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Author	Message Text
MikeinMpls	03/13/2025 08:06AM   Over the years, I have transitioned from heavier to lighter, like most people have. I don't have "ultralight" gear, but modern lightweight stuff, if there's a difference. I suppose our cooking kit could be lighter weight stuff, and my Thermarest pad should probably be retired. That said, I was using an old wood (but very lightweight) Sawyer T-grip paddle up until three years ago. I bought the paddle when I was 16 and used it for 40 years. I finally made the switch to a carbon bent shaft paddle. I still bring the Sawyer paddle with me as a backup. The other thing that I use that is "old" is a map and compass. I'm not sure if that meets the definition of "old," but I still use a map and compass to navigate. GPS would be much more modern, obviously, but I'm just old school when it comes to navigation. Mike
Jackfish	03/13/2025 08:15AM   I started taking canoe trips to Quetico in the mid 1980s. We used anything that we had that would work. Of course, we were young bucks and could be portage sherpas carrying all the heavy gear. We had aluminum canoes, a 9 x 12 White Stag canvas tent, a Coleman 2-burner stove and Coleman gas lantern. We would bring a blue plastic tarp from Menards and our sleeping bags were big and bulky. We also wore jeans and sweatshirts. Over the years, we slowly upgraded our gear to CCS Pioneer packs, kevlar canoes, lightweight tents, down sleeping bags, MSR Whisperlite stoves, headlamps and lightweight cook gear. We left the Coleman lantern at home. To us, there was nothing nostalgic about our old gear. It was just heavy and bulky. The newer stuff is a huge improvement. I might bring a wool buffalo check long sleeved shirt to wear in camp. There is something romantic, if not nostalgic, about gear from the old days, but I can look back in books, see all the photos, think about how heavy all that stuff was and admire the strength and toughness of canoers back in the day. I'll also be glad gear has evolved into lighter weight options.
sns	03/13/2025 08:13AM   Blatz: "Nah, all new super light weight stuff for me. Although I really appreciate the beauty of the older equipment." Funny, when I saw the first post on this by Speckled, I thought of you...the only person here I am certain has a lighter base weight than me.
plmn	03/14/2025 08:04AM   I'm with Jackfish. I don't really miss the old stuff. We now bring more creature comforts that work better yet we're still carrying less weight and bulk. It makes the overall experience much more enjoyable. Leaky smelly canvas tents. Bulky wet clothes under rubber rainsuits. 80 pound aluminum canoes that were noisy in the water and got scorching hot in the sun. Some memories aren't all that nostalgic to me. Granted some of that was due to not having the best versions of what was available, like jwartman59's beautiful boat. But I don't think many people did back then, at least not that I can recall.
grizzlyadams	03/14/2025 08:52AM   I usually trip with a little combination. I've gone a little lighter as the years have passed but still trip with an aluminum canoe and wooden paddles and probably will until I can't carry it any longer. We are doing the Stuart River this summer so we will see if that changes my mind lol. Depending on group size we will also bring the old two burner coleman stove for making supper and breakfast. Also, for May trips I typically still bring an old wool blanket to sleep with inside my sleeping bag because I don't want to spend the money on an expensive sleeping bag. Other than that most of my other gear; clothing, backpack, single pocket stove, hammock are all pretty light weight.
mgraber	03/13/2025 01:05PM   New all the way, and I have done this stuff for awhile, turning 60 this month. Newer gear is better in every way that I can think of. I am extremely nostalgic, and love seeing old stuff and old methods, but new keeps me doing things longer, with less effort, safer and more enjoyment. Even what we consider "old" was new technology at some point. If you really want to do it the hard way, use the gear from 200 years ago. But, whatever floats your boat!
Sunburn	03/21/2025 10:52AM   GregSC: "Sunburn Can you own too many flannel shirts? I don’t think so. " Can I put you in touch with my wife? ;)
Stumpy	03/20/2025 04:03AM   Old, Old, Old. When I have more time, I will elaborate.
