The pack material is made from thick rubberised material and is very strong and durable. The seams are welded and completely watertight and the impression the bag still gives after a few months of hard use is that it is bomb proof.

Shoulder straps are nice and wide, helping to spread the load. They and very strong with robust attachments points and come with a chest strap as well as D-rings for clipping extra stuff to, such as sunglasses or other gear.

I like the strong handle the pack comes with, which is again very strong and well attached to the pack. It also has a rubberised handle to make it more comfortable when using.

There is an outside pocket on the pack, which is perfect for keys, wallet etc. It's got a flap to keep off the bulk of any rain as well as a waterproof zipper.

Inside the pack there are a couple of pockets available: a mesh style pocket and D-ring, as well as another waterproof pocket. There's absolutely no way your valuables will get wet in here!

The pack is fastened and made watertight by rolling the top and clipping it shut on two strong buckles. Tension straps mean you can shorten or lengthen the buckles depending on how much gear you pack.

• Strong
• Excellent workmanship
• Robust buckles and pockets

None!

This is a great pack and thoroughly recommended. I hope to see more colours in the future and would love one of these in olive green or cammo!

The outer shell of the jacket is definitely more sturdy and appears to be thicker material. Also, it is clear it has been treated better than the DryRobe shell and we can already confirm it sheds water perfectly.

And, let's face it, has a fantastic and eye-catching design which we love!

So far, in light showers and recently in heavy rain in North Wales it's performed perfectly, absolutely no water absorption even after prolonged rain, unlike the DryRobe.

It is extremely windproof too and keeps you really warm. You can really feel the waterproof treatment the lining has had and the whole jacket oozes quality.

As with the DryRobe, the lining is an artificial pile type and is more than adequate for its warmth factor and no doubt when it gets wet it will retain some of its ability to insulate, unlike (for example) down.

I must admit I'm a fan of natural fibres such as wool, but the lining does feel very soft and nice to put on in the cold evenings of autumn. My kids have even started using it as a blanket when we chill out in the garden on the cold winter evenings and they love it.

We also used the coat as a pillow on a recent camping trip - simply roll it up with the lining on the outside and it's really nice to lean on/ rest your head on as a pillow.

So far, having used the coat on many occasions in the Welsh autumn weather, from swimming trips to events, to taking the the dog for a walk or hanging out in the garden at night, I can state this lining is really, REALLY warm! 

After testing the coat at a swimming event in North Wales, unfortunately I noticed the pile lining of the sleeve tended to ride out of the sleeve end a little, when you put your arm in, when the hand was cold and wet, just like the DryRobe did. 

It's worse when your hands are wet or damp and cold and I think it is because the artificial pile fibres do not move across wet and clammy skin as well as cotton or wool fibres do. The result is they tend to stick to wet hands, impede quick dressing and ride out of the end of the sleeves. Rainwater can then dribble down the sleeve and soak into the pile lining by your wrist.

Unfortunately, I did encounter this issue at a recent swimming event where, after 2 hours of swimming in 14 degree water, I needed to get dressed quickly.

This was a major gripe of mine about the DryRobe as it quickly became apparent in extreme conditions that you end up with a soaking wet cuff inside the coat. This is important because your blood runs close to the surface of the wrists and forearms and is thus more susceptible to temperature loss.

I wish manufacturers of these coats would allocate more funding to make the wrists bigger by default and simply have a draw chord or velcro wristband to tighten them up. There is a velcro strap on the wrist, but the default wrist size itself seems a little too small to allow speedy dressing when wet/cold.

However, that said, if it is any consolation I can confirm it did it less than the Dryrobe and I am considering using a sock over the hand to put on the jacket, then put the socks on my feet... That would fix the issue for sure.

The main zipper is sturdy and has a two-way zipping function although I do have concerns that it will be quite fiddly in the howling wind and rain when your hands are really cold after coming out of the water.

I've already had a couple of fiddly zip moments when trying to do it up in regular weather and feel it's a shame they didn't really try something "new' to improve on a feature of the DryRobe that many users have complained about.

The outside hip pockets have very strong zips and zip pulls and I'm confident these will perform well over time.

