Its always difficult to decide what to take on a kayak expedition, functionality and value for money are probably the two main things to be considered. This is why this summer in Greenland I decided on the Reed Aquatherm full paddle suit and was not disappointed. At half the price of many of the competitors it performed admirably.
In the cold conditions we encountered, the paddle suit with fleece underneath was always warm enough and the hood was the best design ever, I have had so many cags which when you turn around all you see is the inside of the hood but the Reed hood stayed in place and you could actually see the people behind you and it did not blow off in strong winds due to the adjustable straps at the back.
I have used dry suits in the past but find the latex seals very uncomfortable after a while; but the neck and arm seals on the paddle suit were comfortable and seemed to keep the water out. The best thing was having built in feet as it meant that you could wear comfortable socks inside and with crocs to protect the suit it was possible to wade into the water to get into the boats without becoming miserable from cold wet feet. The suits are very comfortable to paddle in and the material was very flexible. The comfort zip was useful with a shewee! Although I did prefer to strip off! They are not designed as full submersion dry suits but for paddling in colder environments on an expedition they performed really well and it is also a bonus for normal winter paddling - there really is nothing better than taking it off at the end of a paddle and having dry clothes and even better - dry feet.
