Don’t skimp or skirt when it comes to skirts.
Today’s lineup of sprayskirts for whitewater are better than ever at keeping splashes out and you in.
After years of trying rands and bungee whitewater spray skirts, our testers have found they can be both dry and do the job right. Here are a few opinions on the main spray skirts available today on the market. In all, we tested skirts from Immersion Research, Level Six, Dagger, Seals, Soul Waterman, and Palm. With no more skirts coming from Bomber Gear, Wildwasser, Mountain Surf, and Snapdragon…this is the new landscape.
Below is a Gallery shot by AJ Frank of a wonderful day on the Skykomish River using a variety of spray skirts. A group of locals put in about a mile upstream of the town of Index, taking out downstream of Split Rock.
Most skirts have a lifespan. With overstretching holes and damage to glued seams or stitching can happen, so be cognizant of what skirt you are fitting on what boat. Maintain them with the recommended neoprene contact cement and neoprene patching material. UV causes aging and damage so try to keep it out of the sun when drying it. Drying skirts after use will also prolong their life. Avoid taking your favorite skirt in chlorinated water and if you have, rinse it super well.
With constant stretching, holes can happen. Many manufacturers offer repairs and now IR even offers repairs on other companies’ gear as well, out of their Columbia River Gorge location and in Pennsylvania. Then there is the quick dental floss stitch with Aquaseal, a repair that looks atrocious and is not recommended by the shops since the only thing that sticks to Aquaseal is more Aquaseal. Neoprene also compresses and looses its effectiveness at holding out water. Every skirt will eventually be a wet one, how long they last depends on the grade of the materials, how over stretched it has been, and how many uses it has on it. Enjoy those first 30-45 uses where a skirt seems completely dry. Also, tighten those bolts on the kayaks you are using to ensure you are not getting leakage from other sources.
Level Six Ace Rand Spray Skirt , XL Keyhole $185
The Ace feels light and the neoprene seems thinner than some of the others compared, but it’s been surprisingly dry on all day trips. I ordered the XL rand to cover my Pyranha quiver of river runner and play boats. After many uses I don’t think that Extra Large Cockpit size skirt is going to fit on anything but Dagger’s cockpits or such boats as a Firecracker or Ozone from Pyranha. It doesn’t stretch over a large Scorch or Large Jackson Gnarvana kayak cockpit. But the rand is a bit more pliable and can stretch more comfortably on and off a variety of boats (in which it was designed to fit). This skirt fits the large Pyranha Ripper two very well. It has a stitched-on rand and Kevlar paneling, bolstering its durability in high-wear areas. The rand is ribbed which helps the grip and seal. I have to give it more testing down the line on durability, but so far so good after 25 days of use. There have been many iterations of this skirt… I feel this one is sleek and streamlined, light, and does its job well. My wish would be for a XXL option for the larger cockpits. A tester commented they didn’t think the skirt held on by the hip area on the side of the cockpit as well as the thicker Lucky Charm rand. The Level Six rand is a little different and thinner but has served me well.
https://www.levelsix.com/products/ace-sprayskirt-with-stitched-rand
Testing this skirt on the Middle Middle of the Snoqualmie River in WA state in a Pyranha Firecracker 252.
Seals Spray Skirts: Pro Rand (Tested: 1.7 and 2.2) $230
These American-made skirts are solid with rands that seal very tightly on the correct cockpit size. I have two sizes of this one as when it’s wintery cold up here in the Northwest these are even tough to get on the correct boats. The Pro rand grips tightly and provides a super seal that for the first few years is dry as a bone. The thickness of the rand is more similar to the IR Lucky Charm. The Kevlar decking provides abrasion resistance, but overtime my Velcro from my pogies has caused a small bit of fraying on the top deck. But they’ve both really gone the distance for me, paddling 50 to 100 days a year for three years. There is a small amount of water getting through on longer trips, but these were my primary skirt for a few years and have remained very dry. If you have a quiver you might find you need two skirts to cover the variable cockpit sizes. The whistle on the grab loop is a cool feature as long as you’re out of the boat when you need to use it; otherwise you might have to be good at yoga.
https://www.sealsskirts.com/prod_detect.php?i=17
Here is a video of the Seals Pro Rand being used in the winter of 2022 on the Skykomish at 7,000 cfs.
More skirt testing on the MF Salmon in Idaho
Klingon Bungee Empire Skirt XL by Immersion Research $270
I wasn’t at first very fond of the idea of going back to a bungee skirt after using rands on tougher whitewater. But it is very dry and I can get this skirt on my largest of cockpit kayaks easier. The inner layer of tacky material helps the skirt stick to the rim. And the construction is typical IR bomber. This company practices what they preach and put their gear through paddling paces most consumers won’t. As for bigger boats, it goes well on XL cockpit Large sized boats like my Scorch L, Ripper 2 Large and the Jackson Gnarvana Large. Every time I’ve used it my boat has just a small amount of water in it, even after stout runs where I might, ahem, get caught in holes. There was no issue with the skirt staying on with trips down Tumwater Canyon of the Wenatchee, the Green, the Skykomish or the Stillaguamish. It’s bomber and a go-to for hard use. For wider boats make sure you cover the hip areas and jam them into the cockpit rim well, ensuring a tight seal that will stay gripped.