Unfortunately the the inside chest pocket has a similar design to that of the DryRobe, which as you will read in my original DryRobe review was a major fault in my opinion: The inside pocket zip on the DryRobe is very flimsy and the pocket it is designed so the zipper is vertical, which means if the zip breaks (which it did quickly), then the pocket is rendered useless because everything will fall out. If such a flimsy zip has to be used for production costing reasons then it would be better to design a pocket where the zip was horizontal and then if it did break at least you could still use the pocket.

For now, this coat has the vertical pocket design and we will have to see how it goes, but I think this design should be changed to a horizontal sipper so the pocket can be used even if the zipper breaks.

However, that said I have to say it did perform pretty well on a weekend swim event where I was using it a lot, stuffing my phone in with cold hands (ie. very roughly!) and the zip was OK.

The outer pockets are excellent and are lined with a very nice feeling fleece material which I am positive will keep your hands very warm and they're also very large to cater for gloves and hats.

I really appreciated the big pocket capacity on this jacket at a recent swim event in North Wales - no plastic disposable cups were allowed and swimmers had to take their own to the end point, so I was easily able to get a collapsible mug into the pocket with no trouble, as well as chocolates and flapjacks!

The inside chest pocket is rubberised inside, however there is no phone jack like there is on the DryRobe. I am not sure if it was intended for listening to music but you can easily thread the earphone jack through the zipper if you need to. 

To be honest I'm not really one for taking loads of electronic gadgets when I'm swimming, but the rubberised design does seem to be to keep devices dry, which is a nice idea.

I must say here the inside pocket performed very well over the weekend at a swimming event as I needed to put my phone inside the coat as well as a few other items and it seemed to handle it very well, despite tugging quite hard on the zip at times with clumsy, cold hands. I also liked the rubberised material on the inside pocket as it was raining on and off all day yet I knew my phone would be dry.

The hood is superb with a very soft pile lining and unlike its competition seems to fit a little tighter around your face, so I am confident when it's extra windy it will not blow back like the DryRobe one did, keeping your face warm all the time.

I used it in North Wales in typical Welsh weather last weekend and it performed perfectly, shielding my face and keeping the rain out.

The main zip does all the way up, coming right up under your chin, pretty much sealing you off from the elements and I'm really looking forward to giving this jacket a thorough beasting in some more disgusting winter weather!

I have added this section to the review for this swim coat because I'm so impressed with the other things they are doing as part of their marketing.

1) The fantastic pattern design

The arctic cammo design is really eye-catching! If you are an urbanite hoping to turn heads when you go to open water settings, then this is for you. Alternatively, if, like me, you're more of an outdoors guy who just likes camouflage (!) then this will certainly hit the mark. 

It's a kind of arctic camouflage design and I think can even blend in and help you to go 'stealthy' if stealth swimming during the winter is your thing, easily blending into the rocks and surroundings in a winter scenario.

And (for example) it could even be used to lay over your clothes while you go swimming, and appear like a rock to camouflage your stuff from would-be dishonest opportunists on the beach!

3) Freebies

Another nice touch with the SeaShell changing robe is the company send a QR code on a nice business card that will allow you to download a free e-guide to cold water swimming.

4) Sustainability

The product itself is made with 100% recycled materials, which is really great because coats like this, although they might look amazing, are actually very difficult to dispose of when they do live out their life cycle. They are made entirely from man-made materials. It's good to know this jacket is made from recycled plastic. in addition all of the packaging that you receive with the product is also made from 100% recycled plastic. 

This was my main grape with the DryRobe... frankly I found it way overpriced for what it is. 

However, this jacket/changing robe from SeaShell is more in line with the quality I would expect for the price tag and the manufacturers donate a certain amount (£) to charity for every item sold, which I think can only be considered as a bonus as it helps a worthy cause.

Overall, I consider the SeaShell jacket to be far superior to the DryRobe and definitely worth the price tag if you are going to splash on a fancy changing robe.

While I am still more of a traditionalist, who prefers natural fibres, I do find myself reaching for this jacket more and more and at a recent swimming event in North Wales, when the weather was really disgusting, and in Pembrokeshire where we will often experience 3 days of solid rain, it has not disappointed.

Plus
Very warm
Outer pockets
Very waterproof - the outer lining treatment is superb
Hood

Looks amazing

Minus
Main zip can sometimes get stuck when you need it most
Cuffs tend to stick to wet/cold hands and can ride out when you put your arms in

Please feel free to visit the guys at Seashell and take a look at their collection of products and also how they are using recycled materials and donating portion of the income to charity. You can visit them on their website, https://seashell-clothing.com/

What clothes and kit will I need?

