BWCA Kayaking the BW's Boundary Waters Group Forum: Kayaking
Chat Rooms (0 Chatting)  |  Search  |   Login/Join
* For the benefit of the community, commercial posting is not allowed.
Boundary Waters Quetico Forum
   Group Forum: Kayaking
      Kayaking the BW's     

Author

Text

1monky
member (27)member
  
08/04/2015 08:12PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)


I'm dying to kayak the BW's but I can't figure out how to best pull it off. It seems like portaging my kayak would be a major pain in the butt not to mention getting my gear across. How do the kayakers out there deal with the portages? Thanks in advance for any tips.
 
      Print Top Bottom Previous Next
caticind
member (24)member
  
08/05/2015 05:58AM  
We're going in to try it at the end of the month so I'll report back on how the portages go.

From my own reading on here I can tell you the type and weight of your kayaks makes a big difference.

What are you planning to paddle and are you going solo or with a group?
 
08/05/2015 10:51AM  
Figure out a yoke system (to carry it more like a canoe than off one shoulder.) Also take your time and find a packing system that allows you to put everything from the hatches into a back pack...double portage. Enjoy the scenery.
 
1monky
member (27)member
  
08/05/2015 11:09AM  
I have a Wilderness Systems tsunami 146 which ways about 58lbs I think. Do there a yolk out there that is made for kayaks? I didn't think about bringing a backpack to throw all my gear in at the portages and definitely double portaging. Good idea
 
caticind
member (24)member
  
08/05/2015 01:49PM  
There are yokes for kayaks, as a search in this forum will reveal, including designs for a DIY kayak yoke. That's a pretty heavy boat for its size, so I agree the yoke approach may be easiest. Fiberglass boats, if you are careful where you swing them, can be carried on one shoulder with the aid of some coaming pads and/or a body strap. I suppose you could carry the Tsunami that way too if you wanted to.

Also make sure you give some thought to your route. If you are uncertain how tough portaging will be with the yak, then consider doing a trip with fewer or shorter portages, or having an alternate route in mind if you get out there and find it does not work for whatever reason. On the other hand, with a kayak (and adequate experience) you don't have to worry about wind and rollers as much as the canoe folks. This can make a route heavy on big lakes a better choice than it might otherwise be.
 
markaroberts
distinguished member(830)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
08/07/2015 02:14PM  
We have used kayaks on two different years. One year we brought 17 foot touring kayaks (long, front/rear hatches, full deck rigging). Two years later, two guys brought 12-14 foot rec boats.

What we learned is this. . .

kayaks are not canoes and vice versa. Many make the mistake of trying to tour in kayaks with canoe methods. . .using a a large heavy yoke, tying packs on top of the kayaks, using rec boats with large open cockpits.

Multi day kayak tours have been done in coastal areas for decades. . .portages and all. We studied how they do it.

Now we use tapered dry bags that slide into the front and rear hatches. They have bleeder valves. You put your gear in the bags, and slide them in the hatches. . .the air bleeding out as they go making them as small as possible. one in front hatch one in back.

When you get to the portage, take both drybags out, slide them on opposite ends of the double blade paddle shaft, and carry them through using the shaft as a yoke for the two bags.

Then come back and carry the kayak through shoulder carry. They were designed for this. We use a "noodle" (kids play toy) sit on one side, slid on the cockpit side as a pad for shoulder carry.

Makes it an easy two portage job without haveing to mess with large wooden yokes.

Putting bags on the deck also destroys the dynamics that make kayaks so easy to handle in rougher water and wind.

You can do it. . .just to it like the guys that paddle the coastlines and big water, not like canoes.
 
markaroberts
distinguished member(830)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
08/07/2015 02:14PM  
We have used kayaks on two different years. One year we brought 17 foot touring kayaks (long, front/rear hatches, full deck rigging). Two years later, two guys brought 12-14 foot rec boats.

What we learned is this. . .

kayaks are not canoes and vice versa. Many make the mistake of trying to tour in kayaks with canoe methods. . .using a a large heavy yoke, tying packs on top of the kayaks, using rec boats with large open cockpits.

Multi day kayak tours have been done in coastal areas for decades. . .portages and all. We studied how they do it.

Now we use tapered dry bags that slide into the front and rear hatches. They have bleeder valves. You put your gear in the bags, and slide them in the hatches. . .the air bleeding out as they go making them as small as possible. one in front hatch one in back.

When you get to the portage, take both drybags out, slide them on opposite ends of the double blade paddle shaft, and carry them through using the shaft as a yoke for the two bags.

