Sun Protection for Outdoorsmen

The Boy Scouts have a famous saying, "Always be prepared." When I was in high school, my dad always yelled as I flew through the kitchen door into another weekend night of carousing and experiencing adolescence to "wear your protection." As an outdoorsman both sets of words have come in handy in more ways than the ones they initially intended. The mantras mean more with every passing season and hit home recently when my good friend Terry Gibson, Fishing Editor of Outdoor Life, sauntered up to the dock with a bandage on his forehead and his right cheek.

"Dude! What happened to you?"

If you are an outdoorsman, you have either had the question asked of you or you have asked a buddy. Unfortunately, it is a question asked far too often.

"Man, the dermatologist found a few pre-cancerous spots and had to burn them off."

Terry is a young man; far too young to worry about cancerous spots and dressing like an Eskimo in mid-winter Solstice to protect his fair, Irish descended lily-white skin from the harmful effects of Ultra-Violet rays. Terry, like most of us, has spent his entire life in the sun. He is a surfer, a diver, an angler, and avid hunter. As we approach the scorching suns of another summer, enter the Ultra-violet maelstrom protected and prepared from head to toe.

Protect that Noggin

A few years ago a fishing buddy that was slowly losing the battle of the chrome dome decided to defeat Mother Nature and go ahead and shave it all off. Mark withstood the expected haranguing, stiffened his bottom lip, and loaded the boat. Throwing on his favorite fishing hat he thought he was protected and ready to face the elements. However, later that evening around a few adult beverages while we swapped stories, Mark realized he had a perfect peace sign burned into his scalp. The sweat from his head had thinned the protection of his lid and literally burned his scalp to a blistered pulp.

"Man, that was one of the most miserable trips of my life time" Mark said. "I couldn't fish the next day or sleep for a week."

Mark and all of follicle challenged brethren should take heed. The market for inclusive head care, that is products that cover the neck, ears, scalp, and cast a grand shadow on your face, is growing.

Dr. Ruben Aleman says, "In twenty-four years of practice, I am seeing a growing number of younger folks coming in to have questionable skin conditions taken care." He attributes the number of younger patients to a more leisure-oriented and active lifestyle than previous generations.

"The sun in the southern hemisphere is at its strongest here in the continental United States. If a person pursuing outdoor activities does not protect themselves with a liberal dosing of high SPF sunscreen, they are doing themselves a great disservice," Dr. Aleman says. "The most common places I see worrisome growths are the ears, cheeks, and forehead."

Dr. Aleman recommends not only wearing a hat like the Orvis Flippah hat (Orvis 19.99) that has a retractable flap to cover the ears and neck and an extended bill to cast a longer shadow on the face, but also to apply sunscreen every two hours in normal activity and more often during sweat related exercises.

Protecting the Face and Eyes

"I don't like wearin' sunscreen" Captain Darrin Jones says. "The scent of the sunscreen gets on the lure and turns the fish off. Not to mention, I have tossed a few rods across the bay when I used sunscreen in the early days."

Some people subscribe to Captain Darrin's philosophy. However, years in the sun promotes early aging, sunspots, and nasty little growths of melanoma. For those that eschew sunscreen, the old days only offered a sweat soaked, salty bandana to tug up over the nose to protect it from a relentless sun. As all fads go, the latest craze is the SunClava, yet this one appears to have some staying power. If you are not sure what a SunClava is, picture a thin, breathable ski mask that pulls down over your head to cover the ears, neck, cheeks, forehead, and that baby soft skin under the chin. A SunClava may take some time getting use to but its advantages are undeniable. (Simms SunClava 19.99)

The remaining piece of noggin accoutrement that needs protecting is those little windows to the soul-your eyes. Amber, blue, brown, yellow lens it does not really matter here. The point here is we are protecting the eyes. The American Optometric Association says, "The sun's brightness creates a disabling glare that interferes with comfortable vision and the ability to see clearly."