Savage Voyageur	03/15/2025 07:52PM   I have a few things that I bought 45 years ago that I still bring every trip. My Duluth packs and a brass candle lantern. Then I have my Grandmothers Griswold cast iron pan 1930s vintage. It goes right on the fire grate or reflector oven grate. Nothing is better than a cast iron pan over a fire.
merlyn	03/16/2025 02:05PM   Most of my stuff is modernish but I still use some oldy but goody equipment. Coffee pot 50+ years old, one pack frame with canvas pack 50+ ( will retire this year) 3 pc Siloflex rod w/AlcedoMcron reel from my dad, 1950's I think. fishing lures the same. Pin on brass compass, wood snowshoes 1940's, ww2 gas mask bag (use as creel) belt knife made by Western, Boulder Colorado 40's or 50's I still have and use for car camping: Coleman 2 burner suitcase stove and gas lantern, cook kit from the 60's and 2 sleeping bags also from the 60's. Some of the stuff I use because of the memories they hold others because they do the job just fine so why replace them.
plander	03/12/2025 05:24PM   Mostly all ultralight now but for about 20 years (2000-2020) we use to use an old cooking kit from A&F. 1920s vintage. Look like the one in the link below. It was awesome but the canvas bucket and canvas utensil roll started falling apart, lost a couple utensils, etc. We still use the cook pots, though we recently retired steel fry pans (in photo below) that you make a handle with out of a stick (frybake pans now). It was my cousins Grandfather’s gear from back in the day. It was the best cooking set we ever found. Super light weigh pots (anluminum) and pans (steel). Also used an old A&F collapsible fishing net. Same 1920s vintage. The net was used heavily. The photos of the Northern are from just below Rebecca Falls in May 2010 (pan photo has walleye caught at that location, same trip). Very low water levels that Spring, not much rain, and very warm. 1920s Cookset
straighthairedcurly	03/12/2025 05:36PM   I have gone ultralight, modern gear. My husband still uses his pack basket and wool clothes. He simply can not go on a trip without his massive, heavy yellow/green home knit wool sweater. My wood/canvas days are behind me, but I still treasure the memories.
NEIowapaddler	03/12/2025 08:33PM   I don't always buy the absolute latest and greatest (mostly because it doesn't always turn out to be the greatest after all), but I'm not one of those people who likes to use old-time gear just because it's what previous generations used. Practicality beats nostalgia for me. Most of the old-timers who had to use that gear would laugh at people today using it when there are objectively better options. That being said, if you want to use it, don't let my opinion stop you.
RTurner	03/12/2025 03:53PM   I've got a wooden canoe that is probably in the 100 to 120 years old range. I've had it for about 45 years and it's the nicest paddling boat I've ever been in. It was canvas when I bought it but in poor shape. Took the canvas off and glassed it which I realize now is a crime but I was 18. That's the boat I always paddle if I'm paddling solo. I also have a couple of Clements paddles that are around 40 years old that I love, but have been paddling with a lighter weight wooden paddle or a Wenonah carbon fiber paddle more often recently. I've got a pack basket but I don't think I've ever used it on a trip, and I've got a wanigan, but it's not old. I built it myself 7-8 years ago. It doesn't go on trips with portages.
Speckled	03/12/2025 02:36PM   How many of us prefer all the new gear? How many still camp with nostalgic gear? I'm curious about things like; Canoes - Does anyone out there take trips with a wood canvas canoe? Tents - anyone using an old canvas tent? Packs - How many of use the new lightweight material packs vs the old waxed envelope style packs? or pack baskets? Clothing - Lightweight name brand or old wool and flannel? Paddles - Do you prefer wood or carbon paddles? For me - i'm really thinking about getting a Stewart River Wood and Canvas canoe. Today I currently trip in Bell Canoes. For weight purposes...I love the new tents, new sleeping bags, new sleep pads. Depending on boat and group - given the opportunity, i'll take my Frost River #3 pack over any of the newer style packs. I have a carbon paddle...and I don't really like it. Wood just feels alot more comfortable and warm (if that makes sense) in my hands and i'll use the wood 100% of the time. Any other older or nostalgic gear that you like to use?
Minnesotian	03/12/2025 08:40PM   Depends on the trip. If I want to cover a lot of ground, I go lightweight. If I am portaging only once or twice and staying put, I'll bring some cast iron and my old Wildwood Canvas tent. Nothing like hunkering down during a rainstorm in a canvas tent.
EmmaMorgan	03/12/2025 05:40PM   Same here - all my gear is newer ultralight stuff. Even my dogs have ultralight gear lol.
