Leland on the Patagonia Highwater Vest PFD:
Didn't see that mid-stream rock? That standing wave a little bigger than the last time?
For anyone who's had a close call while boating, the Patagonia Highwater Vest PFD is something to consider. Even if you're the safest, most dutiful boater on your homewater, you know how
it never seems ideal to wear a bulky PFD when you'd rather be casting freely. And even if taking a swim is way down on your priority list (especially if you're wearing waders), the unexpected has been known to happen.
For your fishing partner, for your family, and for yourself, take a good look at the Patagonia Highwater Vest PFD, a fly fishing-specific 'life vest'.
Leland on Specifications:
With their late-90s acquisition
of whitewater PFD manufacturer Lotus Designs, Patagonia grew their
clout in the boating world a hundred fold.
Taking what they've learned from building low-profile kayaking vests, Patagonia has launched
the Highwater Vest PFD, the perfect option
for responsible anglers who know they should wear flotation but tend to leave bulky life jackets at the bottom of the boat or in the back of the truck. With
four front pockets, tool attachments, and a net-attachment on the back, the Highwater Vest PFD offers functional organization for fishing stuff, and with a
Type III USCG PFD certification, will get the ranger (and your spouse) off your back when you just want a carefree float.
Specifications:
- US Coast Guard approved Type III personal flotation device
- Cordura outer fabric, PVC- and CFC-free foam for eco-friendly buoyancy
- Two flap chest pockets, each with a 'piggyback' stretch mesh pocket off the front
- Bilateral D-rings on front for tool attachment
- D-ring off the back for net attachment
- Zipper and buckles ensure snug fit
- Flotation panels positioned for maximum freedom of movement: rowing, casting, wading, hook-setting
Leland on Patagonia Fly Fishing Vests:
Fly fishing vests are always something of a nod to tradition,
and the fine line-up provided by Patagonia is no exception. But once
you put your hands on these vests -- the Guidewater, the Riverwalker,
the Highwater PFD, and the Pack Vest -- you'll know for sure that this is fly fishing gear for the 21st century.
Advanced, recycled-content fabrics, unrivaled attention to ergonomics,
and a well-planned piece-specific specialization characterize today's
line of Patagonia fly fishing vests.
The Guidewater Vest, with its light-but-robust structure and plentiful storage, is the top-choice of gear-intensive anglers
who value innovation as well as tradition. For those water-pliers who
want a more economical package, both in terms of weight and cost,
there's the Patagonia Riverwalker Vest, a mesh design that's been consistently honed since 1987. Boat-based anglers will be pleased by the Highwater PFD Vest, a fishing-specific personal flotation device
or 'life vest' that has come into its own after years in development,
and provides low-profile safety and security in what can be a dangerous
sport. Finally, for those fly fishermen and -women really committed to
putting on miles -- as, for example, those fishing New Zealand --
Patagonia offers the now-classic Pack Vest, a modular on-water organization system with daypack and fishing vest components that can be worn together or separately, depending on the demands of the day.
Leland on Patagonia:
One of the most admired and emulated firms in the outdoor marketplace, Patagonia is also one of the stalwarts in the fly fishing industry. From its humble beginnings as Yvon Chouinard's piton forging business to its ascendancy as one of the major houses in outdoor apparel and equipment, Patagonia has been marked by the same commitment to well-designed, well-made product, the same dedication to corporate social responsibility, and the same finger-on-the-pulse outdoor culture -- for almost forty years now.
Chouinard, still the company's head and something of an enlightened monarch,
is well known as an alpinist and a surfer, but is also an avid fly
fisherman. Atlantics, cutthroats, permit: he knows what he likes for
fish as well as for gear, and he maintains a hand in the processes of
product design to this day. Patagonia is a founding partner of '1% for the Planet', a league of environmentally progressive businesses, and the firm demonstrates its engagement with environmental stewardship in other ways as well. To minimize the inevitable ecological costs of manufacturing, Patagonia uses recycled-content fabrics where possible and -- more to the point, perhaps -- makes products that will perform at a high level for years without the need for a replacement.
Patagonia on the Highwater PFD Vest:
An airy, but trim-fitting, PFD that doubles as a basic fishing vest.
The constant boat angling dilemma: You know you should wear one, but
who wants to fish all day in a life vest? Here's the solution: The
Highwater Vest is a full-on USCG-approved Type III personal floatation
device that's also a trim-fitting, functional fishing vest. Better yet,
it's so comfortable and allows such a wide range of motion, you'll
forget you're even wearing a PFD. The Highwater features Gaia™ foam
that's lighter than conventional foam and free of CFC-ozone-depleting
materials, without sacrificing performance. Deft adjustment points,
die-cut/hand-skived foam and an open-mesh back keep the profile slim
(and cool and comfortable to wear, even in a high-backed kayak seat or
float tube). The low neckline, narrow chest and short waist create
large armholes for unimpeded casting. Details: adjustable shoulder and
side straps, two large flapped pockets with piggyback mesh pockets, two
D-rings on the front and one on the back.
