S24O: Kayaking Kit List

I recently started doing more S24Os (sub-24 hour overnight), because it seems like with everything I’ve taken on over the last year I’m not getting out of personal paddling trips anymore. I recently visited the Fall River campsite on the Lake Superior Water Trail. The MN DNR is planning on building a bridge in front of the Fall River waterfall and next to the campsite ruining the privacy that the you get at the campsite, so I wanted to go there one last time before the DNR ruins it. If you want to take action, visit They Want to Put a Bridge in Front of the Fall River Waterfall for details.

For this overnight, I used the following kayaking kit list. The one thing that I forgot, which was in my camera pack in my car, was my small medical kit. I’ll include that in the list below.

The S24O kit. I also brought my normal paddling gear for Lake Superior: dry suit, life vest, VHF, flares, pump, paddle float, spare paddle, paddle, skirt, etc…

• Top left going clockwise:
• Watershed Ocoee with camera insert
• Sony A7rii & a7ii (IR converted), Batis 18mm & 90mm lenses, Singh-Ray NDG x 4
• Desmond tripod w/ Kirk BH-3 ballhead
• Logitech Keys-To-Go Ultra-Portable Bluetooth Keyboard
• Phone
• Princeton Tec EOS headlamp
• RAVPower 26800 PD Portable Charger w/ USB C cord
• CREE 40426 110 Lumens Bright Light CREE XLamp Warm White Camping LED Lantern
• Sealline 10-liter drybag
• Old Thermarest — I need something that packs smaller
• Enlightened Equipment Revelation in Sea to Summit Ultra Sil drybag
• SlingFin 2lite
• TP
• Granite Gear Air Zip Sack bag carrying toiletries
• Peak Refuel breakfast and dinner
• LOKSAK OPSAK Odor-Proof Barrier Bags – 10″ x 9″
• Katadyn BeFree (Katadyn BeFree Review)
• Cook kit (Details at the link)
• Kokatat pullover rain coat
• Marmot rain pants
• Patagonia Nano Air
• Chacos
• Adventure Medical Ultralight/Watertight 0.7
• 2 Nalgene bottle and 1 small nalgene full of moonshine

My thoughts: Pretty much everything worked, except that I forgot the med kit. I’d usually carry one. The two lens combo with my Sony cameras worked great. I love the Zeiss Batis 18mm lens. It is crazy sharp, light and tiny. The 90mm macro work as a telephoto for this trip, but I wished I had a bit more range. I didn’t use the keyboard, but I might have needed it if I had to write a long reply to an email. In the end, why bring it? I could have waited to answer any emails and there wasn’t really a need.

My Future Needs: As I’ve gotten older I don’t mind sacrificing a bit of weight for a more plush sleeping pad. So, I brought a bigger pad than I have in the past. While not a huge deal inside the kayak, it is bigger than I’d like. I’d like to get a smaller sleeping pad that offers big comfort. If you have a suggestion, please, let me know in the comments.

What didn’t work: The Watershed Ocoee is great for canoe trips. I used it recently on the Rio Grande River and it was awesome. But, it doesn’t fit well into the kayak’s hatches, so I’ll switch back to Sealline dry bags. A 5-liter fits well into the day hatch and holds one camera and one lens. The other gear will go into the 10-liter bag.