Often this is the time of year that I like to check my waders. A friend of mine used to say, “There are two kinds of waders. Those that leak and those that are about to leak”. In preparation of the mountain trout fishing, I will get my hip boots out in February and head to a local stocked trout stream. I only have one goal in mind for this trip. Put the hip boots on and enter the stream to see if they leak. I figure checking them on a close by stream is easier than driving over an hour to a stream in the Shenandoah National Park only to find my hip boots leak.
If they don’t leak, then I go home and hang them in the basement upside down so they can thoroughly dry. Never leave your waders or hip boots in the sun to dry. Should I encounter leaks, then I decide if they can be fixed with a repair kit. If that doesn’t work, then replace with a new pair.
To save a trip, I often check my chest high waders at the same time to prepare for the bass fishing in April. A pair of leaky waders can make for a miserable day on the water.
Chest High Waders or Hip Boots?
Often our students will ask, “should I get waders or hip boots?” If planning to fish only the small native brook trout streams or the stocked trout streams then hip boots will be adequate. If chest high waders are all that you have then don’t go out and buy a pair of hip boots just because I said so. These will work on the small native brook trout streams as well. The smallmouth bass rivers are deeper so in the spring and fall months, chest high waders will be needed. Hip boots are not adequate for the bigger streams.
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