Patagonia on Patagonia:
Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.
–Patagonia's Mission Statement
Patagonia
grew out of a small company that made tools for climbers. Alpinism
remains at the heart of a worldwide business that still makes clothes
for climbing – as well as for skiing, snowboarding, surfing, fly
fishing, paddling and trail running. These are all silent sports. None
requires a motor; none delivers the cheers of a crowd. In each sport,
reward comes in the form of hard-won grace and moments of connection
between us and nature.
Our values reflect those of a business
started by a band of climbers and surfers, and the minimalist style
they promoted. The approach we take towards product design demonstrates
a bias for simplicity and utility.
For us at Patagonia, a love
of wild and beautiful places demands participation in the fight to save
them, and to help reverse the steep decline in the overall
environmental health of our planet. We donate our time, services and at
least 1% of our sales to hundreds of grassroots environmental groups
all over the world who work to help reverse the tide.
We know
that our business activity – from lighting stores to dyeing shirts –
creates pollution as a by-product. So we work steadily to reduce those
harms. We use recycled polyester in many of our clothes and only
organic, rather than pesticide-intensive, cotton.
Staying true
to our core values during thirty-plus years in business has helped us
create a company we're proud to run and work for. And our focus on
making the best products possible has brought us success in the
marketplace.
Patagonia on the Oceans as Wilderness Campaign:
Fifty
million buffalo once roamed the rolling green prairies of North
America. Gunners reduced them to near extinction. Now, hunters are at
work on the rolling blue prairies of the sea, and already, the big fish
– including miracles like thousand-pound, warm-blooded bluefin tuna –
are 90 percent gone. What we regret happening on land, may again happen
in the sea. Those who care about wildlife should get to know about
oceans." – Carl Safina, "Comes a Turtle, Comes the World," Patagonia
2006 Heart of Winter Catalog
On land, we saw once what wildness
meant. Imagine it: 50 million buffalo. Passenger pigeons that flocked
so thick they covered the sun. A Spanish explorer sailing up the coast
of California described a beach with scores of grizzly bears feeding on
whale carcasses. Now, the vast numbers have dwindled or gone extinct.
Only a remnant reminds us of what was, the animals and land we
destroyed in our belief that there was a never-ending supply. We
protect them with the Endangered Species Act, wilderness areas and
hunting and fishing laws – having finally learned that we must.
And
so now the sea: In Maine, they used to catch lobsters by gaffing them
in shallow water by the shore. Cod were so numerous and so easily
caught that prisoners complained because they were fed the fish too
many times a week. Once, salmon returning from the ocean so crowded
rivers and streams that people told stories of walking on their backs.
Marlin, swordfish, mako, bluefin, abalone – everywhere in abundance.
We
need to train ourselves to see what is hidden under the surface of the
waters because fish stocks are in collapse and the oceans are in
trouble. Many recent studies, including the Pew Oceans Commission
(2003), have come to the same conclusions. The big fish, like that
thousand-pound tuna, are 90 percent gone. Newfoundland cod, wild
abalone, Atlantic halibut and Chilean sea bass are so scarce as to be
nearly nonexistent. Breeding swordfish populations have been cut in
half; marlin are rare. Pelicans in the Sea of Cortés starve for want of
fish to eat.
Coral reefs are crumbling, and the ocean floor is
plowed up by trawlers. Plastic kills seabirds and is found on the
beaches of the world's most remote islands. Surfers, swimmers and
lifeguards are vaccinated annually against hepatitis as a matter of
course. Tuna and swordfish have so much methylmercury in their bodies,
they are hazardous food for pregnant women and children. The causes are
many, but chief among them is an ugly trinity: unsustainable fishing
practices, habitat destruction and contamination.
Patagonia's
2006–07 environmental campaign was devoted to the oceans. Our goal was
to help us all see what is under the waters of the earth. How the vast
schools of tuna are like those herds of buffalo. How bottom trawling is
like clear-cutting an entire forest to get at a single tree. In our
catalogs, retail stores and on our Web site, we spent 18 months with
marine scientists and writers, surfers and fishermen, to teach
ourselves and our customers just how close the connection is between
the vitality of human life and the marine environment.
Our OAW
campaign helped bring about a great success for the oceans: the
reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the primary law governing
fishing practices in U.S. waters. But our work on this issue is far
from over. The fishing holes, beaches and wetlands that we enjoyed as
children will not be there for our children unless we acknowledge that
the oceans belong to everyone and take seriously our shared
responsibility for long-term marine management.