Green River (WA) skirt testing with the Klingon Empire.
Canyon Creek of the Stillaquamish river testing the IR Klingon Empire.
IR Lucky Charm Rand skirt XL $270
What can we say? This baby is a super dry, randed spray skirt that lasts a really long time. We took photos of one at the beginning of its life, its middle, and at the end that has been repaired. The latter shows how IR can breathe new life into it with a repair just by sending it back. This skirt has a fantastic rand that seals really well It fits super well on my Large Ripper 2 and many other boats tested (though it was pretty tough to get on and off large Pyranha boat rands due to their longer shape). The neoprene seems denser and seems to hold water out a slightly longer period of time. It costs a bit more than some of the others, but you get what you pay for. If you’re looking to run big whitewater and some waterfalls this is your ticket. The downside of these skirts would be getting them on the boat—in cold weather it’s sometimes taken two folks to get it on some of the longer Pyranha kayak cockpits.
According to team paddler Jared Seiler “The IR lucky charm spray skirt was the skirt that changed the game. Back when big waterfall running progression was taking place, we were constantly imploding our skirts on waterfalls that required plugging. Once we got our hands on the lucky charm rand skirts we were able to stay in our boats. The safety factor when running big waterfalls and big water where a skirt implosion is a matter of life and death was holding back a lot of paddlers from picking off first descents and high water descents. After the introduction of the Lucky Charm confidence soared and paddlers started going bigger than ever!”.
https://immersionresearch.com/collections/rand-skirts/products/lucky-charm-rand-spray-skirt
Palm Impact Sprayskirt ( XL/XXL ) $156 through importer Watersports Outlet
I came across this skirt due to the international popularity of the palm PFDs, as well as their sprayskirt and footwear line in Europe. I was surprised the price was this low. This is a bungie skirt with some stretch; it fit on my Large Ripper 2 with ease. It did a fantastic job of keeping water out and staying put on my deck. Bonus: the underside of the skirt has a tacky strip that helps the skirt stay put. These are imported, and this one was a size 4. This was a last addition to the review so, thus far there has not been a ton of durability testing.
Dagger Inertia Spray Skirt $240
Available in two cockpit sizes (Medium and Large) and three waist sizes, Dagger’s new Inertia spray skirt follows Dagger’s pedigree of all-things paddling. It’s beefy and designed to stay on your cockpit through the most extreme conditions. Consider the following testimonial from Dagger Pro Team athlete Galen Volckhausen, who’s put this skirt through more use and abuse than most people ever will: “It’s one of the most reliable skirts that I have owned. The skirt is lightweight, durable and stays on my kayak even in heavy Class V whitewater. This spring when I was paddling the Little White Salmon River at 5.5 feet (high water), I felt confident knowing I had it connecting me to my kayak. I’ve used the Inertia skirt in big water and while running tall waterfalls, and it’s always stayed on tight around the cockpit rim. The skirt is easy to put on my kayak and there is a lightweight buckle on the pull tab that’s convenient for clipping the skirt up to my lifejacket when I’m portaging or when I am ready to hang it up to dry.”
Our first few times testing it echoed Galen’s glowing report. A randed skirt with a solid feel—the rand without ridges or ribs—it was super effective at keeping all water outside the boat and is beefy enough that it gave promise to a long lifespan. Inside beta: we’re told the skirt is a result of a collaboration with Palm Sprayskirts. This rand is rounded and a solid piece, more akin to the older solid bomber gear line. It does not come in an XL or XXL just M or Large cockpit sizes.
https://www.dagger.com/us/inertia-whitewater-spray-skirt
Soul Waterman Dino (Kids) Sprayskirt (Bungie/Nylon)
For the kids boat, these skirts pop on and off with an adjustable cinch to control the desired tightness on the Soul line. My son has used it on his Terrible Two and some on the Mini Me when he was younger. It has held up well to UV and sand, but it can also let a little water in. But in the situations we’ve been taking on some water I prefer an easy-off skirt like this when the kids are unsure about being constricted in a decked boat.
Testing it out on the Lower Skykomish River
About the Photographer: AJ Frank
Loving the outdoors, is what AJ is all about. He is a retired firefighter who lives in Washington’s Skykomish Valley and rips up at Steven’s Pass on skis. He just last summer completed the Pacific Crest Trail via backpacking and loves to shoot out on the banks of his local river for all that pass through Boulder Drop. He is known for his cheerful smile and generosity among the kayakers and rafters that have benefitted from his talent behind the camera lens. The Seattle whitewater community at large has been excited to have him out capturing moments like you see in these galleries above.
Insta handle @blackmanonatrail
AJ can be contacted at f4photo2334@gmail.com.