This is one of the most common questions we get because the concept is still quite new! Much will depend on the route that to choose because the terrain of the hikes will dictate what equipment and clothes you should take and of course the Great British weather has a big part to play.   

Shoes

Typically you'd be looking at normal country walking shoes, we would advise lighter weight boots or trainers as opposed to heavy hiking boots.  We would actually recommend the trainers option because you could even swim in them if needed - sometimes the entry points can be rocky.

Clothes, warm weather gear

the same applies for any kind of country walk but we would recommend lightweight fleece type tops and light base layers. . If the weather is such that downpours are expected bear in mind that you will be getting in the sea anyway but it's always good to take a small packable rain jacket.

Rucksack

we don't recommend anything larger than a 20 litre backpack for day trips comma you certainly don't need a 30, 40 or 50 litre rucksack simply because you have to tow it in the water!

Food

Sure! Bring snacks, gels, flapjacks, chocolate bars or anything that you can eat as is. For the longer swim hikes you could also bring a jetboil stove and boil some water for some instant noodles and a hot cup of tea or coffee.

Swim gear

Depending on the sea temperature, length of the swims and other factors we would recommend either a shorty swimrun wetsuit, a triathlon shorty wetsuit or a full-size swimming wet suit. It is possible to do the swims with no wetsuit and we do this all the time but it will require some experience of cold water swimming and it does depend on the lengths of the swim legs and sea conditions.

Do I have to get changed multiple times?

This is completely up to you but it is why we suggest the swim run wetsuits because they have a front and back zip and are very quick to get on and off if you prefer to change into dry clothes.  However they also drain very well and you can be fairly dry within a few minutes and simply put a fleece over the top to keep you warm. You can decide to continue walking in your wetsuit or get changed on the beach each time, it doesn't matter and is your choice.

How do I tow my stuff in the water?

This is the other main question we get and this is where you will require some specialist equipment but don't worry we have a couple of them for higher or if you wish to purchase one we can put you in touch with the supplier directly.

The swim hiking toe float is called a Ruck Raft, see below. 

Any bow shaped flotation device such as freediving floats or even a rubberised inflatable bag can be used, depending on how much gear you have. The bow shaped front of the RuckRaft however does help reduce drag and especially in choppy water.

How far are the swim hike routes in Pembrokeshire?

This depends on what you are looking for.  We have explored and mapped several different routes based on graded levels of easy/medium/difficult swim hike challenges and you can pick from one of those, based on your fitness level and what you would like to see along the way.

Alternatively you could let us know what kinds of things you would like to see - for example: terrain, forests, cliffs or even castles and neolithic tombs - we can tailor the swim hike route to your needs.

If you would like more information on our swim hiking routes or what it involved, get in touch with us here.

Or...

If the above sounds like fun then you're already half way there - please click the button below to check out our swim hiking routes.

Thanks!

The autumn light is noticeably different as the air cools and becomes clearer the light takes on a new hue and the changing colors of the foliage become quite spectacular, often mixed with clear air and mix of blue and dark grey skies at the same time giving the whole feel a very dramatic effect.

It's also easier to get up for sunrise swims because the days start getting shorter! No longer do you need to get up at 5:00 a.m. in order to catch the sunrise as in the summer, in the autumn you can get an extra hour in bed and go for a 7 a.m sunrise swim, or later as the months progress.

There's still a lot of wildlife to see in the autumn too. In fact you may well see more than in the summer because the seals start pupping in September and October and sometimes put in an appearance offshore as they hunt fish for their newborn pups.

I enjoy the challenge of cold water swimming too, not only in terms of the swim itself but preparation of the kit and of how you minimise the cold after the swim. Autumn is a good chance to hone your skills that perhaps have been forgotten over the summer, dig out your winter swimming kit and start practicing exit strategies such as laying out your kit in the right order, getting a fire going in a twig stove with cold hands, and so on!

I also love the varied weather of autumn. Within one week in September here in Pembrokeshire we had warmth and sunshine and temperatures of 25 degrees, to monsoon type rain and storms. Swim running is also great in the autumn. The cooler temperatures mean you don't opverheat and there's nothing like running long distances in autumn rain then diving straight in the ocean when it's belting down, so exhilerating!

So, grab your gear and get out for a swim in autumn! You won't regret it.