Environment,    invasive species,    new zealand mudsnail

Felt Soled Wading Boots NOT Banned in New Zealand: Invasives Discussion Continues

By Tom Chandler 8/25/2008

A while ago I ran a "Short Cast" story about New Zealand's new law banning the use of felt-soled wading boots (a hedge against the spread of invasive species).

New Zealand mud snail posterIt turns out the legislation wasn't signed by New Zealand's Prime Minister, so felt is still allowed, though showing up in a dirty pair of felt-soled boots might earn you a less-than-welcoming reception from New Zealand's guides and other fly fishermen.

As Bill Klyn of Patagonia points out in this comment to the story (on the Angler's Passport blog), felt sols are hardly the whole problem, though doing away with them is probably a good idea:

In reading multiple stories about banning felt sole wading shoes and adopting newer generation rubber soles to prevent the spread of Aquatic Nuisance Species, it should be noted that this is a good first step. But it is still not the solution. Didymo, NZ Mud Snails, Whirling disease can still attach themselves to laces, shoe materials and even in between insoles and foot bed of wading shoes. Clean, INspect and Dry had been the adopted procedure by USFWS and other groups working to stopping the spread of these species is a good one

When California's Fish & Game folks tested the hitchiking capabilities of the New Zealand Mudsnail (currently infesting Putah Creek), they sent volunteer anglers on a short wade, discovering that mudsnails adhered to laces, gravel guards, boot tongues... pretty much everywhere.

In other words, putting on a pair of Aqua-Stealths doesn't rid anyone of responsibility. It's just a good first step.

According to California Fish & Game, cleaning and freezing gear remains the best way to prevent the spread of species like Mud Snails, Zebra mussels, Didymo, etc (click here for more information).

I posted a pair of reviews about my switch to rubber-soled wading boots, and figure the die is cast.

As the economic impacts from invasives are felt in tourist economies, it's likely the felt sole will fade from the scene - by legislation or simple peer pressure.

See you on the river, Tom Chandler.

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Tom Chandler

As the author of the decade leading fly fishing blog Trout Underground, Tom believes that fishing is not about measuring the experience but instead of about having fun. As a staunch environmentalist, he brings to the Yobi Community thought leadership on environmental and access issues facing us today.

Interestingly divergent experiences, Tom, and I appreciate the time you've taken to tell me about yours. Mebbe I'll have to take another look - and mebbe at those Weinbrenners you mention. Not least, I'm happy to acknowledge that X thousand or million other flyfishers who use this stuff regularly can't be wrong, and it's in the interest of no business to sell just one unit per customer and then kill ... more 'em with it... Thanks again for your thoughts!!
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Theo: I have to disagree. For my money, studded rubber soles offer the best combination available so far. They're excellent when rock hopping small streams (the rubber grips dry rocks much, much better than wet felt). And I consider them better than plain felt soles in most cases, and while studded felt offers better grip when you're wading on algae-slimed cobble, the difference simply isn't that ... more big - not when weighed against the contamination and the significant durability issues we suffer around here. Felt is also no damned fun in the winter when it loads up with ice or mud on the way to the river. I've fallen at the same rate with studded rubber as I did with studded felt. I'm sold on the new stuff.
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Not studded... but like a sucker I bought the caption blurb about "technology stolen from climbing shoes that would stick to any rock, wet or dry, yada yada yada". (Shoulda known: I've written enough of it myself, but on this side of the Pond we've got laws about misrepresentation and fitness for purpose ;-) Now, I reckon that if any material on the sole of your boot needs studs to make sure you can ... more stand upright on any surface except level grass or concrete... what's it doing there on your sole at all? I can think of lots of ways of killing myself that are much more fun than slip-sliding to my death in a trout stream. Controlled failure mode? I lived with that fear for about a year, and can't recommend it at all!
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Theo: Were they studded rubber soles, or the plain kind? I wouldn't trust the straight rubber soles except in a few limited circumstances.
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True, Tom... moving to the mountains is always the answer (but what happens when you need to freeze your boots in summer?) Plastic soles: it'll be a while before I try putting my faith in those again. I spent the best part of a season in Aquastealths from a well-known East Coast US supplier, feeling like a greased eel on an ice-rink the whole time, no matter what the substrate, from chalkstreams to ... more limestone cobbles boulders to granite cobbles. Finally I sent them back and reverted to studded felt: since then, no problemo...
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IJ: My perception is that rubber-soled wading boots hit the market with a splash, but actually faded a little until the invasives issue got bigger. I used to fish studded felts exclusively on the Upper Sac (which isn't an easy river to wade, though not the hardest either), and found the transition to studded rubber soles (Weinbrenners) an easy one. I wrote that studded rubber had 80%-85% the grip ... more of studded felt, but I'd like to amend that now. It's a bit slipperier, but has the advantage of a controlled failure mode. In other words, studded felt sticks until it doesn't; studded rubber slides a little until my food finds purchase. Plus they last a hell of a lot longer, they're better when you're rock-hopping on dry rocks, and they do track less crap back to the truck. Michael: Thanks. Theo: I'm not sure it's all that environmentally friendly when you're running another freezer that's empty a good part of the time, but I never argue with a man with a plan to get rich. Easy solution is to move to the mountains; in the winter I just leave my boots outside for a night, and by morning they're frozen solid. I do wonder what opportunities might come out of this.
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Am I the only one who sees an NPD opportunity here? For those of us whose better halves don't like the idea of a pair of mud-snail-and-other-unidentifiable-nasties-infested wading boots overnighting in the freezer compartment... surely a boot-sized freezer, designed, reasonably priced and sold as such, is the spouse-acceptable *and* environmentally-friendly way to go? Yes, a 50% cut on turnover will ... more do nicely... Theo
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Tom, there are snail warning signs everywhere around here now. Marshall has a good rundown on the issue: http://www.fly-fishing-colorado.com/wordpress/invasive-species-control/
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How timely...on a discussion forum I participate in, this very topic came up. I made a comparison to the world of golf footwear, and the advent of soft spikes; once they started to gain acceptance, golf courses started mandating them, to save wear and tear on the greens. Now, it's very difficult to find metal spikes. It looks like the same thing is happening with boots. I only use my boots in the ... more Smokies - felt soles, along with any sort of wading, is a non-starter in our gumbo-mud marsh, so it will be a while before I'll need a new pair...by then, it may very well be impossible to find any felt. The complaints I've read about the new soles not gripping in the water as well as felt will hopefully be resolved by then.
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