And what we're going to talk about now, is what equipment do I need to
take with me and what is provided when Icome kayaking with Oceanwide Expeditions?
Hi everybody. Welcome to The Expedition Guide: the ultimate guide to expedition cruising in the polarregions.
My name is Adam Turner and I'm the FieldOperations Manager for Oceanwide Expeditions.
Now, as well as taking our guests to some of the most beautiful places in the world, one of the
favorite parts of my job is being able to get involved in some of the activities we offer our
guests when they travel with us. And one of those is the kayaking program. A question we frequently
get asked is what do Oceanwide give me if I come kayaking and what do I need to bring? So the
aim of this short video is just to answer those questions for you, and we start off at ground level.
The first thing we'll provide you will be a pair of neoprene booties. We have lots
of different sizes of these on board, as well as different sizes of the other clothing we give you.
Now, if you take an unusual size, please contact your agent or our office to make sure we have
the right size on board for you. Inside your boot I'd recommend wearing something like a Merino wool
sock, which will still keep your feet nice and warm, even if they do get a bit wet. On your legs I'd
advise wearing something like leggings or a pair of thermal underwear. And the reason for this is it
gives you an extra degree of comfort, but also for hygiene reasons. It gives us another layer
in between your skin and the wetsuit.
And weprovide you with a sleeveless wetsuit, which you'll keep for the duration
of your kayaking tripwith us.
Up to waist level we have the spray deck.
This - if needed - will go around your waist and it secures around the edge of the cockpit to - again-
provide an extra level of dryness and warmth while you're doing the paddling. On your body, personally
if I'm paddling in the polar regions I wear a thin fleece shirt and I find that works quite well, but
this is an individual choice, something comfortable. Would advise against wearing cotton, because once
it gets wet, there's no insulating properties. But on the outer layer we give you a waterproof kag.
Over the keg we'll give you a buoyancy aid,
and you'll see on the buoyancy aid we have some pockets and some different attachment points.
Now, this is ideal for placing your action camera, or if you have a waterproof case with a lanyard on it,
your mobile phone to get these quick images. Maybe of the wildlife that's swimming next to you or
something else where you need your camera handy to capture the moment.
On the very top a nice warm hatjust to keep you comfortable while you'repaddling.
One of the other questions we get a lot on board as well is
what do I wear onmy hands to keep them warm while I'm kayaking?
Now, we provide you with these neoprene pogies, which attach onto the paddle for kayaking, and they
give an extra level of warmth and dryness as well. But what you can consider doing, is maybe going to
your local watersports outlet or even some dive shops and buying a thin pair of neoprene gloves,
which once wet will also help insulate and keep you comfortable. You need nothing else to bring
with you to enjoy this amazing time you'll get paddling with us in the Arctic or in the Antarctic.
I hope this video has been of use to you. For more information please visit our website or
leave a comment in the comments box below. Thank you for watching this and let's go exploring!
