Some of the best packrafting in Australia and New Zealand is on cold water. Highland lakes in Tasmania, snow-fed rivers in the Victorian and New South Wales alps, glacial country in the South Island, and almost anywhere on a winter morning. Cold water asks for a different plan: shorter trips, closer to shore, the right layers on and a dry set packed. Get that plan right and you have the place to yourself.
Cold shock comes first
The first danger in cold water is not hypothermia. It is the minute after you go in. Sudden immersion triggers a gasp and a burst of fast, uncontrolled breathing. If your face is underwater during that gasp, you inhale water.
A PFD is what gets you through that minute. It holds your head up while your breathing settles, without you having to swim. Wear it done up, every time, on every trip.
After cold shock comes a slower problem. Cold water drains strength from your arms and hands within minutes, so swimming, gripping a tube and climbing back in all get harder fast. Plan every cold-water trip so that a swim is short and ends at a bank close by.
Cold is not only a winter thing. Water below about 15 °C is cold enough to cause cold shock, and snowmelt rivers can run that cold in the middle of a hot spring day. Judge the water, not the air.
Dress for the swim
The rule for cold water is simple: dress for being in the water, not for sitting on it. A warm sunny paddle in a light jacket can turn into a long, shivering walk to the car after one tip.
- Base layer. Merino or synthetic thermals, top and bottom. No cotton; it stays wet and pulls heat away.
- Insulation. A fleece or synthetic mid layer that stays warm when damp.
- Shell. A waterproof, windproof paddling jacket and pants. Wind on wet clothes is where the heat goes.
- Immersion wear. For properly cold water or longer crossings, a wetsuit or a drysuit changes what a swim means. Many cold-water packrafters treat a drysuit as standard kit.
- Feet and hands. Neoprene socks or booties and paddling gloves or pogies. Cold hands cannot work buckles, valves or zips.
- Head. A beanie or a neoprene cap. It is the easiest way to hold heat.
Our field note on what to wear packrafting covers the whole system.
Keep trips short
Cold-water trips work best in short sections with a warm-up in between. Paddle for an hour, land, walk around, eat something, then paddle again. Your hands and feet thank you, and you arrive at the end with energy left.
Start later on winter mornings, once the sun is on the water, and finish well before dark. Temperatures drop quickly in the late afternoon in the high country. A trip that finishes at three leaves you daylight to change and warm up.
Pick a first cold-water trip on water you already know from summer.
Stay close to shore
The distance to the bank is the distance you swim if something goes wrong. On cold water, keep it short. Follow the shoreline of a lake rather than cutting across the middle, even if it adds time.
Watch the wind, too. A breeze builds chop on an open lake quickly, and chop is when capsizes happen. If a crossing looks marginal in cold water, go around. The packraft rolls into your pack, and walking around a bay is always an option.
Paddle with a friend. Two packrafts on cold water mean one person can help the other back in, tow a packraft, or head for help. Stay close together, within easy talking distance.
Pack the spare warm kit
A full change of dry clothes, sealed in a dry bag, is the most useful thing you can carry on a cold-water trip. If you swim, you change on the bank straight away and warm up from the inside.
- Dry base layer top and bottom, socks and a beanie.
- A warm puffer or thick fleece.
- A lightweight emergency blanket or bivvy bag.
- A thermos of hot drink and high-energy food.
- A lighter or stove to heat water on longer trips.
- A PLB or satellite messenger carried on you, not in the bag.
Keep the spare kit within reach, not buried under the tent at the bottom of the bow load. Double-bag it. A wet spare set is no spare at all.
Know the signs
Shivering, clumsy hands, slurred words and poor decisions are all early signs of getting too cold. Watch for them in yourself and in each other. The moment they show, stop paddling, get to shore, change into dry clothes, eat and drink something warm.
Do not push on to the take-out to save time. Warming up early is quick. Warming up late is a rescue. Leave your trip intentions with someone at home, with a time to raise the alarm.
The reward
Cold water done well is some of the most rewarding paddling there is. Mist lifting off a highland lake and frost on the tussock. Dress right, stay close and keep it short, and you get the best mornings of the year.
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