ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. These parks have great trip planners available online and are Canada’s packraft nirvana. Alpacka Raft Lineup. Paddling is simple: assess the rivers’ difficulty as you go—too difficult? Come explore the northwest arctic with us this autumn. Pimp My Packraft! Come explore them with us. Practice! The Alpacka packraft and Packraft Fishing Table allows you to get away from marshy edges and log jams, and have a totally liberating alpine fishing experience. The long miles coaxed 2/3rds of our 10 person crew to opt for the more predictable route east over Pagoda, but 3 of went up Silvertip. The view from my packraft as Aubrey comes around the river bend in her kayak. This is the where the gold rush stampeders reached the end of the Chilkoot Trail and built their makeshift “floating coffins” for the long trip down the Yukon River to the Klondike gold fields. The Ultralight Series is all about the essentials. Packrafting is the relatively new sport of merging backpacking with rafting. Performance Weather Protection. Or maybe the experience is just the place and people together, I don’t know. Email Floris van Breugel | + larger view "Packrafting" no. Bikepacking | Climbing | Packrafting | Skiing | Mountaineering | Hiking. North America Jess Wandering November 28, 2018 hike, hiking, gear, clothing, Washington, Rattlesnake Ledge, Rattlesnake Ridge, writing, Pacific Northwest Comments Packrafting Into the … I planned my trip along Pacific Creek as an easy one or two-night practice run before a more difficult longer trip. Eastern Packrafting and Survival on all of the legendary big rivers of the Eastern U.S., as well as their remote tributaries. Licorice Fern won’t grow on the ground – it insists on a mossy vertical surface like the sides of mossy boulders and mossy deciduous trees like Big Leaf Maples.It’s also unique in that it only grows in single fronds (which are connected by a rhizome running through the moss) rather than in a cluster of fronds like most ferns. All packrafts sold here at Packrafting.com is of the brand Alpackaraft. “After hitting the Mexican border, I knew I would be a hiker for the rest of my life.” Hill is currently in the midst of a Pacific Northwest Trail thru hike. Packrafting the Sauk I tried my hand and paddle at packrafting this past weekend. Thanks to Tony for dropping us off, we missed you out there. At 10 pm we were out of water and energy and decided to camp. Eventually we did find a nasty boat-shredding canyon formed by a rock slide, but after scouting we realized it would go. Last week my girlfriend and I took our new packrafts on a 6-day, 70-mile trip from the headwater lakes of the Yukon River to Whitehorse. / October 08, 2020, Packrafting Go Bob! Once we reached Hell Roaring Creek, the big hike began. He fought it hard and ended up going under still square in his boat. These feeder canyons proved tricky to get around. The unknown nature of the river and the gradient wore us down as the day went on. The result: Portland, Oregon. In the spring of 2019, I and two friends bought packrafts and hiked and paddled the North Fork of the Koyukuk river. Huge thanks to Carrie for lots of help with this post. It has many difficult rapids including Crooked Canyon and the Step. We were already partly home and tied up with future activities, work, spouses etc. Mission. We chatted with other river travelers who were devoting weeks to the Mackenzie in more suitable boats. Either way, a packraft is the only way to go. Sometimes the best packrafting adventures are hidden in plain site. Packrafts are a boat design developed over the past 15 years for light, flexible travel through the wilderness. Ultralight Backpacking We both got humbled a bit but came through unscathed. I’ve read everything I could about the Nahanni for years and was keen to take a look. We arrived at the confluence with the Broken Skull and were glad to see Sky and Paul. Ferrying.… (women’s small) Waterproofing: Gore-Tex Pro Denier: 40D What we like: Premium Gore-Tex Pro protection in a lightweight and breathable design. What if you can’t catch your boat right away? Simple? Packrafting the Sauk I tried my hand and paddle at packrafting this past weekend. An overnight rafting trip on the Deschutes River offers rapids, fishing opportunities, family … / June 16, 2017, Packrafting © HYPERLITE MOUNTAIN GEAR. Sky had a swim in Crooked Canyon that shook his confidence a bit, but we took a short break and Sky got back in his boat and paddled the rest of the canyon well. Wake up, hike or paddle, enjoy food that would make you gag at home, find a nice camp, face a bunch of unknowns, and enjoy being out there. The hike up Flood Creek was an unexpected highlight. So how did we get to the Mackenzie and where did all this simple living take place? We’d thrown around the idea of a food drop but decided the added complexity, cost and intrusion weren’t worth it. Packrafting is a sport that uses an individual-size inflatable boat called a packraft that’s tough and durable but also light and compact. Equipment Guide. Oct 3, 2018 - All things packrafting & white water sports. We decided to camp at the head of the canyon and walk around in the morning. The country we passed through softened as we approached the confluence of the Redstone and Mackenzie. Strokes: Forward, Sweep, Reverse, Draw. She is a 1987 graduate of Marquette University's program in physical therapy and earned her Doctorate in Physical Therapy (DPT) through Evidence in Motion in 2016. Flying in to Upper Paradise Lake is the only easy option. Pacific Northwest Clothing. Hike in, boat out! I wanted to get out and explore what Washington had to offer. Bugs and rain accompanied us as we groveled up the climb. Paul and Sky had decided that they didn’t want to paddle our next objective-Black Wolf Creek. Even the place doesn’t make the trip (although it can unmake it). There is no unknown. our staff. Part 2/3. The mountains shrank and softened. ... Just 20 miles northwest of Happy Camp, Kelly Lake is the most accessible mountain lake in the Siskiyou Wilderness Area. The people were cool, the setting was gorgeous, and I am not yet good at packrafting. The rest of the unnamed river to the confluence with the Broken Skull River was pretty and interesting with no major rapids. Big mountains, fast