I’ve been asked about how to prep for kayak camping trips, started writing it all out, and decided instead to make it a post.
In general, kayak camping is very much like packing for backpacking except you have a lot more space, sometimes have to carry ALL your water, and the weight isn’t too important. It can be like luxury backpacking. But if your kayak is on the smallish side having backpacking-worthy gear is very helpful.
GEAR
Here’s my very official camping list that I used to prepare for one particular trip. The colors represent the colors of the actual drybags I was using so I would remember where I put things. It’s better to use more small dry bags than a few large ones. It’s easier to fill all the spaces in the hatch with small bags rather than having one large bag that blocks access and leaves a big air space. Your hatch seals might be good, but you should expect water to get in. Don’t leave anything loose in the hatch that can’t get wet.
Sleeping system: tent, camp pad, sleeping pad, ground cloth
Food & cooking: titanium pot, fuel can, tiny stove, insulated camping cup & SPORK. Bear canister. Folding gallon water containers. Bring 1 gallon water per day
Camp bag: contains my daily medications, toothbrush, washing up supplies, personal grooming, & my toilet kit.
Day hatch goodies: camera, small water, sunglasses, bug spray, sunscreen, chapstick, snacks.
Don’t lose: (highly waterproof bag) – phone, keys, wallet, charging cable & extra battery.
Clothing: extra socks, fleece, long underwear, warm jacket, OR shorts & t-shirt for warm weather. Spare undies. Camp shoes.
First aid kit: has my epipens, bandages & less used medication
Kayak specific equipment: dry suit, pfd, spare paddle (main paddle too, of course), marine radio, rope to secure boats.
Not pictured: tow rope kit, clothes I will be wearing: 1-2 layers of fleece to wear under the drysuit, wool socks. HAT
In the top right I have drawn something called ‘insulation’ – sometimes I bring a big pad of insulation to put under my sleeping pad for extra warmth. Sometimes I bring a piece of yoga mat or a ‘hello fresh’ bag to use as a sit pad and as a ground cloth for the inside of my tent vestibule.
Chairs: If there’s space I will bring one, but I frequently sit on the insulated bag, or at picnic tables, or on my bear canister.
FOOD
Some people prep elaborate, healthy meals and are there grilling up steaks or salmon. I am not one of those people. I won’t bring anything that can’t be eaten by, at most, pouring hot water over it and waiting 5 minutes. Meet your new best friend:
These only need some hot water and you’re good to go; Add instant gravy, or rehydrate some peas, or add it to whatever else you’ve been cooking. They are also useful if you are rehydrating something savory and accidentally use too much water.
In my opinion noodles, except angel hair, take too long to cook. Instant rice or dehydrated, cooked rice is good, but I’m not going to use the fuel to cook raw rice. I tend to enjoy spicy things so taking some spicy dehydrated rice & beans worked well (it might help to mash up the beans before dehydrating or else they take too long to rehydrate). Lots of veggies like zucchini and peppers dehydrate well and can be added to other meals. If I’m feeling fancy I’ll bring a few fresh green onions or green peppers and add them to the meal to make it look like I cooked.
For breakfast I usually stick with (quick) oatmeal with sugar, cinnamon, and either raisins or other fruit like dried mango. On the water I usually stick to dried fruit, almonds, summer sausage. For lunch packet tuna salad with a tortilla is typical but I like to bring a salad on day 1 as a farewell to healthy eating.
I bring very minimal cooking equipment: a titanium pot with a lid for boiling water, a camp mug, and a titanium spork. If I need a bowl I tend to use the container I brought salad in for day 1 and rinse it out. My stove is a cheap one I bought on Amazon for something like $12. My first one lasted 5 years and at that rate I can just keep replacing them as needed. It’s tiny.
PACKING
Here’s an early ‘what I packed’ example for a 1-night trip. This boat is my old 14 foot Delta – I’ve since upgraded to a 16 foot but it doesn’t hold any more gear (it’s just sleeker and faster).
I now carry extra water (and sometimes a fire log) in the rear hatch directly behind the seat. The bear canister always goes behind that because that’s the only place it will fit.
I want to distribute weight evenly so I don’t cause problems with my boat weathercocking or leecocking in wind. Since this photo was taken I’ve also switched to a much, much smaller camping pad.
The ikea bags are important! I can load and unload my gear into them first and it keeps everything from getting full of sand, plus I can use them as a rough way to judge if I’m putting equal weight in each hatch.
This is also a little out of date. I now keep my waterproof camera clipped to my PFD and leave my phone, keys, charging cables, and power supply in a separate drybag in the back hatch.
My small dayhatch contains sunglasses, sunscreen, trail mix/snacks, a water bottle, and frequently a hat or hair tie, chapstick, and the nose clips I want to keep handy if I think I want to practice rolling.
Not pictured: when I’m packing the hatches I put a long string on two very small drybags and put those all the way up in the nose and stern first. When I go to unload I can pull the string and pull the small bag (and anything blocking it) into easy reach without having to stretch around trying to reach things that are too far away.
If I need to, I can pack lighter and still fit my wheels inside the hatch. If that’s not an issue I can splurge a bit and bring a camp chair or a hammock. Last time I brought our camping french press and a little Bailey’s to go in my coffee. I don’t like to leave things on the deck but I’ve paddled with a crowded deck and it didn’t seem to affect the performance of the kayak much at all, even in some wind. I find I don’t often need a chair because most campsites have picnic tables and I can sit on the bear can if needed.
I’m always making minor adjustments to my gear or how I pack it, but this covers the basics pretty well.
