TexasKayakFisherman.com

I will start with mine and ask others to add there comments or own list. I divide my list by function.

HOUSE
Tent
Air mattress
Sleeping bag & pillow (changes with season I use a cheap sleeping bag liner in the summer/b]
Air Pump
lantern
Flashlights'
chair
tarp
fan

KITCHEN
stove
pots
coffee pot
flatware
utensils
cup
plate
bowl
cooler
soap (liquid biodegradable available in camp sections of Walmart and Academy for dishes, shampoo and bathing)
dish towel/sponge
Wet wipes

CLOTHING
hat (recommend a brim)
quick dry pants and shirts
wading shoes
knives

medicines/spare glasses etc.


MENU]

Instant cereal
dry fruit
coffee
snacks like nuts, trail mix jerky etc

I like a sandwich like summer sausage on a bagel which packs well


For first night meals figure most will be grilling and either roasting vegetables in the coals or opening cans.

Misc.

shovel
toilet paper
saw
trash bag
spare batteries
lighter
spare fuel
fire starter
rope
insect repellent
first aid kit
camera

BOAT
paddle and spare
PFD
sponge
bow line
fishing gear

This list is not an absolute, but simply a guide. Feel free to add and delete with each trip, experience and conditions.

August 2012

Today I also carry a rubber hammer sold in Walmart and Academy specifically sold for tent pegs as is recommended further down.

Although my LED lantern is compact and very sparing on batteries I have increasingly taken to leaving it home using the moonlight, a clip on LED for my hat and a small LED flshlight worn on my belt.

Wash clothes and towels have been replaced with sham-wows which absorb fantastic amounts of water and are compact. That is both for personal washing and dishes. A sponge with scrub pad is cheap and handy in the kitchen.

Grilling is fun when you have a large group and everyone is making a production of it. In smaller groups and with burn bans I often use freeze dried food that only requires boilling water or canned goods that heat easily. The variety of canned goods and possibilties are increasing. My most recent additions is Margret Holmes Red Beans and Rice, Thow it is a pan and add a little sausage ( your choice which and you have a one pot meal. The coffee pot still goes for large groups, but often now I carry a 2 cup plastic French press avaiable in camping sections. Sometimes I even substitute hot teas.

I have added a water filter for multi-night trips so I so as not to carry as much cutting weight and space.

Thanks for sharing this. I need to start putting gear together for the Colorado River trip. I am pretty sure I have everything I need, but looking at someone elses list helps.

Yeah, Sumo, I'm working on that, too.......and having never gone overnight in the yak, I'm looking at his list and thinking he must have about a 35 footer...lol.....guess it'll all come together, though......I can't wait to get there and see how everybody's packed and what kind of gear is on hand.......this trip is going to be mucho learning for me, for sure......

saffra wrote:Yeah, Sumo, I'm working on that, too.......and having never gone overnight in the yak, I'm looking at his list and thinking he must have about a 35 footer...lol.....guess it'll all come together, though......I can't wait to get there and see how everybody's packed and what kind of gear is on hand.......this trip is going to be mucho learning for me, for sure......

Learning for me too. I went on one overnighter with the kayak before, but it didn't really count. It was a boat/hike in site that was only a short paddle from the parking lot. Plus there was potable water at the campsite.

For those of you who haven't seen it, be sure and check out this thread on the freshwater board in the tips and tactics sticky: http://texaskayakfisherman.com/forum/vi ... 27+Tactics" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; . There are also some great threads on this board, just do a search and you'll find some great lists, reviews of gear, camping tips, etc. One of my other passions is backpacking, so almost everything I own is very compressible and lightweight. Makes camping more fun, in my experience, I don't like hauling around hundreds of pounds of gear. I will say that my favorite recent purchase was an ex officio longsleeve nylon shirt that I bought at Backwoods in Austin. Great for keeping the sun off, very cool and comfortable, extremely quick drying. Don't know how I lived without it for so long, it is an absolute must for summer paddling expeditions in Texas. About 80 bucks (ouch!) and worth every penny.

saffra wrote:Yeah, Sumo, I'm working on that, too.......and having never gone overnight in the yak, I'm looking at his list and thinking he must have about a 35 footer...lol.....guess it'll all come together, though......I can't wait to get there and see how everybody's packed and what kind of gear is on hand.......this trip is going to be mucho learning for me, for sure......

