I'm a longtime dock-to-dock Seattle/Florida pilot who's flying for a fishing lodge in Alaska for the first time.

Looking for recommendations on gear that works for pilots. Gear to keep me dry but also streamlined enough to not snag getting in and out of the cabin. I'm quite used to flying in shorts and flip flops, so river and fishing gear is pretty new to me.

I've got plenty of longsleeve shirts but I've never owned a pair of waist high boots or waders.

Most of the forums I'm reading are for fly fishing, which I imagine has less concern about bulkyness.

Any tips or brands to target/avoid would be greatly appreciated,

Windbreaker
Boots/Waders - something easy to fly in
Holster

I wear bootfoot chest waders. Used to use Simms but they stopped offering my size. Wearing a pair of Kuiu now. Most pilots up here seem to go for hip boots but there are a few times a year where the chest waders really help make life easy.

I don’t fly in a jacket until October. Don’t fly with a holster. Jacket and firearm are in the float hatch.

I'm a lower 48 hunter. Not much experience with fishing in rivers from a plane. However, I agree with buying gear from Kuiu. I'd recommend their gear to anyone. You may want to consider this link if you're looking for a holster.

https://gunfightersinc.com/kenai-chest-holster/

I flew a lot of hours in Alaska summers wearing hip boots. Depending on where you are and current weather, chest waders can get mighty warm, and can be cumbersome. Hip boots fold down when not wading. There is no way I'd wear short shoes/thongs, etc while flying seaplanes in Alaska. And, yes, I have done so, and learned that lesson.

There are times where, for a variety of reasons, you may wind up filling a boot with water....so be it, dump the water out, put the boot back on and go back to work.

Seems like most fishermen wear chest waders for fishing, but that also likely varies with the location. My guess is, if you're flying for a lodge, you may not have a lot of time for fishing on your own anyway.....but that probably depends on the lodge.

As to holsters, what are you planning to carry? I carried duty handguns (.40 cal semi autos) for years, in both shoulder rigs and belt holsters. If you're planning to carry something bigger, a chest hoster might be best. But, frankly, if you're planning to carry a handgun for bear protection, a .40 or .45 is probably about as good as a .50, mostly because normal humans can be trained to accurately and effectively SHOOT the smaller guns.

As the story goes, if you're planning to carry a handgun for bear protection, be sure to file the front sight off, so it won't hurt so bad when the bear shoves it where the light don't shine.....
Actual Bear protection: 12 Guage pump action shotgun with Brenneke slugs or equivalent.

MTV

Good one MIke.

Howdy, welcome to the Alaska lodge life. I did that for 4 years and loved every second. I'm now dock-to-dock in Southeast Alaska.

I prefer stockingfoot chest waders with nice wading boots. Hip boots are the worst - they are hot, bulky, snag on things, and if you're flying a beav then it's possible that the plane bottoms out in a place where you'd go over your boots in mud. Chest waders are surprisingly comfy and lightweight. Most summer days I just wore athletic/running shorts under my waders and thin but tall wool socks and on cooler days I'd wear a light base layer. In chest waders and a rain jacket, you are invincible on rainy days. You should be able to get pro deals on Simms through your lodge for 50-60% off.

The best boots BY FAR are Simms flyweight. I could hike in these all day, and have. They are light weight, durable, and comfy.
https://www.simmsfishing.com/products/f ... t-boot-s19

Any of the Simms waders are great depending on how much you want to spend. The flyweight waders are lighter than the guide series but they are all great. The G3 guides were sort of the gold standard but expensive. I like the Guide Classics because they are affordable:
https://www.simmsfishing.com/products/g ... 6060709054

Have fun. I'm now flying floats in alaska in running shoes because I'm just going to docks. It's a wild change of pace.



Chest waders allow you to get pics like this too..

x2 on the Simms G3. Have spent hours and hours in them fishing. Really well made and lightweight.

However, I have never paired them with a good boot properly sized for stocking foot waders. Always shoehorned my foot into some hiking boot I had and it definitely shortened my day. Also, there’s a slight tightening of the waist that occurs in any chest wader between standing and seated position.

Simms makes a stocking foot “Guide Pant” which stops at your waist. This might be the happy medium that lets you be comfortable in a seated position in the airplane or boat. Looks pretty sweet but they’re $550 retail.

I think there’s also a gap between fun flying and trying to keep your feet/pants dry and doing the lodge experience. For the latter, definitely agree with Asa.

Zzz wrote:x2 on the Simms G3. Have spent hours and hours in them fishing. Really well made and lightweight.

However, I have never paired them with a good boot properly sized for stocking foot waders. Always shoehorned my foot into some hiking boot I had and it definitely shortened my day. Also, there’s a slight tightening of the waist that occurs in any chest wader between standing and seated position.

Simms makes a stocking foot “Guide Pant” which stops at your waist. This might be the happy medium that lets you be comfortable in a seated position in the airplane or boat. Looks pretty sweet but they’re $550 retail.

I think there’s also a gap between fun flying and trying to keep your feet/pants dry and doing the lodge experience. For the latter, definitely agree with Asa.