rivers, rugged coastline, and the occasional Sasquatch sighting: for pure adventure in the lower 48, you can't beat the Pacific Northwest. Other Trips. We all wished each other good luck on our trips and agreed not to share any intel on the Black Wolf until we’d all done it. You don’t need to talk about it but you do because that’s what there is to talk about. We were carrying full whitewater boat kits (19 pounds each) and 21 days’ food. After a few kilometers of hiking down the river we’d gained enough water to blow up our Alpacka Rafts and paddle. A good discussion of the topic. Basically, it involves small individual rafts, which are designed to navigate anything from remote mountain lakes to class IV+ rapids. The mountains remained spectacular and as the river eased, toward the Broken Skull, we had more time to enjoy them. The flood waters quickly carried us down the Thundercloud, Silverberry, Raven’s Throat and Redstone. Momentum, 45°, Leaning Downstream, Planting Blade. I’ve heard many people complain that their raingear was “leaking”, when in fact it is really perspiration and condensation accumulating against the inside of the jacket. Packrafting Dylan and I have done lots of white water paddling together and quickly fell in step. We’d had heavy rains and thunderstorms, for hours on end, the previous night and during the day. Sheep watched us pass by as they sheltered under cliffs from more storms. So, when Kirk came up with a combo backpacking and packrafting trip in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Washington, it sounded perfect. The Yellowstone River is a special place for us. Sunday, June 23, 2019. The South Fork of the Flat­head Riv­er is home to the wildest cut­throat trout fish­ing in the Amer­i­can West. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window) I had hiked through the Alpine Lakes area 12 years ago on the Pacific Crest Trail, but that September the whole stretch was drenched in rain and fog and I … Thanks also go to Hyperlite Mountain Gear, Alpacka Raft and MEC for their support. The story of an East Coast couple embarking on a two-week excursion through the Pacific Northwest. Along the banks of the mighty Klamath River in far northern California rests a sleepy mountain town. We did one short portage around a river-wide pour over and scouted two more canyons that proved runnable. We didn’t want to lose a boat. Starting at the foot of the Humes Glacier on the southeastern flanks of Mount Olympus on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, the Queets Rivers winds from source to sea through dense, towering coastal rainforest. Part 2/3. We … Find climbing partners in the Pacific Northwest. The major danger was drifting into a sweeper while sleeping; Dylan and I were saved from dunks by shouts from more alert trip members. We can with confidence say that Alpackaraft is the Rolls-Royce of packrafts. If it is windy and/or strong tides you might find yourself heading for the wrong continent. How couldn’t you be? The Alpackaraft brand is the original packraft brand and the company is often referred to as the inventor of commercial packrafts (NOTE: be aware of unsafe/low quality china copies) . Paul and Sky took our extra food and paddled down the Broken Skull to wait for us. See more ideas about river trip, river, pictures. Packrafting Our next phase was to paddle the rest of the Broken Skull and then the South Nahanni as far as Hell Roaring Creek. Huge collection, amazing choice, 100+ million high quality, affordable RF and RM images. Which raises the real risk of open water packrafting – the wind turning the wrong way! No matter what time of year, always pack a raincoat (see our favorites in this post), some study hiking boots, and lots of layers! In a way it was a bummer to split up for a few days but in the end it was for the best. Once we popped out we were in an amazing green valley cut with the Flood Creek canyon and several feeder canyons. The folks at American Whitewater have been kind enough to indulge me by publishing a series of articles about packrafting in their 2020 issues. Simple. The Landing Craft, by Rogue Jet Boatworks, has become an all-around favorite for sporting and utility applications throughout the Pacific Northwest. Packrafts are a boat design developed over the past 15 years for light, flexible travel through the wilderness. Lower: Riffles & decent flow from below Hwy 101 bridge to the Pacific Ocean. Alpackaraft - the original packraft brand. Thundercloud Creek was in flood. The Alpackaraft brand is the original packraft brand and the company is often referred to as the inventor of commercial packrafts (NOTE: be aware of unsafe/low quality china copies) . Designed specifically to accommodate logistics needs for sporting activities, the Landing Craft has fast become the favored choice to bring home the payload. The Pacific Northwest is a hub for some of the best kayaking and rafting in the United States. One of the few packraft trips in the Pacific Northwest with some easy to find beta online is the Queets River on the Olympic Peninsula. / November 18, 2020, Thru Hiking We did go home when we reached Tulita the next day. Dylan and I hiked up Grizzly Bear Creek and had a nice soak at the hot springs near the creek. The Little Nahanni is often done by canoeists over the course of a week or so. No need to register, buy now! We hit our pullout spot on the South Nahanni in the early afternoon and decided to start the portage. #Packrafts are gaining popularity and are perfect for the mulit outdoor sport enthusiast. It’s gone-likely shredded below in some unknown and waiting canyon. Shore… One of the few packraft trips in the Pacific Northwest with some easy to find beta online is the Queets River on the Olympic Peninsula. The creek started mellow but by late afternoon was continuous Class 3+ white water. The greatest thing about the Pacific Northwest is how much accessible adventure hides in the creases of its maps. ... kayak fishing, ski mountaineering, packrafting, and maybe mountain biking. EDDY TURNING. Happy Camp is an excellent launch point for multiday packrafting … / August 03, 2020, Packrafting Our route would have us gaining the summit ridge and following it for about a day before dropping into the valley of an unnamed river. 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