In this case I will be using a 12' Old Town Pack canoe which has plenty of room. I have used a Ultimate 14.5 which has an abundant capacity as well. However, by going minimalist I have gone overnight in both my Heritage featherlite 14 and my redfish 14'. My best ever camping kayak was a Old Town Loon 138. If I ever run across anothger at the right price I will jump on it!

But when going minimalist I gave up the steak dinner for a tupperware container of left over sausage and pintos!

I have been trying to get my list together, but have been preoccupied. Gotta get the engine swaped out in the suburban this weekend. I will say this I can fill the trunk and backseat of a 4 door dodge neon up, and get it all in my stealth most of it below the deck. but when I make camp it looks like a sporting goods store vomited next to my boat .

Be sure to consider sanitary needs.

The two worst infectious agents on a camping trip are your right hand and your left hand, followed by any thing they touch.

Recently I heard that one should not share their Cheetos with anyone whom they would not be willing to kiss on the mouth, so I have given up eating Cheetos. Hand picks up Cheetos, puts in mouth and gets saliva on fingers, puts hand back in Cheetos bag and fumbles around with the Cheetos while taking a few and in the process leaves some saliva for the next person to ingest. Seriously, being sick on a kayaking trip is no fun. Having a lady in the group you are responsible for being sick is even less fun.

I add a small bottle of bleach for adding to rinse water and for rinsing hands. It can also be used to add to filtered water to kill any pathogens remaining.

Some places, like the Rio Grande in the Big Bend area will not allow a privy hole to be dug, but require a chemical bag system to be packed in. There are folding stool types that have a weigh limit of about 200 pounds, seats that fit on 5-gallon buckets, and ready made pots. Considering the uneven ground, a 200 pound rated folding stool can fail if less than 200 pounds is applied to it. Pay your money and take your chances.

Many of the areas I take people, the bushes are not high enough to provide adequate screening for some of the ladies in the group. Bass Pro sells an overpriced 4' x 4' x 6' enclosure that brings big smiles to ladies' faces when they see it. It is an instant pop-up type so you do not have to find a tree to tie it to to support it. As with any tent, it will blow away if not stabilized. It folds to about 24" in diameter by about 2" thick.

Lollipop

I would love to see Hirsch traveling on the river in a minimalist mode. On the Brazos three weeks ago, he would come by and that canoe reminded me of a water borne moving van with a guy with a gun at the wheel.

He can really move in that big dude, too. I would think I was traveling pretty good, and next thing I know, he'd come sailing fast right on by me.

Ray

I am surprised that Harold even uses a kayak and does not just float down the river on his back!

Harold Ray wrote:I would love to see Hirsch traveling on the river in a minimalist mode. On the Brazos three weeks ago, he would come by and that canoe reminded me of a water borne moving van with a guy with a gun at the wheel.

He can really move in that big dude, too. I would think I was traveling pretty good, and next thing I know, he'd come sailing fast right on by me.

Ray

I do think you have a point, at least to a degree.

In my 20s I did do some backpacking and before that I was a real minimalist by poverty. My first backpacking trip was at 15 with what I could carry in a horseshoe roll for two nights on the Appallachian trail. As I recall it was a cheap sleeping bag, knife, matches, canteen and crackers with vienna sausages.

I stayed pretty minimalist through my 40s. However, today with osteoarthritis, herneated vertebrae, etc I gave up my foam pad for real air mattresses, a tent with netting for a tarp etc. and have not looked back. Still I think you are right and I am thinking of trimming maybe 10 percent!

