Gear Guide - How to Pack for Your Trip

On this page you will find useful information on how to pack for your trip and details about important pieces of gear that are necessary for your enjoyment and safety on trip. You will also find tips on how to best transport your gear to and from trip, and a detailed list of the group gear provided for you by P.A.C.

Packing Tips for a Wilderness Trip:

Packing for a wilderness adventure can seem like a daunting task - especially if you’ve never done it before. We’re here to assure you that it’s not as complicated as it seems. If you closely follow the packing list provided in your trip package and make sure you meet a few small gear requirements, you’ll be all set on trip!

Before you go on trip it’s important that you double check the gear you are packing against the list you have received in your trip information package to ensure nothing is left out. Your guides will likely have some spare items with them that they can lend you, but not enough spares for every group member. Having the right quantity of socks isn’t as essential as some other things, but sometimes those little extras can make a big difference - so be thorough.

To transport your gear to our day 1 meeting location we recommend using a duffle bag. You can organize your gear within the duffle as you see fit. Once you arrive at the meeting point you will be asked to transfer your gear into our dry bags for trip.

Important trip items:

Double check that these items meet the requirements listed here before you pack them for trip. These are critical pieces of trip gear that will ensure your safety and enjoyment on trip. You don’t need top of the line gear for P.A.C. adventures, but we do have recommendations for type, material, etc.

• Wet shoes: We ask that you bring a pair of sturdy running shoes to wear on the river while paddling. These shoes should have thick durable soles, fit snugly on your foot, offer some ankle support, and be able to be tied tightly. Sturdy shoes with good soles are necessary to protect your feet during portages, or in the event you capsize in a rapid and end up going for a swim!

• Rain gear: We recommend bringing a pair of rain pants and a rain jacket that you are comfortable in. Rainy days do happen on trip, and having protection from the elements makes a world of difference. Gore-tex and high quality rain gear can be expensive, and is not necessary for our purposes. Even a cheap raincoat will do, please avoid dollar store ponchos. Ensure that the zippers on your coat are functioning well. It is recommended to get a coat with a hood and brim.

• Water bottles: Durable plastic bottles are essential on trip. Nalgene makes excellent, affordable heavy duty bottles - anything similar would do. Please bring two, one litre bottles with you. A couple of small carabiners can be a nice addition to your bottles in order to easily attach them to your packraft while you paddle.

• Sleeping bag: Having a good sleeping bag is important. Three season bags rated for 0c are recommended if you are a cold sleeper. Please consider the size of the sleeping bag when packed, bulky bags may be difficult to fit into dry bags, so a synthetic bag that packs down fairly small is recommended. Down bags are more expensive generally, but pack very small.

• Headlamp: Having a headlamp is incredibly useful in the trip environment. It allows you to keep your hands free while going about your tasks. Whether choosing to bring a headlamp or hand-held flashlight please remember to bring a spare set of batteries.

• Health Card and Insurance: If you have purchased travel insurance for your trip, please make sure to bring a copy of the plan number and any other pertinent information that may be necessary. In the event of an emergency it is useful to have this information on hand. It is also recommended that you bring your health card along with you.

Keeping Things Dry:

Packraft Adventure Canada will provide guests will dry-bags for packing their personal gear. In addition to dry bags, the majority of your personal gear will be packed inside your packraft in the ‘cargo fly’ - the interior of the packraft tubes, accessed by watertight zipper. The cargo fly ensures that gear will stay dry and protected throughout the day’s travel - if the inside of the cargo fly is getting wet then we’ve got other problems! Guests will also be provided with an waterproof bow bag - a bag that mounts on the front of your packraft that you can access during the day while paddling. This is the perfect place to store daily necessities such as toiletries, a camera if you bring one, etc.

Space Restrictions:

It is recommended that the total volume of your personal gear is approximately 50-60 litres. A quick visual assessment can be done by imagining a typical backpack which holds about 30 litres. If you can imagine fitting all your trip gear into two typical backpacks then you’re on the right track. We will provide a variety of dry bags for your convenience, so if you are a little over the recommended space there’s no need to worry.