Moonpath	03/20/2025 09:05AM   I still use my canvas duluth packs and waxed canvas packs. I think they are classy and still very functional. I also like my wood paddles. In fact my favorite are some old ash ottertail paddles made in Canada. They bend nicely and have a great feel to them. Unfortunately, the company that made them, Nashwak, is no longer in business. I also favor traditional symmetrical canoes with wood trim, such as a prospector. Very versatile and to me, stable. I would love to buy a wood canvas canoe but find the prices for a new one too much for me. I have thought of buying used and refurbishing it. All in all, I prefer a mix of old and new. I am not stuck in an either or construct. What works for me is what counts.
bfurlow	03/20/2025 09:48AM   I definitely am more on the newer side of things. I don't have the latest and greatest though. I'm amazed when I read the weights of some folks packs. If I can get mine below 50# I feel blessed. More than weight, I would like to reduce the bulk of things
OldGuide2	03/20/2025 10:03AM   As an old timer, much of my gear would qualify as antique. I paddle a 1935 Old Town, use a Clement t-grip paddle, sleep in a 1972 Gerry tent, have a Gerry cookset with a Svea stove, and sleep in a 1962 Eddie Bauer down bag. Why? Nothing paddles like the Old Town, nobody makes anything like the Clement, especially not with the t-grip. Even though the patent expired no one has seen fit to design a tent like the Gerry where I can stand up yet it can weather a storm. On top of that I use old topo maps from the 1950s because they reference stuff that was there before the BWCA. As far as weight goes, there are lighter canoes and tents, but with the canoe I figure even if I double portage, I make up time on the water. My canoe has a keel which makes for better tracking and protects the hull. I still remember a long conversation with Joe Seliga about keels.
jwartman59	03/13/2025 06:43PM   If you’ve never paddled a wood/canvas canoe, you won’t understand. This canoe weighs 63 lbs (dry), not that big of a deal
Speckled	03/13/2025 08:57PM   jwartman59: " If you’ve never paddled a wood/canvas canoe you won’t understand. This canoe weighs 63 lbs (dry), not that big of a deal" This is what I aspire to.
scottiebaldwin	03/13/2025 11:34PM   I have new & lightweight in almost everything I bring into the park. The one thing I cannot do is use a carbon fiber paddle. I own two of them but never use them as they seem to break my relationship with the water. I need to use either one of my two trusty Sanborn wood paddles. One bent shaft, one straight. They come on every trip.
Sunburn	03/14/2025 10:30AM   I have a large canvas tent that I love, but it only comes along for car camping trips. In the backcountry, I stick with modern lightweight gear and technical fabrics (despite my wife's claim that I own every version of men's flannel shirt made). When canoeing solo, I do still like a wooden paddle but also take a carbon fiber double blade.
Blatz	03/12/2025 04:54PM   Nah, all new super light weight stuff for me. Although I really appreciate the beauty of the older equipment.
nctry	03/30/2025 11:59AM   Openboat: "Alex Comb builds beautiful canoes. He’s got a beautiful shop." I agree… great location…
GregSC	03/15/2025 09:57PM   Sunburn Can you own too many flannel shirts? I don’t think so.
justpaddlin	03/15/2025 04:07PM   I'm not a rule follower so my answer is "other". Pic shows a carbon paddle being used in a wood/canvas (wood/dacron) boat. Both are 90's vintage so not super old and not super new but both definitely nostalgic. At 17 ounces the paddle is not particularly light and at 35 pounds the solo canoe is not particularly heavy. Although I enjoy using a wood paddle on rare occasions, I much prefer carbon and use it 99.9% of the time. If it makes you happy it can't be that bad. -Sheryl Crow
TomT	03/19/2025 06:55AM   I started in 1983 and still bring 2 pieces of gear from that era. I have a 10 degree down sleeping bag from a company called “Back to Basics”. It’s held up perfectly. I also bring a small lunch size cloth insulated cooler from Early Winters. That one has been on every trip I’ve ever taken in a canoe since 1984. My gear and even clothing is kept separate and used only for wilderness trips. I have a Patagonia T-shirt from the Mid 2000’s I still take with me. It’s seen in pics from every trip since 2006 so I guess I’m a bit sentimental about it. Here’s a pic from 2006.
Openboat	03/23/2025 07:49PM   Alex Comb builds beautiful canoes. He’s got a beautiful shop.
KawnipiKid	03/30/2025 01:53PM   New but not ultralight. The two old things I always get out and see if there's room for are an old wool sweater and this early 1970s baker. It sits on a camp stove and makes great biscuits, breads, brownies and cakes in bundt form. It's lighter than it looks; the main reason for leaving behind it is the weight of the mixes, not the unit.