I like to stuff contractor-grade trash bags into spaces that wedge metal items and keep them from banging around. The contractor bags also serve as places to put things that need a water resistant storage and backup storage for people on the trip who didn’t pack as well… This is SUCH a good video-the logic and demonstration together makes it superior. 😊
Hands down the best sea kayak packing video on the internet. We don’t have Lomo bags here in the States but greatly appreciate the principals you impart.
I am in America where we are concerned with the weight distribution of your gear in the kayak. Light weight towards the ends and heavier towards the cockpit. I solo kayaked the east coast of the USA. After I packed the kayak I would test the front-to-back floatation by floating the boat and pushing on the bow or stern and see if it comes to level when the boat stops. I also test the side-to-side level to ensure the boat will ride flat and not lean one side or the other and not be to heavy in front or back. Makes for much better paddling, especially in rougher water. I enjoyed the way you packed your kayak.
I absolutely love the little ideas like putting bin liners on the ground so that your gear doesn’t get dirty/sandy. They’re tips that could only come from someone that’s done this allot
Hi Roddy, We love this video. Thanks for choosing a Tiderace Xtra. Top tips - especially keeping the metal away from the compass, and adjusting the trim with the water bags.
I love this video! I refer to it often, very well explained and demonstrated, well done. Love the set up with the IKEA bags (I use Costco bags since we don't have a IKEA near by), it had been an exceptional organizational tool on many of our excursions. Thanks for taking the time to make such an informative and well thought out demonstrative video.
Thank you for producing this video for all of us ! We paddled in Mexico, USA, Canada, New Zealand - rivers, lakes, open waters and along sea coasts. Always learning something new and this video was great !!! Thank you for sharing your ideas with us.
Thanks Roddy, excellent video, useful to learn what others do. I have Bute in mind for a possible trip or two when things open up more and will get in touch. Keep well meantime. Chris
Hi there brilliant advice for my first sea kayaking trip with friends in Desolation Sound BC Canada - but temperatures looking really hot so hopefully wont need a big cosy jacket!!
I'm about to upgrade to a touring kayak from a sit on rec Kayak that I use for week long camping trips, pond to pond hops, and spot-to-spot river flyfishing. My 2 biggest concerns were Gear Storage and Stability . Your video was OUTSTANDING and eliminates any questions regarding storage. The Compass tip and IKEA bag tip were great. Thanks
Great video. My wife says I worry too much about nit picky things but I think it's your attention to details like the IKEA bags that makes the trip more comfortable and enjoyable. I like how you have thought each aspect out. But my wife did say she already has the IKEA bags!
Thank you so much for this video Roddy - comprehensive and great advice - used it as blueprint for 4 novice kayakers on a 4 night expedition on the Bowron Lakes in Canada - worked beautifully! What sleeping mattress/pad brand specifically do you use? I am looking for comfort and warmth. Also what Trangia set up do you recommend and what is your cookware/dinnerware set up inside the kit?
So glad to find this informative video… there was a wealth of knowledge! 😊. The trans parent LOMO bags were these 3L or the larger 6L bags? Hilleberg makes great kit…. Trying to package my Staika (leaving with the two IKEA bags packed… is brilliant). I’m sorry if I missed it…. Are you carrying a paddle float? (What are your views on inflatable versus rigid foam?). Hope life is treating you well. 😊👍
Great video. Some valuable pointers. I like the idea of pull cords on the dry bags for easy retrieval. One question, which tent are you carrying ? I couldn't quite catch your description.
You carry a flask with you. When I go kayak camping I use my flask to cook in. It's an old idea. What you do is to heat your stew to simmering temperature then transfer the stew into the pre heated vacuum flask. After an hour or two the food is cooked and if need be you can re heat the contents. This saves massively on fuel. I also like to make bread when camping on my Trangia. I make a flatbread which cooks nicely in the frying pan of (mentholated spirit fuel) Trangia. 4 spoonfuls of strong brown flour. a spoonful of honey a spoonful of butter/marg, salt and to make it rise some baking powder. You can add herbs for flavour. Cut it in half and split it like they do a doner kebab and stuff with whatever. I like tuna with mayonnaise and sweetcorn.
Thanks for the great video on packing. I solo around Cape Breton NS Canada and would have benefited from your ideas. Learned a bit more today. #1 I like the little plastic sheet. #2 dry backpack double sleeping back. #3 Not sure about tying meself to the boat. #4 bag for boots. #5 Water bladders to trim boat. All and all well done and practical. Where do you hide the Scotch? Cheers
Roger Mainville I have since paddle around mainland Nova Scotia and use your system. More importantly, I review your video before each longer outing :)
Very well done Roddy! Tree questions: 1. Do you take a bilge/bailing pump? I store mine is on the front deck. 2. ~ 14:572 When talking about the deck storage and the flares, you mention something like "split deck forward" but I didn't quite understand. Can you provide detail please? 3. Spare paddles? Many thanks
Despite the boat has watertight hatches I'd put an airbag (hope it's the right word, I'm talking about this big balloons used in boats without bulkheads, in German they're called Auftriebskörper) on top of the baggage in every compartment for 3 reasons: 1. with the hatches something might go wrong. In early 2018 there was an emergency when the hatch got damaged in heavy sea by driftwood. 2. It stiffens you deck which is especially useful when you need to make a cowboy entry. 3. Your baggage will not klöter around in the boat. This stop's noise, saves surfaces, stabilizes your boat, makes rolling a lot easier/safer and in some cases makes your kayak even self righting. If you'd be driving a truck you would also agree it's better to lash down moving cargo.
Christian Louis If you mean distance wise, i don´t see why there would be a "safe distance" to travel in a day, since that would depend mainly on how you are packed, and your knowledge of the area, the style of kayak, your intent for the trip, physique of the paddler, and the area you are in (aka too many variables to be able to put a set number on). A kayak can technically be paddled for years in a line or circles never stopping, just so long as you have some bloke willing to waste years of his life going in circles, and someone to give him food and water, as the boat itself doesn't ever really get tired from paddling, so it can go indefinably really.
Although many drybags are watertight enough to contain water they are not, in general, made from food grade materials so should not be used for storing drinking water.
One bad thing with your choice of clothing is the colour (or lack of colour). Overall,I think that outdoor clothes should be more colourful for safety reasons.
A high percentage of outdoor gear from most companies is made in China and other far eastern countries. Most brand owners don't have their own factories but subcontract the manufacture to specialist manufacturers. Unfortunately we just don't have those subcontractors in the UK anymore and I'd imagine the situation is the same in the US. This is mainly due to the cost of production being lower in China than in the UK and US. The quality is not, as many people would like everyone to believe, lower quality. Quality standards are set by the brand owner who commissions the production. There are some bigger companies with VERY expensive products and very high profit margins that could afford to manufacture in the US/UK without increasing their prices but that's only because their profit margin is so high to begin with.
I am the novicest of novice kayakers, so the answer to this question might be super obvious, but why are you talking about the importance of removing air spaces from the kayak? Is that not detrimental to buoyancy? Seems to my very uninitiated brain like you'd want great big air spaces to be as floaty as possible. :D
+Paul Bottomley I think he meant that eliminating air spaces means better packing efficiency. The buoyancy of the boat isn't affected by how well you pack it.
