See our updated for 2015-2016 list of best fishing sunglasses.

As we’ve noted in previous “best of” features, that term should be taken with a grain of salt. Even though the internet is flush with lists of the best of this or that, the reality is that few -- if any -- of the outlets that publish such lists can claim to have sufficiently tested the field well enough to declare any one item the best.

What you’re reading is more accurately described as our favorite fishing sunglasses of 2013. That said, what follows represents a year of on-the-water testing of dozens of pairs of fishing sunglasses -- including offerings from a diverse array of manufacturers -- in a wide variety of circumstances and environments in which one might find themselves when pursuing their fishy quarry.

It’s also worth noting that we’re changing the format this year a bit. While we’ve previously highlighted specific pairs of sunglasses that we consider standouts amongst the crowd, this year we’re selecting the best lenses across a group of categories. The reality is, virtually every sunglass manufacturer offers a select set of lenses spread across a number of frames and, when it comes down to it, it's the lens that matters. Frames are not without consequence however, far from it, and given such we’ll be listing recommended frame choices for each of our selections.

Finally, if you're still making light of your fishing eyewear, stop. We've heard fishing guides describe high-quality, polarized sunglasses as equally important on-the-water gear as your rod, line and flies. Being able to see the fish you're after is often significantly more than half the battle. Even if it means stealing from your rod or reel budget in order to be able to head to the stream with high-quality sunglasses, doing so should be done without pause.

Enough housekeeping. On with the list.

There’s no heat left in the sunshine by the time it reaches the bottom of Cattail. Every last joule has been poached by blue crystal skies and what finally descends is ice cube cold, diamond sharp. Light like daggers. If focused on tinder through a magnifying glass, it would freeze-dry and shatter rather than ignite.

The only warmth to be found leaks between interleaved wool and fleece, seeps through Gore-Tex and polypro, or vents through chapped lips in short jets of steam as we climb the icy stairways of water. How can one be so hot and so cold at the same time? Each extreme, heat and chill, feeds the other in the thermal yin and yang of insulating layers.

From an inner breast pocket, my old-man specs immerge, coated with a warm sheen of sweat that frosts almost audibly as glacial rays bend through the glass; lenses become lozenges more fitting in a tumbler of scotch than on the bridge of my nose. But the copper john needs to get deeper so I squint through the translucence and clumsily add another shot.