As I fished from shore and then out of my kayak I was moving around and the suit never felt bulky nor did I ever overheat. The one issue I had the first couple hours I wore it was that the neck gasket was tight on me. It felt like it was cutting off my air and I felt slightly light headed. The easy fix was just pulling it out a bit, take a deep breath or two and I was fine. The second time I wore it there was no issue with the neck gasket.
After fishing and moving in all different ways for a number of hours, I still felt extremely comfortable in the drysuit. Now, time to take the real test. The water was in the mid-thirties and I decided to take a plunge. Ok, not just one, but four. The first ‘spill’ into the water everything was fine. No water got inside. Then, the next dunk. However, this time I noticed that I had some dampness on my chest. After paddling back to shore I opened up the suit and noticed I had 3 drops of water on my chest. Not bad for taking two spills into the water, but not great. Then a week later, I fished and paddled some more and then tested it two more times. Both times I went in there was no water leakage and although my hands were cold, I could’ve kept fishing without any real problems.
Now for the Pros: Lightweight, Breathable/Comfortable, Non-restrictive, Extra material by one stressed areas (knees, butt, shoulders), Keeps most of the water out.
Cons: Uncomfortable neck gasket at first, Let a little bit of water in.
For those of us midwest and northern die hard yakanglers, or anyone who fishes cold water a lot, a drysuit makes a lot of sense. A hard part for many people is the price. This suit, not on sale, costs $980. That is a big chunk of change for many folks. But how can you put a price on coming home alive to your friends and family. Even with that, the NRS Crux drysuit, for me, is a CATCH because it is made extremely well, it is durable, lightweight, comfortable, does an excellent job of keeping me safe, dry, and I able to come home and see my family after fishing the cold waters.
