My Dream Portage Pack: A portage pack prototype idea
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For the most part, my needs for a portage pack are met with Cooke Custom Sewing hybrid portage packs. We have an Explorer, a Ruck and two Pioneers. But, there’s a missing pack that I haven’t been able to find on the market. That’s a lightweight, smallish portage pack for light and fast solo trips utilizing single portages. A trip like my Following the Winchell Expedition trip.
I’ve tried all kinds of different packs for this style of trip, and so far my favorite is the Explorer, but it’s just a bit too big. I’ve also tried using a lightweight hiking backpack, but those don’t work because they end up being too high, and when single portaging the pack hits the seat of a solo canoe.
For my dream pack, I imagine taking a Cooke Custom Sewing pack that’s about the size of the youth Adventurer pack and mashing it up with a Hyperlight Mountain Gear pack and packing system.
The pack itself would be about 2,800 cubic inches plus the outside pockets. That would measure about 21-22 inches high, 15 inches wide and 9 inches deep. It could have a roll top closure system or it could have a roll top closure system with a flap. If it has a flap, the flap has to be able to hold a life vest on the front of the pack for longer portages. I usually wear my vest on shorter portages. If it doesn’t have a flap, then it should have a big pocket that can fit a life vest for portages. The flap should have a zippered pocket for stuff you need during the day, such as bug spray, sun screen, snacks. It should be big enough to stuff a map when needed. The zipper should be near were the shoulder straps connect to the pack, so when you put it in the canoe with the shoulder straps up, you can turn around and unzip the flap. The pocket should only be half the flap size. If there’s no flap, then the zippered pocket could be on one side of the pack. The other side would have a pocket big enough for a water bottle. The pack should be made of Dyneema and weight under 2 pounds. 20 ounces would be better.
The straps should be contoured, modern and comfortable. The waist belt should be the same. I’m good with having a frame as long as it doesn’t interfere with wearing a life vest while portaging. I’m good with it not having a frame as long as it can carry the weight that I’m likely to carry — up to 40 pounds max.
It should probably have grab handles on several sides to help get it in and out of the canoe.
This pack should be part of a system. The stuff sacks should be zippered and designed to perfectly fit into the shape of the pack. They would be made from Dyneema, seam sealed and have a waterproof zip. While they probably wouldn’t be 100% waterproof, they’d be near it. Then there would be a smaller version that’s taller but only half as wide as the pack. If you really want to get crazy, there would be a bear bag with a roll top designed to fit perfectly into the pack up against the spine. The pack could also accommodate the bigger Bear Vault food container.
To pack this dream portage pack, you put the big zippered stuff sack on the bottom. It would hold your sleeping bag, sleeping pad and maybe some sleep clothing and such. The next layer would by the half zippered stuff sacks for clothing, cook gear, tent fly and canopy or whatever you want to fit there. Then the food would go in against your spine and more zippered stuff sacks would fit in front of that to push the weight of the food against your spine where it is more stable.
I drew it up. You probably can’t read my messy writing, but here it is.
That’s what I want. I want something like this. It could vary just a little or it could vary a lot. But it needs to be able to do a light and fast canoe trip.
Bryan Hansel
Bryan Hansel is a freelance writer, award-winning photographer and a former American Canoe Association L4 Open Water Coastal Kayaking Instructor. His home port is on Lake Superior in Grand Marais, Minnesota. He also teaches photography workshops.
11 Comments
Rocky Koast
Pair of heavy duty bin-bags tied together & slung over a shoulder? Or is that too naff? Lol
Certainly cheap! :)
Christopher
Last summer, HMG had a marketing campaign with them toting yellow, kevlar canoes with their white, DCF packs around the BWCA. Those ads annoyed me because anything above their 55 liter packs tend to interfere with the canoe yoke and/or seat. I use a Southwest 3500 for canoeing and it works okay; I like that it fits nicely in the front of my Prism (with the dog in the back), is comfortable on single portages, durable, and lightweight. Sill, it is a backpacking pack first and foremost and has those often discussed issues. I also wish it was a few liters wider to accommodate the extra kibble that would otherwise be carried in the dog’s saddlebags when backpacking.
I’m equally annoyed that it seems portage pack makers are still stuck in the ’90s and early ’00s, using tons of foam, heavy suspension systems, and thick nylon. The pack does not need to be 4+ lbs to do what it needs to do: carry 35 lbs of gear and consumables and be sufficiently durable. Seems like HMG needs to learn their “Porter Packs” are not portage packs and portage pack makers could learn a thing or two about ultralight backpacks; I guess that assumes the market is there for either of those.
In any case, I like your design philosophy and wish it was a reality.
Steve
Along similar lines & similar frustrations, I made my own portage pack and used it on three trips last year. One thing I did differently was to rely on straps for a running vest and substantial hip-belt pockets. This way I could access about 8 pockets for small items with the pack sitting behind me in the solo canoe. My size was a bit bigger than yours, and there are some things I’d do differently…but it was really functional. v2 will be a little smaller…probably about 3200 cu in. Pack weight for one week with food is about 26 pounds.
Get the sewing machine going and make your dream a reality!
Bryan Hansel
That’s awesome. If you want to email me some photos of the pack, I’d love to post it as a separate post.
Steve
Bryan, I sent an email to the “publisher” account.
Thanks for having this site available as a UL paddling resource!
Cheers
Bryan Hansel
Got it. Thanks!
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Josh B
I found your site and this page for this exact problem. I wish I was handier and had the time and energy to start a lightweight canoeing company. It is crazy to me how siloed and behind the times the canoe industry is. I used a G superior 1 portage pack for the first time on a group BWCA trip recently and was not impressed. It seems many of us want to blend the world of lightweight backpacking with canoe tripping. I have a pretty dialed lightweight backpacking kit that includes my SWD Rugged Long Haul 50. I really wish Brandon at Superior Wilderness Designs would make a portage pack. I love his big, wild design, but it seems between the steep angle load lifters and the tall profile of the pack, it wouldn’t be ideal for use in tandem with a canoe. I think the Big Wild 70 and 95 are a great option for tandem tripping, where whoever isn’t carrying the canoe would carry one of those packs.
I appreciate the info on the HMG porter. It seems like the obvious choice, given the waterproofness and lack of load lifters. I’ll keep you updated if I can work anything out with Brandon at SWD.
Josh B
A follow-up to this. Everyone should check out the Flex PR and PR Plus from Six Moon Designs. Looks like it could be a very good option and they actually mention canoe tripping in the use case for this pack.
https://www.sixmoondesigns.com/collections/pack-rafting-backpacks/products/flex-pr-plus-pack-backpack?variant=39937262157866
Bryan Hansel
I know one or two companies that are working on this. I have a prototype from one, but I don’t think they are moving forward with the project. I’ve seen in photos a prototype from another. It’s looking great. I gave feedback.
The Mountainsmith Zerk 40 works well for canoeing, and Sea-to-Summit came out with a good option: https://www.paddlinglight.com/reviews/sea-to-summit-50l-big-river-dry-backpack/
I need to review the Zerk this year.