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Lightweight canoe and kayak travel

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  • Articles
    • Article Index
    • Equipment
      • Build It Yourself
      • Canoes
      • Equipment
      • How to Choose
      • Kayaks
    • News
    • Technique
      • Build It Yourself
      • General Technique
      • Menu Planning
      • Photography
      • Tutorial
    • Tent Bound
      • Personal Essays
      • Tent Bound
      • The Lightweight Philosophy
      • Trip Reports
  • Reviews
    • Review Index
  • Kayak and Canoe Plans
    • Plan Overview
    • Canoe and Kayak Building Books
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  • Articles,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Free Kayak Plans,  Kayaks

    Free Aleutian Baidarka Kayak Plans

    November 10, 2008 / 3 Comments

    Free plans for building an Aleutian Baidarka Kayak using the Hulls boat design program.

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  • Now a Word From Our Sponsors. More After the Break.

    Sanborn canoe company with a canoe and paddles in the image.
    RockyTalkie Rugged Backcountry Radios shows a radio.
    Hilltop Packs logo.
  • Articles,  Canoes,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Tutorial

    Notus Racing and Cruising Canoe: An exercise in using FREE!ship

    November 10, 2008 / 5 Comments

    Using the Notus Racing and Cruising Canoe as the subject, this tutorial shows you how to import offsets into Free!Ship and create decks and sails. Also, included is a spreadsheet to make offset import easy, and the imported plans for the Notus for free.

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  • Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Kayaks

    Free Kayak Plans From Glen Smith

    November 6, 2008 / 40 Comments

    Glen Smith often contributor to the Kayak Forum and moderator at the Bear Mountian Canoe Forum has provided the following two kayak designs for free.

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  • Articles,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Free Kayak Plans,  Kayaks,  Reviews,  Tutorial

    Igdlorssuit: Free Kayak Plans for the Boat Before Anas Acuta

    November 6, 2008 / 15 Comments

    Igdlorssuit: Free Kayak Plans for the Boat Before Anas Acuta

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  • Articles,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Kayaks

    Siskiwit Bay Builder Photos

    November 4, 2008 / 11 Comments

    Pictures from home builders of the Siskiwit Bay. If you have pictures you’d like to share, please, contact us. Thanks. Drawings for this kayak are available. Jim Smith Project finished March 2014 Jim writes: I have completed construction of a completely 3D printed, customized Kayak. The Kayak measures 16ft 8in [5.08m] long and cost around $500 to make. It is made of ABS plastic, machine screws, brass threaded inserts and a little bit of silicone caulk. That’s it. And it floats. And I can Kayak around in it. In order to print such large, solid sections of Kayak, I had to modify my home-built, large scale 3D printer to print…

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  • Siskiwit Bay cedar strip kayak plans
    Articles,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Free Kayak Plans,  Kayaks

    Free Kayak Plans – Siskiwit Bay

    November 4, 2008 / 36 Comments

    The Siskiwit Bay is all-around fast mid-sized British-style touring kayak. This solid boat suits a medium to heavy paddler looking for good initial stability and with increased flare above the waterline lots of secondary stability. As the water gets rougher, this kayak feels more stable. It's a fast design slightly more efficient than most British kayaks in its class. When built with a Layback Lounge, it's an easy roller.

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  • Goodnow kayak rendered with ice in the background.
    Articles,  Free Kayak and Canoe Plans,  Free Kayak Plans,  Kayaks

    Goodnow Kayak Free Plans

    November 4, 2008 / 9 Comments

    The 16' 8" Goodnow kayak is stunning. It's lines flow beautifully and it begs to be built and paddled. At 17 5/8" wide, I'd have a hard time fitting into it, so I decided to model the kayak for a possible upscale and build. Included here is the FREE!ship file for your download and some information about the kayak.

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  • Articles,  Equipment,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    35 Day Challenge

    November 4, 2008 / 5 Comments

    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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  • Now a Word From Our Sponsors. More After the Break.

    Sanborn canoe company with a canoe and paddles in the image.
    RockyTalkie Rugged Backcountry Radios shows a radio.
    Hilltop Packs logo.
  • Articles,  Canoes and Kayaks,  How to Choose,  Reviews

    How to Pick a Bell Solo Canoe

    November 3, 2008 / 27 Comments

    How to pick a Bell solo canoe.

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  • Articles,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    Getting Light Weight

    November 3, 2008 / No Comments

    Learn about lightweight gear systems and how to reduce the weight of gear that you carry.

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  • Articles,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    Much Ado About Nothing or Very Little at Least – Gear Lists

    November 3, 2008 / 1 Comment

    Every philosophy, even those grounded in skills, like Nessmuking, must evaluate the gear that they utilize. Even Nessmuk produced a core list, evaluated gear, and added up the weights. For most philosophies, this is where you are left. As stated before the Nessmuking philosophy doesn’t start and end with the discussing of the merits of this and that gear, but as with every pursuit that requires equipment, the right gear can make wilderness travel easier. The following gear list has been tried and tested using the lightweight Nessmuking philosophy on over 1200 miles of paddling and hiking trips in a multitude of locations, including the Black Hills, the Smoky Mountains,…

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  • Articles,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    Map Reading and Navigation

    November 3, 2008 / 1 Comment

    You should learn not only to use a compass, but also good map reading before you venture into the wilds of the northern woods or the wilds of the woods anywhere.

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  • A canoeist in the Boundary Waters wearing a life vest
    Articles,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    Your Paddling Partners and Having Successful Trips

    November 3, 2008 / No Comments

    Extra planning and carefully finding compatible expedition partners are essential steps for successful. By taking the steps outlined here, many of the bad things that can happen in the woods can be avoided, and these steps can help out your next trip.

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  • Articles,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    Why Nessmuking?

    November 3, 2008 / No Comments

    The simple question is why? Why Nessmuking? Many wilderness travelers who've spent time in the woods using conventional gear and methods, upon seeing someone traveling with just a light bag on their back, a feather light boat, and a smile, often ask why travel so light. Here are some answers.

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  • Now a Word From Our Sponsors. More After the Break.

    Sanborn canoe company with a canoe and paddles in the image.
    RockyTalkie Rugged Backcountry Radios shows a radio.
    Hilltop Packs logo.
  • Articles,  The Lightweight Philosophy

    Nessmuking: A Return to Simple

    November 3, 2008 / 14 Comments

    The article that started it all. A brief look to the past to see what we can learn from Nessmuk, a writer from the late 1800s. Bryan Hansel examines Nessmuk and formulates a philosophy that can be used by modern wilderness trippers.

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You have to do what you can, do your best with what you are. And you have to believe in wilderness. If you do that you can’t go wrong.

Kirk Wipper
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