Leland on the Patagonia Women's Riverwalker Vest:

The woman we hope to one day meet at the take-out is wearing a Patagonia Women's Riverwalker Vest. She's talking to her friends about how the fish switched to the spinners fifteen minutes ahead of schedule today, and she's pointing to what worked in her fly box. She'll have to tie something tonight that will give her other go-to pattern a run for its money, she says, returning the box to her vest, and which will restore her edge over the boys back at the fly shop. Needless to say, our attention is elsewhere, and we don't notice how well the vest fits, functions, and likely feels -- like you will, no doubt -- but the overall impression is a lasting one: this woman, making her way confidently in a male-dominated sport, not only knows just-what-she's-doing, but is having a great time doing it.

Leland on Specifications:

Taking what's potentially one of the frumpier objects in women's fly fishing and giving it an edgy, feminine (but not frilly) look is Patagonia's number one goal with the Women's Riverwalker Vest. That and bringing to bear all the experience the firm has accrued in almost forty years of making women's apparel, and over two decades of making fly fishing gear. The result -- with its structured pockets, its supportive, comfortable neck and shoulders, and its feminine shape -- is a clear success, and the Women's Riverwalker Vest is a sure bet to provide women with the fit, usability, comfort and confidence to either get their feet wet in fly fishing, or keep excelling after years in the sport.

Specifications:

• Body built of 4.6-oz polyester mesh
• Contoured fit isn't boxy
• Padded shoulders provide day-long comfort and support with superb carriage
• Molded foam front pockets offer industry-leading usability
• Back pocket offers high volume storage
• Padded, stretchy collar reduces neck stress
• External, removable fly patch
• Integrated rod holder

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 Women's Riverwalker Vest:

The Women's Riverwalker Vest updates our classic mesh vest from '87 with zippered, structurally molded pockets for improved access and a cleaner exterior and a fit specifically for women.

Everything that made our original mesh vest a classic for hot or cold weather fishing – comfort, breathability and low moisture retention – with the latest advances in modern pack compartmentalization and construction. The women's version isn't just a smaller men's vest, either – it's fit specifically for women. Convenient, easy-to-use curved and straight coil zippers and structurally molded pockets replace the old soft-pocket system for superior access and a cleaner, more fly-line-friendly exterior. More features: mesh and polyester double-weave construction, partial padded support, storage that's specifically designed for fly boxes, tippet and tools, attachment points, a removable fly patch and a built-in rod holder. With two internal zippered pockets and a relaxed but femininely contoured fit.

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.