Love waking up next to rivers?
Do you love waking up next to rivers day in and day out? Perhaps you want to go on your first multi day, perhaps it is your first expedition. Perhaps you are a seasoned pro trying to get tips and tricks from other people. Whoever you are I hope to give you some tips and tricks that I have learned over countless days exploring the backcountry in both canoe and kayak, the world over.
Through out this article I am going to talk: Planning, food and water, shelter, clothing, first aid, emergency preparedness, dry bags and finally packing your boat. If you would like to skip to a specific section, please click on the desired link bellow.
I have also included sample gear lists and menus, my hope is to demystify, educate and reduce stress.
Through out this article I am going to talk: Planning, food and water, shelter, clothing, first aid, emergency preparedness, dry bags and finally packing your boat. If you would like to skip to a specific section, please click on the desired link bellow.
I have also included sample gear lists and menus, my hope is to demystify, educate and reduce stress.
Table of contents1) Planning
2) Food and water 3) Shelter 4) Clothing 5) First aid 6) Emergency preparedness 7) Drybags 8) Packing your boat |
PLANNING
Where to begin?
The world is both huge and small at the exact same time, a confusing and scary concept. Where ever you decide to go on your first or 31st expedition, making sure its the right fit for you is the most important step. What does this mean? You do not want to wake up realizing that you do not want to be there. Whether that is because of your team, the river or other external factors.
The Team
"Surround yourself with people who will support you during your bad days, not just your good."
Pick a group of people, or person that you trust. I will often ask myself about an individual(s) that I am inviting "what are they going to do to save my life?". Do your team mates have swift water rescue training? Do they have first aid training? These are the basics I look for when I think about "what are they going to do to save my life? When you are going into the backcountry you need to have these basic skills in your tool box. For my self, finding the right people is often the hardest part about going on an expedition. When I put together a team I foster communication right off the bat. Communication, or lack there of is usually the downfall of most "dream" teams. The first piece to make sure the team is working together is to make sure that everyone is on the same page of why they are going on the trip.
Expectations
Make sure everybody on the trip is there for the same or similar reasons. I ask what are peoples goals for this trip, what do they want to accomplish, what is our mission? This can be as simple or complex as you like. But it boils down to why are we doing this? Are the potential team mates here for vacation? Or do they want to go hard every day? This is crucial in making sure everybody is having fun on the trip, and if things begin to go sideways you can revert back to the original reasons for coming.
Diet
Firstly as if anyone has any allergies, it could be really bad if someone got an allergic reaction in the middle of nowhere. Ask about dietary restrictions, ok so they might not be allergic to the food but, are they vegetarian? It would suck if someone brought a portion(s) of food and a team mate could not eat it.
Alcohol and Drugs
Make sure everybody is on the same page on this one. Is this a party trip, or not. Are we brining alcohol or/and drugs because it is fun (not necessarily to party) or is this a dry trip. It sucks for everyone when there is an odd one out and could create a group dynamics issue.
Expectations
Make sure everybody on the trip is there for the same or similar reasons. I ask what are peoples goals for this trip, what do they want to accomplish, what is our mission? This can be as simple or complex as you like. But it boils down to why are we doing this? Are the potential team mates here for vacation? Or do they want to go hard every day? This is crucial in making sure everybody is having fun on the trip, and if things begin to go sideways you can revert back to the original reasons for coming.
Diet
Firstly as if anyone has any allergies, it could be really bad if someone got an allergic reaction in the middle of nowhere. Ask about dietary restrictions, ok so they might not be allergic to the food but, are they vegetarian? It would suck if someone brought a portion(s) of food and a team mate could not eat it.
Alcohol and Drugs
Make sure everybody is on the same page on this one. Is this a party trip, or not. Are we brining alcohol or/and drugs because it is fun (not necessarily to party) or is this a dry trip. It sucks for everyone when there is an odd one out and could create a group dynamics issue.
The River
The sensation of being trapped on a river that is way above your skill set, or out of your comfort zone and having to wake up and do it again the next day is terrifying. I will be the first to say that mistakes happen, I have poorly planed or listened to bad beta. This is something we have all done. However, do your research! Ask questions, look for answers: Find out about the style of river (rock types, style of rapids) how many days is reasonable to complete the section.
