Water Sports

Water Sports Gear

Playing in any body of water, from ponds to rivers to oceans, can be one of the most exciting and refreshing outdoor activities there is, as long as you’ve got the right gear for it. Without water sports equipment to keep you dry, warm, or afloat, fun in the water can get miserable or dangerous quickly. Outfit yourself with the best gear right here before you go off the deep end!

Keep yourself and your gear dry

If you're spending all day (or longer) on the water, you'll want some means of keeping your gear dry. For soft water sports equipment like clothes and towels, get a waterproof “drybag” duffle. For smaller personal items like keys, wallets, and phones, you may want a hard-case drybox.

Regardless of what you're keeping dry, make sure that your drybags and dryboxes can be tied or latched to your boat or to something else that floats. It doesn't matter how waterproof your phone case is if you accidentally drop it overboard in deep water; you'll still lose your phone.

Keep Your Head Above the Waves

Always bring a lifejacket or personal floatation device (PFD) when you're on a small watercraft like one of our inflatable kayaks or stand-up paddleboards. At the bare minimum, most public waterways require a PFD to be easily accessible for boaters, and for practical purposes, you should never take your PFD off while you're on a boat.

For playing on relatively calm lake waters, most any of our PFDs will work within their weight rating. If you're spending more time on a larger boat or even working around deep water in which you'll only need a PFD for emergencies, check out a type II PFD, which is designed to keep your head afloat even when you're unconscious. We also have some emergency type IIs that can inflate on demand. For river sports like rafting or whitewater kayaking, only use type III or V PFDs.