Gul Saco dry top

Gul aren’t strangers to the world of watersports but dedicated high-end kayaking gear has been missing from the range over the years. This is beginning to change.

The Saco is fully specced with all of the key features you would expect to see in a high quality dry top. Twin seals are used on the neck and wrist, with the inner being UK made latex and the outer being 2mm neoprene (adjustable).

The GCX2.5 EVO 2.5 layer fabric is Gul’s own. It feels tough, yet soft at the same time and reminds me a little of the Palm Equipment Rivertec gear from a number of years back.

This particular Saco is a lovely bright yellow, but it is also available in blue or black but to be honest I like the look of the black one better. However, on the river, thinking of safety, etc, the yellow would be the sensible choice.

The waist is a twin seal with a fully adjustable outer and a nice long inner tunnel. The amount of adjustment is pretty good so achieving a good seal with your spray skirt of choice should be straight forward. The inner tunnel also includes a rubber strip, which is sticky to the touch and will help to keep the inner tunnel in place.Taping throughout looks for the most part pretty spot on.

On arrival, I usually test the fit of the latex neck seal and more than not have to give it a little trim. In the case of the Saco the latex seal didn’t require any trimming to be comfy on my 16” neck. I haven’t experienced any noticeable leaks on any of the seals or the waist. I did get the odd drip down my neck but this is comparable to every other cag I have owned and says more about the shape of my neck rather than the design and fit of the top.

3M reflective piping details can be found on the arm seams and the Gul logos are also reflective. A low-profile zip gives access to a large storage pocket. Although the zip is water resistant, it won’t keep the contents of the pocket dry. To prevent the pocket from filling up with water, drain holes are present where needed.

I wear a large in most kayak gear and this large Saco fitted me well. There was plenty of adjustment without bags of additional/unnecessary fabric yet at the same time it was not a struggle to get on/off because of skimping on fabric quantity.

After running the Saco for the last 10 months, it is holding up pretty well. The DWR treatment has just been recently redone and there are some signs of furring to fabric where it contacts with my PFD in the bag. The colour is also doing well and doesn’t seem to have faded very much if at all.

Price: RRP for the Gul Saco dry top is £180.