I am about 200 lbs dressed and ready with the gear roughly another 100 lbs for a total of three hundred pounds.

Here are a few pics from a lighter load when I took a trip in the Featherlite in 2009.

Might wanna throw a hammer (or small axe) on the list also for driving down your tent stakes ect. and a poncho or something in case it rains.......

hdcowboy wrote:Might wanna throw a hammer (or small axe) on the list also for driving down your tent stakes ect. and a poncho or something in case it rains.......

My folding shovel can cover that.

These are the loads Harold Ray refers to on my canoe.

This is some of the results of the larger load Harold Ray refers to. The gun he refers to is a S&W .38 Special revolver loaded with 2 snake loads in front, followed by 4 solids in case a hog ever steps out and stand still at 20' for 30 seconds so I can collect fresh pork loin for dinner that night. I wear it on a belt in a cross draw so it is visible.

Might wanna throw a hammer (or small axe) on the list also for driving down your tent stakes ect.

I always thought that is why GOD made rocks!

A poncho is a must.

I am only teasing, Hirsch. I thought you traveled in style and ease. Also, thirty-three pounds is a great weight for on-the-water transportation. When I saw the weight mentioned, I started looking at Old Town canoes. Plastic kayaks are considerable heavier, like twice that weight.

Ray

You are right in that when it is loaded it paddles like a dream. Unlike most canoes wind seems not to matter.

Hirschhunter wrote:

hdcowboy wrote:Might wanna throw a hammer (or small axe) on the list also for driving down your tent stakes ect. and a poncho or something in case it rains.......

My folding shovel can cover that.

He drive's in the stakes with the butt of the 38...Paul amaze me with what he carries.. pack's it very neat and does not look cluttered or over loaded

I've done overnighters - it's amazing how little stuff you can get away with whne you think about it. small things such as packing headlights instead of flashlights, folding pots, and grill grates instead of weber grills (dig hole place grill on dirt coal/wood in the bottom where allowed) etc. can make a difference. I did a 3 day back country trip at lake amistad a few years ago. Packed my hunting stuff, rod, and clothes, food, tent all in the yak. It was cold, so instead of duffle bags, I folded everything and place them in a 10 gallon zip lock bag. Eliminated digging and kept my stuff dry incase I turtled or fell in the water. The temp that weekend didn't get out of the 30's.

Checklist for Devils River Trip

Home
Tent
Zrest Pad
2 Pillows
Fleece Bag
Clothes
Wading Shoes
Sandals
Personal Hygene
Tilly Hat
Sunglasses
4 cans Sunscreen
First Aid Kit
Cooking
MSR Pocket Rocket Stove
2 cans Isopro fuel
Lantern
2 cans Propane fuel
Katadyn Hiker Filter
Katadyn Personal Water Bottle filter
Snowpeak Titanium Cup
MSR Aluminum Skillet
Titanium Spork
GSI Java Press
Waterproof Matches
Lighter



Kayak Gear
PFD
Paddle
Spare Paddle
Duct Tape
Patch kit
Whistle
Bow Line
Anchor

Misc Gear
Camp Chair
Multi tool
Camp Shovel
Toilet Paper
GPS
Batteries
Adult Beverage
Critter Protection
Snorkle/Mask
Camp towel/Chamois
Food
3 pkgs Freeze Dried Breakfast
4 pkgs Freezed dried Lunch
3 Pkgs Freeze Dried Dinner
Granola/Energy Bars
Coffee singles
Coffee Grounds
5 hr energy drinks (in case of no coffee)
Mixed Nuts
Venison Jerky (maybe)
Summer Sausage
cheese
Ritz Crackers
Misc

Looks good to me SETX.

Castnblast is right. You can go very minimal and Harold Ray does it exceedingly well. When it gets cooler I may do it one trip just to show I still can.

But for now I will keep my comforts.