For the field work, our test team used these waders in a variety of conditions. We hit local rivers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Colorado. We flew to destinations in Montana and Maine. Some of the waders were carried on backpacking trips in the Cascades of Washington and Oregon and taken on rafting trips down Idaho’s Middle Fork Salmon River and Oregon’s Grande Ronde River

Our team tested the waders for fit — and we ensured a good test here by putting them on a 5’8” game warden, a 6’2” writer, and four others falling somewhere in between. These testers — including two fishing guides, a wildlife biologist, and an old grey-bearded trout bum — evaluated the samples in a variety of river and weather conditions.

Fit

Though Simms offers a great range of sizes, the Orvis Ultralight Wader generally fit better on our test team members. The Ultralight Waders fill the middle-ground of fit perfectly. That is, they are not form-fitting, nor are they overly generous in cut. Testers who ranged in body styles from a slim 5’8” 160-lb runner to a 6’2”, 240-lb beer-swilling writer, found the Ultralights fit comfortably, without being excessively loose, nor overly snug.  The larger range of size options offered by Simms on their G3 Guide Wader really addressed the needs of anglers on the extreme ends of the size range — Small-short, and 4X King size, for instance. Patagonia’s Middle Fork Packable Wader also earned general praise for their fit, with the design of their booties drawing the biggest accolades. Patagonia’s Rio Gallegos Zip-Front — a previous Best in Class Winner — also earned accolades for fit from most testers, though some felt a bit constricted in the seat and inseam.  One core set-back for both models from Patagonia regarding fit was the lack of women-specific sizing. Testers liked the fit of the Redington Sonic-Pro, though the neoprene booties on these waders were deemed too big and bulky across the board.

Breathability

The Patagonia Middle Fork Packable Waders design focus on packability and travel usage helped achieve the highest-level breathability in this group, make them a great option for general-purpose hot-weather use. The Orvis Ultralights also excelled in breathability, with testers who used them in sunny, hot weather reporting no more sweat buildup under the waders than they had under their T-shirts. Simms and Redington both scored lower marks compared to the others. And the Patagonia Rio Gallegos with its heavy shell and fleece-lined booties drew the weakness scores on breathability. The G3 Guide Wader — the heaviest in the test — suffered from “soggy sock syndrome” (i.e. sweat pooling) faster and more frequently than the Orvis and Patagonia models. But testers said the Sonic-Pro Waders generated sweaty legs and feet more frequently than any other wader in the test.

Features

The Simms G3 Guide proved to be a feature-rich wader.  A multitude of pockets and features make the G3 Guide highly functional for anglers who need access to lots of gear. The guides and other on-the-water professionals on our test team proclaimed them extremely well designed for daily use. Likewise the Patagonia Rio Gallegos Zip-Front. The number of pockets and the ability to adjust the uppers via zipper and drop-panel options gave them good appeal to anglers who spend a lot of time on the water, especially in the colder months. The Orvis Ultralight Waders offer few secondary features, but what they do present well praised by testers: the convertible design proved to be the strongest features of the Orvis Ultralight Waders. The traditional chest-high wader design can be altered to a waist-high pant-style wader by simply unclipping the wader tops from the should straps and sliding the uppers down to the waist-belt. Patagonia’s Middle Fork Waders also have the ability to be converted from chest waders to waist-high protection easily. Redington, meanwhile, offers a few more pockets than the bare-bones Orvis and Patagonia models.

Durability

The Patagonia Rio Gallegos and Simms G3 Guide stood up to rugged use better than any of its competitors in this test. While wearing the Simms waders, our testers scrambled over sharp riprap rocks, pushed through tangles of scrub alder, devil’s club, and even blackberry briars. The Rio Gallegos, meanwhile, even won an encounter with a barbed-wire fence, coming away from the battle scratched but not penetrated. The Redington Sonic-Pro Wader also stood-up well to hard usage and the sonic-welded seams held up to some extreme stretching and contortions as we climbed in and out of boats, over and under logs, and through brush and brambles. The feather-weight Patagonia Middle Fork Packable Wader gave us the biggest concerns about durability, though heavy 4-layer fabric in the butt and upper leg areas gives the waders a little extra wear protection in high impact areas. Orvis found the best compromise between weight and durability in their Ultralight Wader. The waders held up well to every challenging environment to which they were exposed, with no failures reported by any test team members.

Versatility

At first glance, the Ultralight Waders from Orvis seem pretty one-dimensional. Lightweight and suitable for warm weather. But those characteristics open the Ultralights up to many applications, and the wader’s other features greatly expand their versatility. The weight makes them ideal for travel, and the conversion feature makes them equally adept at small stream usage and big river wading. Patagonia’s Middle Fork may be ideally suited to backpacking and adventure travel, but their functionality also proved them perfectly suited to hot-weather wading in icy cold rivers close to home. Every tester who wore them said the Simms G3 Guide waders were well made and suitable for daily use by river professionals, but not appropriate for warm weather conditions. Likewise, Redington’s Sonic-Pro waders perform admirably when wading cold rivers during cool to moderately-warm days, but they were a bit stifling when worn during days when the air temperatures climbed above the high 60s. The Patagonia Rio-Gallegos, meanwhile, drew mixed comments. Testers appreciated the zip-front and convertible upper design, but the modest breathability limited their comfort in summer months, and the bulk and weight made the Rio Gallegos less than ideal for travel.

Review Conclusion

By consensus opinion, the Orvis Ultralight earned the Best in Class Honors for 2018 in Men’s Waders. The Ultralight Wader drew high marks for its fit and versatility, as well as its compact, lightweight design. The Patagonia Middle Fork Packable Wader also drew praise for their unique design. The Middle Fork was the lighter than some old wading socks, according to our trout bum reviewer!

Methods

For the field work, our test team used these waders in a variety of conditions. We hit local rivers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Colorado. We flew to destinations in Montana and Maine. Some of the waders were carried on backpacking trips in the Cascades of Washington and Oregon and taken on rafting trips down Idaho’s Middle Fork Salmon River and Oregon’s Grande Ronde River

Our team tested the waders for fit — and we ensured a good test here by putting them on a 5’8” game warden, a 6’2” writer, and four others falling somewhere in between. These testers — including two fishing guides, a wildlife biologist, and an old grey-bearded trout bum — evaluated the samples in a variety of river and weather conditions.