Then come back and carry the kayak through shoulder carry. They were designed for this. We use a "noodle" (kids play toy) sit on one side, slid on the cockpit side as a pad for shoulder carry.

Makes it an easy two portage job without haveing to mess with large wooden yokes.

Putting bags on the deck also destroys the dynamics that make kayaks so easy to handle in rougher water and wind.

You can do it. . .just to it like the guys that paddle the coastlines and big water, not like canoes.
 
08/08/2015 07:19PM  
I took my kayak this year for the first time and it worked well after a few adjustments.

The kayak - a 12 1/2 foot Emotion Mojo sit on top fishing kayak.


The yoke - Spring Creek kayak yoke.


It took me a while to get the right location for the brackets to hold the kayak yoke in place. I originally tried to put bungees around the bottom to hold it tight to the kayak but the bungees proved to have too much give. The yoke would pop out of the brackets. After that I simply tied a rope to hold the yoke in place each time.

If I get a chance I'll post a picture of my actual brackets on the kayak. The brackets I used are made by Sea-Lect. Pole Clips

For packing I packed light enough that I could put most of my gear in a CCS Explorer sized pack that fit well in the area behind the seat. I had a smaller pack that I kept between my knees in the center area.

Paddling. We entered at the Snake River entry and for the river sections I was faster than the canoes. The 3 rapids I floated through, they portaged. I even had to double back for lost gear and was able to walk up the rapids for a couple and float back through them again. Once we reached Bald Eagle lake I fell behind. No way a wide kayak like that can maintain the speed of a canoe across a big lake. I will say that, I am biased, the kayak handled the waves much better. Paddled in waves directly, broadside, quartering, nothing felt uncomfortable. Love the lower center of gravity in a kayak.
 
markaroberts
distinguished member(830)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
08/09/2015 03:07PM  
What drives the choice for which kayak type to take is what is the primary objective. If it is fishing, the boat Emotion Mojo is a great choice. But as George metioned, you will be packing very small. Also, you are exposed to the elements rain, water wind, etc.

If you are doing any kind of distance. . .or carrying more gear, a touring style kayak with large front/rear water tight hatches will probably serve better. Also, you can use a spray skirt and wind, chop, rain will not affect you.

The other factor is weight. The emotion mojo is a 61 lb boat for only 12 1/2 feet. A Seward Navigator is 56 lbs, but 17 feet, and holds a great deal of gear.

I have usually gravitated towards lighter kayaks that move faster and carry more gear. . .and fish out of them. Versus a fishing kayak that can take some gear, but is not really a distance boat.

Seward Navigator kayak
 
08/10/2015 11:44AM  
I've taken 2 different kayaks into the BWCA with 2 different packing approaches. I'll detail them here:

1st trip was with a 16'8" kevlar sea kayak. Made a custom portage yoke out of wood that was a press fit attachment with chosen valley pads. I was able to pack all my gear in the front and rear hatches, save for my day pack which I strapped on the rear deck right behind me. At the portages, I would unload half the gear from the hatches (about 4 dry bags) into a large mesh back pack along with my day pack. I'd hike the pack and my paddles to the other end of the portage and then come back and carry the 46lbs kayak with about 20lbs of gear in it to the other end of the portage. Did this on a 6 day trip with nearly 60 portages.

2nd trip I used my 40lbs 12' Perception Tribute kayak. Made another custom yoke and reused the same pads as the first one. I had only one smaller hatch on this kayak and with how it balanced out with the yoke, I loaded tent poles, tarp, large knife and saw and fishing lure case in the hatch. The rest of my gear was loaded into a 70L SeaLine Boundary pack that was strapped to the back deck and also had my day pack with a few items that sat behind my seat. At the portages I would grab the portage pack and put it on my back and grab my day pack and wear that on the front. I'd hike across the portage and had both hands free. I went back for the kayak and had the 2 piece paddle stored inside where my feet went and then attached the yoke on the cockpit with a bungee cord that hooked under the seat. I'd then portage the kayak with remaining gear in the hatch which only totaled about 46lbs. Portages were quite easy this way and I totaled over 70 portages over 8 days.

The 12' kayak wasn't as fast as the sea kayak, but it was great not having to worry about banging rocks with a plastic boat and it was lighter to portage and handled surprisingly well with the 70L pack strapped on the back deck. Not having to deal with unloading the hatches at the portages was a big plus too. I did do a couple of portages by single portage, but I didn't care for having to portage 95lbs everytime and I also like to enjoy the view on the portage at least once and it's hard to do that with a kayak over your head.


 
      Print Top Bottom Previous Next