Gearing Up (part 1 - the gear bag)

In anticipation of our upcoming trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, I have begun (possibly prematurely) packing our gear and thought I would share. I guess I would proclaim to be a gearhead as I get pretty excited about tools and equipment, especially related to canoeing and camping. I think I read every thread on the bwca.com gear forum. Anyway, maybe others will be interested in seeing my gear. Today, I'm just going to show what I pack in the equipment bag. Hopefully, I'll get around to showing our sleep systems and food in subsequent posts. I might as well post my entire canoe camping list. The items in the equipment bag are in bold.

CANOE

 paddles

 PFDs

 painter

 bailer

 portage pads

 thwart bag

 seat cushion

TENT

 poles

 stakes

 tent

 fly

 footprint/tarp

SLEEPING

 sleeping bag

 mat

 pillow

TARP

 rope bag

TOOLS

 axe

 saw

 knife/multi-tool

 lighter/firestarter

FIRST-AID KIT

CLOTHES and PERSONAL GEAR

 underwear

 long sleeves fleece

 rain pants

 rain jacket

 hats (sun & warmth)

 shirts (long and short sleeve)

 socks

 camp towel

 sunglasses

 day pack

 sandals/camp shoes

 watch

LIGHTs

 headlamps

 lantern

CHAIRS

WATER

 bladder(s)

 purifier/filter(s)

FOOD and COOKING

 stove

 fuel

 pots

 cooking utensils

 eating utensils

 cup

 dry food

 snacks/energy bar

 

TOILETRIES

 deodorant

 tooth brush

 tooth paste

 soap/shampoo (biodegradable)

 pain reliever

 antacid

 toilet paper

BATTERIES

 AA

 AAA

 charger

MISC

 garbage/grocery bags

 ziplock bags

 bug spray

 sunscreen

 emergency kit (in pfd)

 camera

 bug net

 weather radio

PLANNING

 maps and guides

 reservations

 money/ID/wallet

 compass

 phone (with waterproof case)

 Our tent, which I've shown in previous blogs is an REI Halfdome 4. I essentially bought this for myself for my birthday last year, and it's been a good purchase for us. We upgraded from one of those 50 lb big box store tents that could sleep a small army.

One of my favorite pieces of gear is our new Cooke Custom Sewing silicone coated nylon tundra tarp. For two or three years, we were using various canopies for our car camping trips, but they kept getting destroyed in storms. The CCS tarps are legendary among the canoe camping community, so I picked one up at Canoecopia with the expectation that it will endure harsher conditions than the canopies. Plus, it's something we can portage! By the way, I got the 1.9 oz 12.5 ft x 14 ft version. I also pack about 300 ft of 1/8" polyester utility cord in various lengths. You might notice that some of them are reflective, and I try to use those for lines that need the most visibility and that may pose a hazard for someone not paying attention. I've yet to run out of rope, so 300 ft is probably excessive, but it's not very heavy and worth carrying, in my opinion.

I got a 21" Sven folding say for Father's Day and had a chance to use it on our Sylvania trip. It works pretty well, at least on 3-6" downed logs. I didn't care for how it handled smaller branches, so I try to break them by hand or with the hatchet. I also have an Ozark Trail multi-tool. This is pretty much the only thing I've ever gotten from Ozark Trail that was worth anything. Surprisingly, this tool is fairly well constructed, and the edges are not too bad. I usually also carry a Swiss army knife in my pocket when camping.

I also like to bring a fire starting kit with multiple flame sources and various fuels. I found Vaseline-soaked cotton balls to work pretty well, but they don't seem to catch fire as easily as regular cotton balls, so I bring both. I've let Amber start some fires using the fire steel, and she can only do it with regular cotton balls that have been pulled apart. I don't think Mom would ever let her play with fire like that, but hey, what are dad's for? I also like to bring some of the commercial fire starter blocks for those days when fires don't come so easily, such as when it rains or when the available wood is all wet. I put the kit in a Sea to Summit 2 L dry sack (thanks, honey!).

Despite not being very exciting, a first aid kit is kinda mandatory, especially since I'm responsible for taking care of my family. Grandma (my mother-in-law), with the help of my wife, got me this REI backpacker's first aid kit. I left everything in it, and one of these days, I'm going to replace the tweezers with a nicer pair. I also added a small bite and sting relief pack, as well as some water purification tablets as a backup to our filtration system. Oh yeah, I'm working toward putting together an emergency repair kit for our gear and boats. So far, it consists only of gorilla tape.

 

Speaking of water filtration systems, my wife came through big time with this Father's Day gift. She picked up a Sawyer 0.02 µm complete water filtration system. Although the reviews at rei.com are not that great, it worked flawlessly for us. 

 

One of the advantages to canoe camping over backpacking is the ability to bring a number of comfort items. Other than our wonderful sleeping pads, no other piece of gear adds more comfort to the camping experience than a good chair. The strong, lightweight Helinox Chair One and REI flex light chairs certainly make for a more pleasurable camping trip, and they have performed really well for us so far. They do tend to sink into soft ground, but a number of people have reported some fixes, such as putting racquet balls on the feet.

We also bring and LED headlamp for each of us and a small Black Diamond Voyager lantern, which can also be used as a flashlight.

 

I just put fresh batteries in the headlamps, but we do have some other electronics I want to keep charged. We have a weather radio that can burn through batteries and bring a point and shoot camera, and I also use my smartphone as a GPS. Therefore, I picked up a Goal Zero Guide 10 plus solar charger kit that allows me to charge batteries or devices. It works pretty well, but it's kinda heavy, especially with the batteries. It does provide some piece of mind to know that we can recharge our batteries and electronics, and as I mentioned earlier, gear makes me happy! I put it in an 8 L Sea to Summit dry sack.

I put all this into an old school Camp Trails internal frame backpack from the late 90s. To keep everything dry, I use a 6 mil polyethylene liner (M-215 from Duluth pack). 

I also attach some carabiners and gear ties to the pack as they serve multitudes of purposes. The only other item that will likely go in the pack are my camp shoes. In theory, I like the idea of using sandals, but they often leave me exposed to bugs and hazards, and they make my feet feel dirty after a day in camp. I also don't care for wearing socks with sandals, so I've landed on using some slip-on  deck-type shoes. They're pretty comfortable as long as they stay dry. 

Anyway, that's the gear bag. I'd be glad to talk gear, so leave a comment if you have questions or suggestions.