You do not need to be a class 5 kayaker to experience world class kayak expeditions, granted it helps, but there are plenty of options for the class 3/4 paddler.
There are so many options around the world for amazing and beautiful kayak expeditions. All you need to do is find out how long you would like to go for. If it is your first time, I recommend doing something shorter. Starting with an overnight trip or perhaps a couple of days.
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FOOD AND WATER
Drink
We can not go very long with out water, three days in fact. I hope to shed light that in some parts of the world I feel very comfortable drinking the water right from the river without any form of purification. However, many people do not feel comfortable with this, so I will include a few ways I do purify water. I will also talk about drink mixes and why they are handy.
Food Glorious Food
Food is delicious, I personally happen to enjoy lots of it. There are two pieces of information I would like to debunk right off the bat about food on kayak expeditions. One: you have to go hungry and two: its always the same. I will be the first to say that I have eaten rice and lentils in its various forms for months. In fact on a van-tastic adventure on Vancouver island I predominantly lived off the stuff. However, with a little preplanning you can unleash your inner Gordon Ramsey and eat healthy, and hearty meals on your trip meals that go beyond just rice and lentils.
Water
Water, water everywhere and all of it to drink
I will be the first to say not all water that is out in the land is safe to drink. However, not all water that comes from a tap is safe to drink as well. I find it sad that many people do not trust the water that they paddle on. Obviously some rivers I would never drink from, In Mexico and Nepal I operated on a strict tight mouth policy and always followed the spit don't swallow mantra. However many of the rivers I have paddled and do paddle in Canada I do drink the water, like wise the same in New Zealand and Chile. These tend to be removed from pollutants and start in remote areas devoid of human additions (poop and chemicals). If you decided to drink the water unfiltered make sure you get local knowledge before you do. You would not want to get sick when you are several days from help. Evan if I am planning on drinking the water I always bring some sort of water purification, as a just in case.
Purification Options
I have tested a variety of different water purification methods. Here are some of the ones I enjoy regularly.
Bleach:
I will always bring a small bottle of bleach on all my expeditions. I use two drops for one liter. If you go this route make sure you are buying bleach with chlorine in it (that is the stuff that purifies water) and that it has no additives, IE it is not lemon scented. Do not over drop as it will taste like a pool.
Aqua tabs
These come in many different sizes, from 1 to 20 liters. Make sure you know what size you are buying as you would not want to put a 5 or 20L tab into a 1L water bottle.
Pumps
I exclusively use MSR pumps. I have had excellent results in there packability and speed. Although I rarely use them anymore (I tend to bleach or aqua tab my water) they are still a great way to purify water. Click Here to go to MSR's website and see their selection of Pumps
Bleach:
I will always bring a small bottle of bleach on all my expeditions. I use two drops for one liter. If you go this route make sure you are buying bleach with chlorine in it (that is the stuff that purifies water) and that it has no additives, IE it is not lemon scented. Do not over drop as it will taste like a pool.
Aqua tabs
These come in many different sizes, from 1 to 20 liters. Make sure you know what size you are buying as you would not want to put a 5 or 20L tab into a 1L water bottle.
Pumps
I exclusively use MSR pumps. I have had excellent results in there packability and speed. Although I rarely use them anymore (I tend to bleach or aqua tab my water) they are still a great way to purify water. Click Here to go to MSR's website and see their selection of Pumps
Drink mixes
I like to bring a small amount of drink mix- enough for a couple sunny days. I have found that I am not the poster boy for staying hydrated. on Hot sunny days (and really any day) I find having juice powder or a bottle of Mio to boost ones brain power to be very helpful. It is a small item that does not add a lot of weight, but can greatly increase how you feel while on trip.
Food
Often when people think of white water kayak expeditions as hungry, with monotonous cuisine. This does not have to be true. I will firstly acknowledge that my go to is rice and lentils, it is cheap and found every where in the world. This however does not have to be the case. I hope to show you the world that is beyond plane rice and lentils. In this section we will talk calories and how to get them, types of food, a sample menu, and lastly I will leave you with keeping your food dry.