The pants are nice in theory but I haven't found a set I'm happy with. Patagonia also makes nice waders and they are "convertible". The top portion slides down on the straps to be more like pants with suspenders, or slide up to chest height. Patagonia fits me better than Simms but they don't offer pro deals so you have to pay full price.

https://www.patagonia.com/product/mens- ... 10014.html

Man, you guys have apparently never flown floats in the heat..... Chest waders in hot weather would have to be like wearing a huge plastic bag. In the Upper Yukon, summer temps often exceed 90F, and most summers have a stretch of 100 plus.

When I worked the Peninsula, I was mostly on the lower Peninsula, flying wheels. Hip boots there as well, but mostly for getting around once on the ground.

Interesting thread, in any case.

I've been hot in chest waders, but when the plane starts moving and I open the window it is fine. I have been a lot of places where I was glad I wasn't wearing hip boots. Pretty sure it is always true you can do the work in hip boots but you might get wet or work more carefully. But so much easier in chest waders. And if you are ever managing an airplane in surf while making people wade out to load...chest waders are the only answer that doesn't involve a complete salt bath.

Troy Hamon wrote:I've been hot in chest waders, but when the plane starts moving and I open the window it is fine. I have been a lot of places where I was glad I wasn't wearing hip boots. Pretty sure it is always true you can do the work in hip boots but you might get wet or work more carefully. But so much easier in chest waders. And if you are ever managing an airplane in surf while making people wade out to load...chest waders are the only answer that doesn't involve a complete salt bath.

Well, there's brute force and awkwardness and then there's finesse..... Sorry, I couldn't resist....I know what you mean, and I have been up to my armpits more than a few times....wearing hip boots. Good news is, at 100 degrees, things dry out fairly fast.

MTV

mtv wrote:

Troy Hamon wrote:I've been hot in chest waders, but when the plane starts moving and I open the window it is fine. I have been a lot of places where I was glad I wasn't wearing hip boots. Pretty sure it is always true you can do the work in hip boots but you might get wet or work more carefully. But so much easier in chest waders. And if you are ever managing an airplane in surf while making people wade out to load...chest waders are the only answer that doesn't involve a complete salt bath.

Well, there's brute force and awkwardness and then there's finesse..... Sorry, I couldn't resist....I know what you mean, and I have been up to my armpits more than a few times....wearing hip boots. Good news is, at 100 degrees, things dry out fairly fast.

MTV

The last time I saw 100 degrees was...a very long time ago...

Troy Hamon wrote:

mtv wrote:

Troy Hamon wrote:I've been hot in chest waders, but when the plane starts moving and I open the window it is fine. I have been a lot of places where I was glad I wasn't wearing hip boots. Pretty sure it is always true you can do the work in hip boots but you might get wet or work more carefully. But so much easier in chest waders. And if you are ever managing an airplane in surf while making people wade out to load...chest waders are the only answer that doesn't involve a complete salt bath.

Well, there's brute force and awkwardness and then there's finesse..... Sorry, I couldn't resist....I know what you mean, and I have been up to my armpits more than a few times....wearing hip boots. Good news is, at 100 degrees, things dry out fairly fast.

MTV

The last time I saw 100 degrees was...a very long time ago...

Here's the 100 degree solution. You better not mind leeches, though......just sayin.



MTV

This is an awesome thread, thank you!

I hate getting wet, so probably going to go with the waders.

Excited to do this - will be a nice break from the standard flying around Idaho.

Going to buy a few of the things in this thread and report back on what worked/didnt

Had a deep thought this morning while out on my little fishing boat.

Those wading pants look cool but my chest waders have stayed with me though a few increased notches of the belt; no complaints. $500+ for something that requires a waist might be risky

Then again, it’s Simms and they probably have a cool adjustable solution to that.

Nobody's mentioned holsters. What type handgun are you planning to carry? For more years than I care to recall, I carried a handgun, and frankly, I never found what I'd call an ideal solution in the airplanes. Now, these handguns were mostly .40 caliber semi autos, so a "little" more compact than a big revolver, such as a .50 cal.

A shoulder holster had some advantages, and worked fine with a full size auto, but getting the retention adjusted is critical, unless you want to hear the sound "clunk, splash". Our Management discouraged shoulder rigs, since our Range Officers wouldn't allow them on the range....cross drawing with muzzle alongside a co-worker..... But, I figured I'd deal with that if the time came.

I did use belt holsters as well, and they were generally more secure, but occasionally get tangled up in belts during "busy" beaching/launching sequences.

For a big caliber gun, like a .44 or .50, I'd look into one of the chest rigs that are out there. They seem pretty secure and I'm guessing they'd be way more comfortable for one of those big guns than either a shoulder or belt rig.

But, IF your purpose for carrying such a firearm is for bear protection, a .40 or maybe even a 9 will be just about as effective. I was the Range Officer for our Bear Safety firearms quals, which were with shotguns or rifles, but mostly short barrelled 870 Remingtons. Our Fisheries guys argued that, while they were electro fishing, they had a backpack for the electro fisher, and hands full, so carrying a long gun was impossible. So, they were permitted by policy to carry a .44 Magnum handgun or larger for bear protection, IF they could qualify with it on the Range.

In fifteen years of running that qualification, I never had a single person qualify with one of those big bore pistols. Qualifying involved shooting a "charging bear" target, which was more difficult than most folks assume.

The only gun that'll protect you is one you can hit a target with consistently.

MTV