Not content, but format. Last year I brought a Kindle to save weight for a Hunters Island solo. Battery was dead on day two. The Kindle was 214 years old, so that was on me, but it still sucked.

Recently bought a new Kindle for impending trips, but I hate reading from a screen that is the size of a chunk of Bazooka Joe bubble gum. So, from here forward I will bring books with me. I know they add weight and bulk, but I do not care.

Your thoughts?

I prefer a Kindle Paperwhite.

Turn off the wireless and the battery lasts for weeks.

I have had to restart it once or twice but not a big deal.

My back up is an IPhone using the Kindle app. Sometimes I just take the IPhone and leave the Kindle at home.

Kindle Paperwhite screen is about the size of a paperback. Reduce the font size and you can get even more words on the page- at least as many as the average trade paperback. Use the font menu to find a typeface that appeals to your eye, you can adjust fonts, size and boldness; try to replicate your preferred reading environment. Protect the screen and shut down the wi-fi and the battery lasts for weeks of hourly reading.

I prefer the old-fashioned method of a printed paperback. I tried it and don't care for the tablet. A battery-operated lantern lights up my tent so well that reading isn't a problem at night. As long as I pack my specks, that is.

Paperback. If worse come to worse, I can always use the pages I have read as firestarter.

One thick paperback for me. Prefer to pick up used at book fairs and it gets burned after reading. Fire starter for sure.

What sort of Kindle would eat itself up on day 2?

My kindle lasts the entire trip.. Last one was 11 days and the battery wasn't done.

It's generation two I think and a Paperwhite. I have had it for at least six years.

What sort of Kindle did you have Frenchy? Not that I will change your mind as you clearly prefer flipping pages ( and if you have forgotten a detail, flipping and finding with a Kindle IS a PITA), but the Kindle that is 214 years old must be heavy.. is it a petroglyph?

I like Kindle as it
Reduces headlamp wearing in bed ( which I find uncomfortable)
Eliminates the need for wearing cheaters ( then rolling on them as I sleep)
reduces space.

If they ever do away with the Kindle Paperwhite I am done with e readers though. I don't want full color and a Kindle that will cook for me.

We're flying to Iceland tomorrow. Baggage space is limited as well as weight. So the Kindle is loaded to go.

Two paperbacks per week long trip.

Then, when I fall asleep in my camp chair reading, my batteries are the only ones worn out.

I have the Kindle app on my 8" Samsung tablet. The battery lasts forever. I can also use it for taking pictures, for sending messages through my InReach, as a GPS, etc. It's the size of the Kindle Paperwhite. It's larger than a phone which makes it easier to see and use, but not too large to be cumbersome. It's in a waterproof case. I figure if I drop this in the lake I'm out about $150, vs. nearly $1000 for a phone. It's my go-to device for traveling.

I find a paperback with the smallest print possible. I'm not looking for great works of fiction. In fact, I don't do fiction. So I find mindless "true crime" or mafia or adventure or military history books.... stuff that interests me, of course. Then I find the one with the smallest print, most pages, and will hold my interest. I can always use it for firestarting backup if required.

MT

Never take any reading material.... fishing, sleep, and accasional meal when the fish aren’t biting...

walllee: "Never take any reading material.... fishing, sleep, and accasional meal when the fish aren’t biting..."

Same here. Where does everyone find time to read. I can read anywhere and my time in canoe country is limited. Also, even if I had time when windbound I never find the desire to read. So many other things to do and occupy yourself with when off the grid.

Wow, gotta have reading material, especially on a solo trip. I use the Nook that Barnes and Noble offers and Love, Love, Love it.

I find it quite cheery after a long day to get into my bag and turn the unit on. The little glow and the pleasure of being immersed in a good book, even if it is only for 20 minutes is very satisfying.

I have had good results with it staying charged but I also bring a solar charger to keep my depth finder battery, my UV water purifier unit, my Nook and my flashlight charged particularly since I usually go for 3 weeks.

mjmkjun: "I prefer the old-fashioned method of a printed paperback. I tried it and don't care for the tablet. A battery-operated lantern lights up my tent so well that reading isn't a problem at night. As long as I pack my specks, that is. "

Exactly what I do!!

Usually a small paperback, and I usually make paper copies of relevant BWJ articles printed double-sided so it's not much weight at all.

Nook Glowlight for me... with iPhone Nook app as backup. I read nearly every day... regardless of where I am so I can't imagine only having one or two books with me on a trip.

We also bring along a solar charger and battery brick. We use it to charge iPhone, which I use as a camera. And to charge a garmin inreach. I've never had to use it to charge my Nook Glowlight. I used to bring a Nook tablet along and that one drained out way too soon and was hard to read in sunlight so I invested in the basic version that can be read outside and doesn't have all the bells and whistles.

mjmkjun: "I prefer the old-fashioned method ...As long as I pack my specks, that is. "

... and don't drop them in the lake. Not that that has ever happened to me. : )~

analyzer: "

mjmkjun: "I prefer the old-fashioned method ...As long as I pack my specks, that is. "

... and don't drop them in the lake. Not that that has ever happened to me. : )~"

already happened to me too. :-) They were cheapie readers so no big loss. I now strap Rx eyewear/sunglasses to my head unless in a tent.