Recommended Materials on a P.A.C. Trip:

When planning the clothing to pack for your trip it is best to avoid cotton materials. With the exception of a cotton t-shirt, most trip clothing should be made of synthetic materials like polypropelene, wool, or micro-fleece. Cotton, though breathable, doesn’t provide much warmth and stays wet for long periods. It is especially important that guests bring a warm fleece sweater, and synthetic long undergarments for cooler wet days. It is also highly recommended that items like pants and shorts be made of quick-dry materials.

Best Materials:

• Fleece

• Wool

• Synthetic poly-blends

• Quick-dry

Gear That Guests Need to Bring:

This is a pretty comprehensive list of the gear that you will be expected to bring for trip. When you are preparing for a P.A.C. trip please make sure to pack from the personal gear list included in your information package, it may differ from the list here due to the length of trip or season in which you’re traveling.

If you have any questions or concerns about the gear you will need please contact us.

Clothing:

• Two re-usable, good quality, Covid-19 face-masks

• One sunhat - ball cap, tilly hat, etc.

• One toque for chilly nights

• One buff or bandana

• Swim suit

• Two pairs of quick dry shorts

• Two t-shirts

• One long sleeve shirt

• One pair of long quick dry pants

• One pair of warm fleece pants

• Two long underwear tops and bottoms (one for the day one for sleep)

• One long sleeve fleece or wool sweater

• Rain jacket and pants

• One pair of river shoes - must be closed toed, laced, with sturdy soles

• One pair of camp shoes or sandals

• Socks and undergarments

• One bug jacket or bug net for the head (optional)

Gear:

• One sleeping bag

• One headlamp (recommended) or flashlight and spare batteries

• One small personal thermos (no glass/ceramic) for tea and coffee on the river

• Two water bottles - durable plastic non disposable

• Bug repellant

• Sunscreen (small bottle, SPF 30 minimum)

• Sunglasses with hard case (highly recommended)

Toiletries:

• Toothbrush and toothpaste (these are no fun to forget at home!)

• Personal medications (for prescription medications please bring more than the minimum you will need, in case of emergency)

• Feminine hygiene products

Extras:

• Books, journals, pens/pencils

• Deck of cards, small portable games

• Camera

Gear Provided by Packraft Adventure Canada:

Packraft Adventure Canada is proud to provide guests with high quality and well maintained group gear for their adventure. We will engage in regular maintenance of gear and extra-thorough cleaning in light of the covid-19 virus. Guests need only worry about bringing their own clothing, personal toiletries, and extras (camera, book, preferred beverages etc.).

In addition to all the necessary gear for trip, Packraft Adventure Canada will provide all food necessary for trip, including delicious meals, daily snacks, coffee, tea, and wine with dinner on the first night of trip. We also provide all the means necessary for effective water purification on trip. Guests are welcome to bring juice crystals/flavoured concentrate to add to their drinking water and their own preferred beverages.

Each trip will be provided with:

• One high quality Alpackaraft whitewater packraft per guest

• One complete set of paddling gear per guest - wetsuit, helmet, lifejacket, paddle, packraft spray skirt, whistle, MTO safety kit

• One set of dry bags per guest, including a packraft bow bag and stern bag

• One tandem packraft paddled by one of the guides

• One spare packraft and extra paddle

• One river safety and emergency kit - throw rope, signaling device, rescue line, river 1st aid kit

• One complete wilderness emergency 1st aid kit and two ‘ouch kits’

• One Garmin InReach S.O.S. and communication device

• One Satellite phone

• One tent per 2 guests, or tent per guest as needed to protect against covid-19

• Two rain/sun shelters

• One large bug net shelter

• One camp chair per guest

• One thermarest per guest

• One group cook station - stoves, group pots/pans/dishes/cutlery etc.

• One no-touch hand wash station

• Each guest will also receive a personal covid-19 kit - hand sanitizer, personal toilet paper, etc.