Calories in, Calories out
It is age old simple math, if you are super active you need more food than if you are not as active. But what type of food? How much of it? let me say I am not a nutrionist, this is knowledge gained from years of traveling in the back country. I can eat a lot of food, I have since based all of my packing on 1.5 cups dry per person. In the back country I find calories can be easy to get, the challenge is getting enough protein and fat.
Calories
The average male needs around 2000 calories per day. On a kayak expedition you could be burning anywhere from that to over 5000 depending on what you are doing.
Protein:
The average adult male who is physically active every day needs 0.55g of protein per body weight. So if you are on a week long kayak expedition and you are kayaking 6-8hrs a day and eating only rice, lentils and oats, you are not getting enough protein for dinner.
Fat
The average male needs about 20-35% of the calories consumed to be fat.
Hot tip!
I don't bring pasta products for dinner on multi day kayak expeditions, they take up way to much space, I do enjoy bringing instant soup packets for appetizers, or to whip out on a cold day.
Calories
The average male needs around 2000 calories per day. On a kayak expedition you could be burning anywhere from that to over 5000 depending on what you are doing.
Protein:
The average adult male who is physically active every day needs 0.55g of protein per body weight. So if you are on a week long kayak expedition and you are kayaking 6-8hrs a day and eating only rice, lentils and oats, you are not getting enough protein for dinner.
Fat
The average male needs about 20-35% of the calories consumed to be fat.
Hot tip!
I don't bring pasta products for dinner on multi day kayak expeditions, they take up way to much space, I do enjoy bringing instant soup packets for appetizers, or to whip out on a cold day.
White sheets
I base every thing around 1.5 cups per person, that is 1 cup for for the main and 1/2 cup for the side. The side's number often fluctuates. For example dal baht (lentils and rice) would be 1 cup of rice and half a cup of lentils. A chilly would be 1 package of mash potato mix 1/4 cup of red lentils and 1/4 cup of assorted dry beans.
Bellow is a list of the average staples I bring on an expedition. I used www.nutritionix.com/ for my nutritional information. Some product nutritional information may very from product to product.
Bellow is a list of the average staples I bring on an expedition. I used www.nutritionix.com/ for my nutritional information. Some product nutritional information may very from product to product.
Dinners
Main
Item
White Rice (short grain, cooked)
Brown rice (Short grain, cooked
Quinoa (cooked)
Bulgur (cooked)
Couscous (cooked)
Instant mash potatoes (packaged)
SideItem
Red lentils (cooked)
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Chickpeas (cooked)
Kidney beans (cooked)
Black Beans (cooked)
TVP (textured vegetable protein)
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Breakfast
Item
Large flake oats
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Nutritional information
For 1 cup
Calories: 280 Proteins: 10g Fat: 10g |
Amount
1 cup p/p for a regular meal
2/3 cup p/p smaller meal |
12 grain cereal
8 grain cereal
Couscous
Quinoa (cooked)
Milk powder (skim milk)
Milk powder (whole milk)
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Snacks
I am a huge fan of snacking instead of lunch. Depending on where I am my snacks will very. I am a huge fan of candy bars, I know they are not the most nutritional thing out there, but they are super delicious. Life is a balance right. My go to bars are Snickers and Oh Henry. I pack one candy bar per day. To supplement all of the delicious goodness that comes from candy bars I eat 3-4 granola bars per day. On top of that I bring one scoop of protein powder mixed with coconut milk powder per day. I usually bring 4 protein bars as well as emergency supplements. The constant snacking every few hours is usually fine for my food needs. I will often bring a couple of instant noodle meals (ramen) as emergency meals.
Dehydrating
If you can dehydrate everything, do it! There are two schools of thought here, One school is to dehydrate the entire premade meal, the other is to dehydrate everything separately and 'cook' your meal. By cook I mean rehydrate the separate ingredients and spice on site. I am more a fan of the later method as it allows you to actually do some 'cooking'.
So what do I dehydrate?
As previously mentioned I dehydrate everything. There are however, some things I don't dehydrate. There are many people who do, I don't.
I don't dehydrate:
So what do I Dehydrate?
So what do I buy pre-dehydrated?
