Paddle Your Own Epic
Paddling Gear
As for paddling gear, take the basics. Keep in mind, space needs to be set aside for extra paddles and extra PFDs. Paddling in January meant a good dry suit was essential. Between paddling through large volume rapids and going on hikes that required wading through ponds of water, the dry suit made all the difference. Tucked in the canyon, direct sunlight can be elusive. Getting wet would have meant serious discomfort, and even hypothermia.
Camping Gear
While your food and clothing take up plenty of space, you still need to fit in your camping gear. This is the part of packing that requires the most planning and coordinating. Not everyone in the group needs to bring his own tent. Paddlers can double up and split the gear between them when on the water. Even with the chilly weather, many of us couldn’t help but sleep out under the stars. Bring a high- quality sleeping pad—after a long day on the water you’ll be happy you did. Cooking equipment, including pots, pans, stoves and gas, are other items that can be shared. If paddling in a national park you’ll be required to carry specific
items for both your safety, as well as for the safety of the fragile ecosystem you are entering. Having fires is permitted, but they have to be contained in a collapsible fire pan and placed on a special fire blanket to prevent leaving ash behind. Water buckets and bleach provide a dishwashing station each day. And, of course, a compre- hensive first aid kit needs to be on hand.
Shit Tubes
The largest and most cumbersome item each one of us brought along was the human waste container—the groover. In the canyon you are required to pack out everything that you take into the park—all trash, ash from the fires, food particles and even human waste. This is com- mon in sensitive ecosystems that see lots of traffic. The custom-made PVC tubes that each of us brought were the largest space-takers. Designed and built by a fellow trip member, these containers were
54 PADDLING MAGAZINE || December 2013
placed between paddler’s knees and strapped down to a custom-made foam mount while paddling. The containers only got heavier as the days went by. Only semi-affectionately referred to as shit tubes, these containers were the source of much laughter and discussion. We were all pleasantly surprised that our custom-made tubes worked so well—they’re not a piece of gear you want to see malfunction. Since each person was responsible for his or her own groover, it made the entire process a much more sanitary and private matter.
Fitting It In
Unfortunately, there’s no perfect way to pack your boat and finding the best method is largely trial and error. Each morning is like play- ing a new game of Tetris. With that said, there are some basic ways to go about it. Start with the big items. It may feel like a bit of a wrestling match, but once larger items are in the boat you can fill up the empty space with all the smaller, miscellaneous items. Your boat will get heavy in a hurry. Our fully loaded boats weighed anywhere from 200 to 300 pounds at the start of the trip. Once packed, it took two people to carry the boats to shore. Focus on evenly distributing the weight in your boat or it won’t sit in the water evenly. If this hap- pens, you’ll likely experience some discomfort all day.
Best 9–5 Grind
Expect to spend a couple hours getting ready each morning. After cooking breakfast, visiting your groover and tearing down sleep- ing arrangements, you’re ready to get into your gear and begin to repack your kayak. The Grand Canyon is intersected with amazing hikes, there are
more than enough to do one or two a day. For us, that meant pad- dling four hours a day, covering about 20 miles, then taking to the hills. After setting up camp, it was time to relax around the fire pan. As much as we would try and stay up at night, we found that not long after sunset, we were beat. You can be sure that after all of the pack- ing, kayaking, hiking, and then unpacking, you’re in for a sound sleep. Rob Fusilli paddled the Grand Canyon in January 2013. Look for him this summer guiding on the Youghiogheny River.
This article first appeared in Summer/Fall 2013 issue of Rapid.
DIGITAL EXTRA: See footage of Rob Fusilli’s Grand Canyon adventure filmed by Demshitz at
Rapidmedia.com/0087 or check out the iPad or Android editions of Rapid.
PHOTO: TY CALDWELL
PHOTO: TY CALDWELL
PHOTO: JEREMY LAUCKS
PHOTO: TY CALDWELL
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