Saved my winter paddling
First set I got had a missing snap. They sent replacements in two days. I can paddle for hours in 35 F weather now. I thought I would still need a pair of warm gloves in them but that is totally unnecessary. Hands get so warm I take them out every now and then to cool off! I wear my summer fishing gloves inside the pogies to to prevent blisters.Some reviewers don't like the cuff material and say it is floppy, but that is precisely why the pogie can be wrapped around itself with a strap and snap and pushed to the middle of the paddle to be out of the way. I can quickly pull my hands out to take pictures, and I don't have any trouble getting my hands back in over my 3mm wetsuit sleeves. This plus Cresi tall neoprene boots are my winter essentials. If you get the boots, get them a size (or 2) larger than you need so you can layer some terry footies for insulation.
K**R
Warm hands, good design, great price
I just received these and have only used them once so, over time, my opinion may change. But, for right now I love these things. Went out today in 33 degrees, no wind, and spent about 2 1/2 hours paddling. My hands were toasty warm the whole time. I started out by wearing disposable rubber gloves and light glove liners inside the pogies but soon ditched them and paddled bare handed inside the pogies. . The pogies fit well around my Greenland paddle shaft - the velcro, coupled with elastic at the openings, provide a good fit over a wide range of paddle shaft sizes. They are roomy enough for large hands or while wearing light gloves. They are long enough to come up well over the wrist. They have a loose fitting opening at the wrist so getting them on and off is easy without having to use your teeth. I think some pogies have a tighter fitting wrist which may be desirable in some conditions but I like these as they are. I don't know if these are supposed to be waterproof but, because of the way they attach to the paddle, I don't think any pogie would keep out water completely. Actually, when a drip of cold water would find its' way down the paddle shaft and to my hand, it was actually a welcome, refreshing, coolness to my warm hands. I can't comment on their durability yet. But except for the action of taking them on and off the paddle shaft there should really be no wear and tear on the pogie itself. Warm hands at the best price I found on any brand and free shipping - can't be beat...
G**G
Pretty good, but sometimes hard to get on.
Been using these over two winters now. Build quality is good, and they definitely keep hands warm and mostly dry, ive used them in temps down to about 28F. Only fault I have with them is the cuffs are just fabric and its hard to get them on over top of a drysuit sleeve. Theres nothing to hold them open while slipping over the sleeve. Some sort of support in the opening would solve this problem but obviously add more bulk and make them not as easy to roll up when not in use. Over all i like them because they do what they're supposed to (keep my hands warm and dry) but its always fiddly trying to get them on at first, and i find myself having to avoid taking my hands out at all while out on the water.