Studies also indicate that long-term exposure to UV-A and UV-B can contribute to the development of cataracts; retinal problems; benign growths on the eye's surface; cancer of the eyelids and skin around the eyes; and photokeratitis, a temporary but painful sunburn of the eye's surface. The AOA suggests to win your battle against the sun your glasses should offer protection against the sun's damaging rays and you should make consistent use of sunglasses. When shopping for next pair of ocular fish finders use the following tips when selecting your next pair of sunglasses. For optimum sun protection, the sunglasses should block out 99-100 percent of both UV-A and UV-B radiation, screen out 75-90 percent of visible light (fashion-tinted lenses usually do not meet this level), and be perfectly matched in color and free of distortion and imperfection. The most trusted brand of marine sunglasses on the mare tar Costa Del Mars. (CDM Deep Blue 149.99)

Protecting Your Hide

Remember the days of baling over the side and taking off an all-day power wade in only a t-shirt? Remember getting back to the dock that evening and wondering why your shoulders were fried? A dry t-shirt only offers a meager SPF protection of 10 to 15. Add a day of sweat soaking and a few wayward wave wettings and that protection falls to a dismal 5 to 8 SPF. With new fabric technologies, a growing number of manufacturers, and the resultant lowering in manufacturing costs, the days of not protecting your skin to skimp on the cost of a fishing shirt that cost as much as or more than your work shirt are over.

Simms Fishing and Patagonia are cornering the market as far as style and functionality are concerned. Simms attacks a more traditional fan base with classically tailored fishing 'button-downs' that offer SPF protection up to 50 with lightweight, breathable, and sweat wicking technology. The Simms Superlight Flats shirt is one of the most comfortable and stylish looking shirts on the market. The Simms line is as comfortable at the marina or resort as it is protecting your back as you fight a three hour battle with a silver king.

If you are not looking for classical style and are more concerned with hip prints, neo-retro lines, and non-traditional styling, Patagonia makes the SunShirt (49.99). The SunShirt is a light pull over that protects you with a sun shielding 30 SPF. The material wicks sweat from your body, looks good, is durable, and is great for lounging around drinking a few beers while your sandaled toe rocks you gently to sleep in a hammock after a long day of stalking reds.

Now it is time for a personal anecdote. A few years ago, Columbia made a Half-Moon short. Most folks that read this will remember them. The rear pockets cut at an angle and you had to worry about crossing your legs in mixed company due their shortness. Well, I waded ankle to knee-deep water all day searching for reds. That evening as I sat down to dinner I was surprised to find it was painful to sit. A couple of days later the itching and peeling started. The tender meat that made the bottom of my buttocks and had never seen the light of day had gotten a thorough reddening from the reflected sun. Ever since, I have worn knee length shorts.

Don't let my story be yours. Simms Superlight Pant (69.99) has a whopping 30 to 50 SPF and are light as can be. They come in a zip off style for summer wades and a long legged style for windy spring days.

Protecting the Puppies

Captain Bruce's boat came into the harbor on plane but he was nowhere to be seen. Behind the helm was a client wide-eyed, Captain Bruce was on the deck nursing a beer and apparently very happy. Unfortunately, his right leg had a four-inch stingray barb going in the bottom of his foot and coming out the other side. If you wade fish, eventually it is going to happen to you. It has happened to me twice; ironically, in two consecutive days, in the same foot, about ten yards from where it had happened the day before. When I asked Captain Ted Springer about his experience, he visibly winced.

"I tell my clients this," he said. "Imagine your best friend getting an aluminum baseball bat with an eight-inch railroad spike sticking out of it and hitting you as hard as they can. That is what a stingray hit feels like."

If it does happen to you, don't panic. Clog the pisser of your engine and let the water warm up then run it over the wound. The hot water will break down the stingray protecting protein that protects his skin from his environment and will relinquish some of the 'sting' of your injury. Get to a doctor as soon as possible, get a tetanus shot, and possible stitches.

However, if your insurance company and you do not want to go through all the hassle, give Billy Gerke at Foreverlast a call. He makes the best ray boots on the market and I have personally witness them stop a wayward attack. The Ray Guards (119.99) protect your leg from knee down with a protective shield. The Boot its self is made from four layers of galvanized rubber that can withstand the tortuous slicing of a submerged oyster reef and stop even the heftiest stingray onslaught.

Spring is approaching fast. There is still time to make sure not only your tackle is season ready but your wardrobe and skin are as well. However, once you get that all together, go out, get some exercise to increase the aerobic capacity needed to experience some distant power wades, and remember to lube up ever ninety minutes to two hours.