Old Kindle was a Fire that my wife won a few years back. New one is a paperwhite and I do not like it. Another gadget that will gather dust in a drawer somewhere.

Don't you know that those devices need metal to be processed? Plus books come from trees. Shame, shame:)

Frenchy19: "Old Kindle was a Fire that my wife won a few years back. New one is a paperwhite and I do not like it. Another gadget that will gather dust in a drawer somewhere. "

Give it time. As someone who has a great love for books and reading that moved to Kindle due to the amount of time spent traveling (to areas with wi-fi but no source for books) I learned over time to appreciate it. I still read books- but the Kindle is way more convenient for reading in bed (light weight and self-lighting)- not to mention the ability to carry many books in a weight and form factor of less than one.

What is it about the Kindle that stands between you and the reading?

Send it to me, Frenchy19 - I'll test it out thoroughly and tell you why you don't want it back . . . ;). As Banksiana said, it could hold a lot of books for traveling.

I just go sit in front of a good pictograph and try to figure out what they're trying to communicate. :)
I actually like writing more than reading. No one will ever see it, just me. But I like reflecting later.

Small paperback book for me as well.

mjmkjun: "

analyzer: "

mjmkjun: "I prefer the old-fashioned method ...As long as I pack my specks, that is. "

... and don't drop them in the lake. Not that that has ever happened to me. : )~"

already happened to me too. :-) They were cheapie readers so no big loss. I now strap Rx eyewear/sunglasses to my head unless in a tent. "

Readers might be cheap and no big loss, but if you only have one pair, it makes tying a hook a difficult challenge. I now bring 2 pairs of readers. I keep a spare set in my tackle box.

It kinda reminds me of this:

The last man on earth....

a couple of nyt crosswords and an Atlantic Monthly for me. Wife brings a novel or two. I guess I nap if I've got a couple hours on my hands.

I start to panic if I reach the last couple of chapters in my current book and know I do not have something else available immediatley.

I have never taken an e reader on a canoe trip though. A paperback tucked into the hammock usually suffices.

A small paperback. I don’t spend much time reading in the backcountry. A few pages before falling asleep and something to do if the weather is bad. I can read at home, and I only get to the BWCA once per year.

I have a nook for car camping. For remote/wilderness tripping I take an actual book. Also, many years ago I decided to take a "classic" on wilderness trips so I was forced to read something I should read (and probably something I was suppose to in high school).
Barnes and Nobel has an entire rack of sun books that I use as my guide.

I have a nook for car camping. For remote/wilderness tripping I take an actual book. Also, many years ago I decided to take a "classic" on wilderness trips so I was forced to read something I should read (and probably something I was suppose to in high school).
Barnes and Nobel has an entire rack of such books that I use as my guide.

Abbey: "A small paperback. I don’t spend much time reading in the backcountry. A few pages before falling asleep and something to do if the weather is bad. I can read at home, and I only get to the BWCA once per year. "

Same here. I will spend time thinking what actual book I would like to read while there but I usually never finish it. I found on my trip last year that I spent more time listening to the CBC on the radio while I lay in my hammock before sleeping.

MikeinMpls: "I find a paperback with the smallest print possible. I'm not looking for great works of fiction. In fact, I don't do fiction. So I find mindless "true crime" or mafia or adventure or military history books.... stuff that interests me, of course. Then I find the one with the smallest print, most pages, and will hold my interest. I can always use it for firestarting backup if required.


MT"

:) Perfect, lol.

Nook for me for "fun" reading, but it's old fashioned and has no lighting. Nice size for reading, holds lots of books, can read in glare sunlight.

This last trip I took about 6 real books (quick trip, no portages) because I couldn't tell what I'd want to read AND because the library had a book sale the morning I left, lol.

One good find was the "naturalnavigator" books - how to read nature. Though my brain is full up and can't absorb much new, I was able to flip through a book by Gooley and learn about clouds when I had a weather question.

nctry: "I just go sit in front of a good pictograph and try to figure out what they're trying to communicate. :)
I actually like writing more than reading. No one will ever see it, just me. But I like reflecting later."

Good one. But yes, there is plenty to reflect on out there without a need to read. Good for you to write!!! I'm always glad when I find even tiny notes I've scribbled down when on a trip. I wish I would write more out there - but these days I need to TYPE just to think!! Writing long hand is excruciating!

Usually, I bring a magazine.

Usually the BWJ.

I have found reader's digest to be invaluable. I tear out whatever ads I can. Two usually provides me with more than enough reading material, with hardly any bulk. Sometimes a lone paperback.

Before adopting the Kindle my guilty camping pleasure was to bring a paperback or two and burn the pages I finished- one by one if reading before a fire (late fall trips) or in great clumps if the reading was done in the tent in pursuit of sleep. As a lover of books it feels wrong but is also deeply satisfying.