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Cape Falcon Kayak Lightweight Gear List
Talk about going light, Brian Schulz of Cape Falcon Kayaks lists his standard kayak camping list in a thread at the Qajaq USA. His basic camping list: Clothing Shelter System Cooking System Emergency Gear and First Aid Extra Gear Other He writes as far as camping goes, when I look at most peoples kit’s I just shake my head and ask “What IS all this shit?” and Trust me when I say that paddling a 30 lb kayak with a 30lb kit is much more fun than a 60lb kayak with a 60lb kit. There is just so much stuff you don’t need! I’ve paddled without a stove for years…
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How to Use a Padded Food Pack
Updated February 2026 Padded food packs are becoming a popular alternative to traditional Duluth packs and olive barrels for canoe trips. They offer barrel-like protection while conforming better to a canoe and taking up less space. In this guide, I walk through practical, field-tested methods for waterproofing a padded food pack, organizing food efficiently, and using the pack’s insulation and shape to comfortably carry fresh food into the wilderness—especially on multi-day trips. Much of this advice comes from real backcountry cooking and food management on canoe trips, including trips in places like the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Making it Waterproof Opening your food pack to discover that the bag…
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Icom M72 VHF Radio Cheatsheet
The Icom M72 VHF radio or M73 is a great compact handheld with a good form factor. It transmits at slightly greater power than most handhelds, is extremely loud, offers IPX8 submersible protection, and uses a shorter antenna that’s as efficient as a standard sized antenna. It also includes every feature a kayaker or canoeist might want. For years, I’ve been using an Icom M72 VHF radio and love it, so I’ve created a handy cheat-sheet to carry around with me that shows button commands to get into the more complex features. The cheat-sheet also includes a handy cheat-sheet covering the basics of good radio talk and a step by…
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Things I Broke in 2007
Gear breaks and wears out and most of the time it happens in the worst moments. In 2007, I only managed to break a few items. Here they are: Current Designs Phantom FX Composite, Fiberglass straight-shaft, compression molded fiberglass blade with a Lever-lock adjustable ferrel: It’s a mouth full to say and it broke right at the put-in. The Lever-lock adjustable ferrel broke putting the paddle together. Thank goodness for spare paddles, because we had to use a spare for the rest of the four day trip. The North Face Paramount Convertible Pant: I finally ripped out the butt seam in these 7 or 8 year old pants. I’ve worn…
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Get Bent: Using a Bent Shaft Canoe Paddle
A couple of years ago, I paddled down the Turkey River in Iowa with two friends for two days. They were in a tandem canoe, and I paddled my solo. The first day of the trip, we enjoyed small riffles, quick turns, and swift water, but they out paced me, so, while they took numerous breaks from paddling, I worked hard to make gains on them. Without these small gains, I would have been left far behind. We paddled all day, and well into the night, finally pulling out around midnight when we noticed lightening and heard thunder. During the night, a strong storm blew in. My friends battened down…
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35 Day Challenge
Why the 35 Day Challenge? Simple. The 35 Day Challenge is engineered to challenge your perceptions as what is possible when traveling by canoe. A small waterproof pack, like the Sealline 35 Day Pack can be used to carry everything you need for a backcountry trip. And you'll still be comfortable while doing it.
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