My wellies keep falling off

[chargehand]

A problem! I frequently find that when I swim, my wellies easily fall off. I've even tried a pair 2 sizes too small, and even those fell off. Anybody else had similar problems?

[driggs]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellie_wanging

[NZcaver]

A problem! I frequently find that when I swim, my wellies easily fall off. I've even tried a pair 2 sizes too small, and even those fell off. Anybody else had similar problems?

Welcome to the forum.

I experienced this problem in the past with Wellie-style boots whenever I found myself bogged down in gooey mud and quickpoo.

My crude solution was to make up a pair of short webbing straps with pull-tight plastic buckles, to be cinched around each boot at ankle height. I used this system a number of times with my "Muck boots" which have waterproof flexible neoprene uppers. Not sure how well it would work swimming in traditional rubber Wellies, but it might be worth a shot.

[MUD]

Good video as I'm a Wellie Wanger myself!

[Smells_Familiar]

You could also try putting your pant legs on the outside of the boots. That should help a bit when swimming.

[captnemo]

Two words- Duct tape!
We wore shrimping boots or wellies while doing underwater construction, I've waded in sediment up past my waste locating pipelines and never had the boots come off. Just wrap tight two or three times down low on the calf near the ankle. Be sure and leave a tab folded over so you can get it back off. We also cut holes to allow water to drain quicker but that may not work as well for caving :)

[driggs]

Consider also that if you are in water deeper than knee-height, Wellies may not be the most appropriate type of footwear. I wear Wellies to keep my feet dry; if I'll be in deep water, I wear ankle-height rubber boots (so-called "Joop Boots") with neoprene socks to avoid having heavy sacks of water strapped to my feet. I tried punching drain holes into my last pair, but that caused them to quickly self-destruct.

[JR-Orion]

I've seen the duct tape thing in action a few times. Looks like it works pretty good.