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Sample 5 day menu
Bellow is a sample 5 day meal plan. Remember don't forget to pack coffee, Salt, and other spices. For food amounts please refer to the white sheets section of this article.
Cooking equipment needed
- 2 pots plus at least one lid
- Personal bowl (I use a sturdy container with a lid so I can save any leftovers for later)
- Personal spoon
- Personal cup
Day
1
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Breakfast
Coffee
Apple pie oatmeal
If you have way too much water after the oats have rehydrated skim some off into your mug for a delicious oat milk coffee |
Lunch
Bagels and cream cheese
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Dinner
Shepherds pie
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2
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Coffee
8 Grain cereal
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Cheese and crackers
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Chilly
Wrap in a wrap with cheese powder and toast over the fire. Dessert
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3
4
5
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Keeping your food dry
I have had the unfortunate experience to open up a food bag and find that water has damaged my food. It is a horrible experience, you do not want this to happen to you. I always overhand knot plastic bags, never slipknot and never, never ziplock bags. I also triple bag my food. For some this sounds excessive, I don't want wet food! I firmly believe that those that tie slipknots are too lazy. Their argument is that it is easier to undo. My response to that logic it, if it is easier to untie then it is easier for water to get in. Like wise the argument of there are too many bags. My thought process is: the more defense to keep my food dry, the better. Another good way to keep food dry if you do not have access to plastic bags, is to put dry food in plastic water bottles. For extra dry proofing, after you have closed it dribble wax around the cap. This adds an extra level of protection. I will still put theses food bottles into a dry bag, but I believe in the up most protection for my food.
Shelter
What to sleep under...if anything
I have happily and unhappily slept under rafts, tarps, the sky and of course in tents. Each has it's pros and cons. Wile I have no problem sleeping under the stars, my go to now on all expeditions tends to be the tarp/ tent combo. Yes this is a lot of weight however it is really nice having a protected area to sleep under.
Here in Canada's North you need be prepared for rain and snow. Being able to totally get out of the elements when it has been hovering around (or bellow) zero is a life preserving necessity. I usually divide up the tent, poles and tarp. one person takes the tent and fly another the poles and tarp. that way the weight is more evenly distributed. My general rule is: weight is never an issue on items that will make your life better. Wile I have survived with out a tent (or tarp) on expeditions, my life has been significantly better with those two pieces of gear.
Internationally I will often opt for just the tarp, or will sleep with my nose to the sky. The noes to the sky option has so far (knock on wood) backfired once. luckily the rain did not start to late at night.
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Clothing
What to wear?
There are so many thought on clothing choice in the backcountry, However I think we can all agree on the following: have layering options, bring wet and dry clothes. What I wear depends on many factors. Style, length, location and time of year all factor in on what I wear and what I bring. |
Wet ClothesWhat I wear during the day depends on the area I am traveling in and the amount of space I have. For instance in the amazon I might wear a shorty or dry top , where as in Canada I tend to stick to dry suits.
Dry suitsI tailor what I am wearing underneath my dry suit depending what I will be doing. If I know there will be minimal portaging I tend to gravitate to the onesie. It is minimalistic, yet warm and effective. Mine also has a but flap. However, If I will be hiking into the river or expecting lots of portaging I opt for shorts with leggings on the bottom and a long sleeve Marino and fleece t-shirt on my top. Why? I find the tights help with chafing, and on hot days it gives me more layering options. IE just shorts and T-shirt under the dry suit.
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Dry clothes
Again I tailor my dry clothes to the location that I am traveling in, light cotton PJ pants for the Amazon, tend not to be a good option for Northern Quebec in October. A few things that always come with me no mater the biome is a warm shirt and a rain jacket, because it can always get cold, and it can always rain.
Cotton?Contrary to popular belief I am a huge fan of cotton! Why? well when used in the right way it can be a very useful technical fabric. When do I use it? hot dry weather, and at the campsite. I always bring a cotton t-shirt with me. Cotton is a very breathable fabric, when it is very hot outside cotton breaths more then other fibers. you can also get it wet, cooling off your body. At the campsite I want my body to breath as much as possible, especially in a hot humid environment. In the Amazon Jungle I love wearing cotton PJ bottoms. However if there is any chance you are going to get your cotton articles wet, leave them at home.
