Camping tips and tricks

A kayak has at times got advantages over canoes but these same advantages can become disadvantages as well if you don’t plan your kayak camping trip properly. Their closed in nature can be a plus when trying to keep your things dry but this can quickly become a real pain if you have to portage at all or remove your gear every time you stop.

My personal feeling is that kayaks are best suited for camping trips along the coast of the Great Lakes or the oceans or places where there are really large bodies of water. They can be difficult to get in and out of so if you have a gentle shore to make things easier it’s obviously better for you.

If you do decide to take your kayak on a trip that is going to involve a couple of portages there a couple of ways to do it. You can buy wheel sets that you rest your kayak on while you pull it through the portage trail. Simply find the balance point of the boat, secure the wheels and start pulling. These wheels are not generally really big so it’s a good idea to know before you leave what kind of terrain you will likely be encountering to be sure your wheel set will be adequate. Another option is to pack very light and simply haul the boat up the portage trail with your gear in it. I’ve done this and although it works it can be quite laborious and generally requires two people to carry the boat. The third option of course is to unpack the boat every time you come to a new portage trail. The beauty of the kayak is that as you paddle along it will cut through waves with relative ease and your things will remain generally dry, unlike using a canoe, that would have a tendency to take on water.

You need to use a proper sea kayak really. One with hatches that open into sealed bulkheads where you can keep your gear. They can be somewhat unstable and if you’re new to operating a kayak then you should be sure you stay fairly close to shore in the event that you capsize. You really should learn how to brace or even roll, although longer kayaks are harder to roll than shorter ones are.

So you can see that it’s not simply a matter of jumping in your boat and heading out for your camping trip. You need to be able to foresee the types of problems you may run into and plan accordingly to make it easier. Generally your trip is far more enjoyable when you don’t have any problems and standing at the beginning of a portage, wondering how your going to get all of your gear across into the next lake is a sure-fire way to help make your trip go downhill fast.

Ian Kurz
http://www.articlesbase.com/camping-articles/kayak-camping-made-easier-708318.html