My first pair of waders only lasted 20 minutes. After receiving a pair of thin plastic waders with the cheap elastic top as a Christmas present, I tried them out on an unusually warm day in late February. I slipped into a float tube and thought I might coax a few hits from largemouth bass on the sun-warmed rocks that armor the dam of a water supply lake in Madison County.

I kicked with my feet to move the tube out into the water and fired a cast toward the rocks. Soon, I felt a vague painful sensation in my right foot that worked up my leg with each cast. I grudgingly kicked my way back to shore to investigate. I pulled off the old work boot I wore that day to see a gleaming white sock dripping with 40-degree water. With that little bit of leg movement, I had kicked my way through those cheap, worthless waders. The water had turned my right foot and lower leg the color of uncooked shrimp.

I learned an important lesson that day about waders and outdoor equipment in general. You get what you pay for. If it is cheap, there is usually a good reason. With the longer nights of fall cooling the water and unprecedented wading opportunities in the Cumberland River, consider this lesson if you plan to purchase a pair of waders for the colder fishing months.

Wait until you can afford breathable waders if possible. Learn from me and countless other anglers: don’t waste time and money working your way up to breathables. Buy them the first time.

Breathable waders allow moisture to escape from inside when the material is above water. Their advantage is that you won’t feel clammy from perspiration after a day of fishing n waders made of plastic, neoprene or rubber trap your perspiration inside.

Low-end breathable waders start around $80 and top out at several hundred dollars, but you can spend between $100 and $150 on a good pair that will last years. My current pair of waders cost $100 and are in their fourth year of hard use. They haven’t leaked yet.

Breathable waders are to other waders what your first new car is to the clunker you drove in high school. I also own rubberized canvas and neoprene waders, but they haven’t been wet since I bought breathables. You can layer underneath breathable waders to keep you warm in winter or in a tailwater with 50-degree water, or you can go light underneath them to stay cool in the warmer months. They are so lightweight they feel made of paper towels.

Two types of breathables exist: stocking foot and boot foot. Stocking foot waders possess a neoprene sock and require the additional expense of a felt-soled wading boot to accommodate the neoprene sock. Boot foot waders have either a felt-soled or a rubber lug-soled boot already attached to the waders.

Stocking foot waders are best for anglers who cover considerable water when wading. Wading boots offer much more walking and wading comfort for an angler than the boot that comes with boot foot waders. Boot foot waders are good for the occasional angler, but they will almost always spring a leak along the seam where the boot meets the breathable material of the wader.

Breathable hip and waist waders are a good choice for shallow streams or farm pond wading. However, I’ve stepped into holes deeper than I thought and filled these waders with water. Avoid the rubber hip boots with the lug sole. They rub your feet raw, fill with water easily and don’t provide much protection from cold water.

If you plan to purchase waders for fishing sometime in the future, don’t take the cheap way out and buy waders you’ll regret. Save up your pennies and buy breathables instead.

Lee McClellan is an award-winning writer for Kentucky Afield magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. He is a life-long hunter and angler, with a passion for smallmouth bass fishing.