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First aid
Better to have and not need, then need and not have
There many things that bother me about kayak culture, one is that people still show up to rivers with out shoes and the other is that they show up with out a first aid kit. As kayakers many of our rivers are far enough from definitive care that it should be common place to have first aid training and carry a basic first aid kit. In terms of expeditions, you are definitely going to be way out there, very far from definitive care.
Its a lot, but not really
Building your first aid kit starts with training. I recommend that everybody takes and maintains an 80hr first aid course, its expensive but knowledge is power. However, if cost or time is a barrier then a 60hr course is fine. After knowledge the second expensive part is building and maintaining your kit. Do not worry about buying everything at once, I built mine up bit by bit.
What's in my First aid kit?I carry when people are building their first first aid kit they usually gravitate to the most extreme injury's first. Build from the ground up, have a shit load of bandaids.
I carry: -gloves -a shit load of bandaids - mostly butterfly style, but a few regular as well. - antiseptic cream -alcohol swabs -durable tape -gauze -nonadherent gauze pads -tensor bandage -blister pads -mole skin -KT tape -medical glue -butterfly bandages -lighter -emergancy blanket -tweezers -pencil Medication -acetaminophen -nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory -muscle relaxant -anti nausea -anti dyharia -codeine -Benadryl and anti histamines -anti biotics -epinephrine Other -Note pad and pencil -first aid reference guide -pocket mask |
Emergency preparedness
Plan for the shit storm
So you have your first aid kit, but what if you need to do a medical evac? What if a boat breaks? What if? What if?
When ever I travel into the back country I like to play the what if game. I think of all the bad shit that could go wrong, and come up with solutions to them. I do this so that if something dose go wrong, we have though through it already. If it is something we have not thought of, it may be similar to something that I have thought of already
Plan early!
It never a good idea to start planning for a major expedition a week, or a few days before the time of departure. Start early, look over maps and identify how many days you will need, what the emergency egress points are, who is your primary emergency contact, what are they supposed to do in the event you need outside assistance. Speaking of outside assistance, where are the hospitals, police, search and rescue and what are there numbers. This leads me to
Emergency action plan
This is as simple as telling someone: where you are going, for how long, and what to do if you do not show up. Keep it as simple or as complex as your expedition needs. As an added bonus I always remind my emergency contact(s) that no news, is good news. However I do like to send my location every few days, because I know it they will enjoy it.
Order of importance
Remember there is an order of what is the most important items on a trip. They are (as I see it)
1) You
2) your team
3) Emergency dry bag
4) The boats
5) Items to cook food
6) food
7) clothing
Somethings can change depending on location or style of trip. However it is important to talk about this with the rest of your team.
1) You
2) your team
3) Emergency dry bag
4) The boats
5) Items to cook food
6) food
7) clothing
Somethings can change depending on location or style of trip. However it is important to talk about this with the rest of your team.
Broken or lost equipment can end up becoming very dangerous. I always think what in my order of importance can go wrong or break, subsequently what can I bring to combat that.
For instance:
1) we bring a first aid kit and medication to help you and your team medically. We also take first aid and rescue courses in order to better help in the event of a problem
2) we divide up important emergency gear, and we keep that emergency in an accessible spot that is known to all.
3) we bring items to repair a boat. This can be as simple as roofing tape or as complex as a blow torch. Talk with the team and decide what you need.
4) divide pots in to different locations. in short spread the gear out.
5) bring at least 1meal of extra food, this will obviously change on the length of trip.
6) depending on where you are consider a fishing rod
For instance:
1) we bring a first aid kit and medication to help you and your team medically. We also take first aid and rescue courses in order to better help in the event of a problem
2) we divide up important emergency gear, and we keep that emergency in an accessible spot that is known to all.
3) we bring items to repair a boat. This can be as simple as roofing tape or as complex as a blow torch. Talk with the team and decide what you need.
4) divide pots in to different locations. in short spread the gear out.
5) bring at least 1meal of extra food, this will obviously change on the length of trip.
6) depending on where you are consider a fishing rod