Or is that like asking about rollerblading in a skate forum?
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Or is that like asking about rollerblading in a skate forum?
Yes
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What kind of boat are you using?
Will be my first boat - Trying to decide if I should go cheap and get and NRS and customize it, or throw down for an Alpacka...Wish there were more "used" options out there to bring the price down.
Actually I was answering yes to the rollerblade in a skate forum but here goes.
Several years ago I looked into getting one, my home work at the time(5 years ago) pointed me to the Alpacaraft as the best.
You really need to be honest(with yourself) about how you will be using it. For me it was going to be a craft to cross water on back country bike trips. They do fine for bays, lakes/ponds and mild rivers, some folks even run them down some whitewater. They will carry a small load along with yourself and are light enough to be lugged along.
If you just want to float on the water then a ducky or IK would do better but of course would be heavier and more durable.
NRS makes a quality product for general river running. Packaraft has been there longer so they have an advantage of experience in the genre.
http://www.alpackaraft.com/
http://www.nrs.com/category/3207/rafting/pack-rafts
If it were me I would pony up and get the Alpaca or the Denali which ever fits your size.
ah. Rollerblading. Way more lame than packrafting I'd say.
I want one for a few reasons. Mainly using for backpacking trips to float class I-II water. Ideally connect to make some longer trips. Also would use just to get out on the water/fishing on the local rivers.
That NRS doesn't have the best reviews, and it would seem that to make it reasonable on whitewater you would need to fashion a sprayskirt.
Alpacka are definitely the way to go, just hard to justify the price-tag just getting into the sport....
Yep, totally understand. Reminds me of when I got back into mtn biking and the sticker shock but thats what it costs now. I think its pretty good bang for the buck.
I ended up with a boat called the Thrillseeker. Its an inflatable kayak and fits my uses better. I got mine used from a buddy, they are a step up in price and performance from a packaraft. You could easily fish from one and it would be much more stable/controllable in rapids. Check it out.
http://www.tseeker.com/
From the vids I have seen it looks like these are SO short that unless the raft design has a tail the raft will be more likely to bury the tail & flip over backwards in ww drops
Ya definitely. I think there are very few people running class 4 water. However if you check out the new Alpacka rafts they definitely have a more kayak-like tail that probably fixes that problem a bit...
In the vids I seen the drops they were looping in were 3 or 3+ but definitely not grade 4
As a long time hardboater I can see a good app for the packraft but I can't see running WW in a packraft for the sake of running WW cuz there are better ways to do it
I have an Alpacka Yak. Their materials and craftsmanship are on point. Feathercraft makes good boats too, but I havent paddled one.
Dont know about the boats NRS is selling now, but they were terrible. Search around on packrafting.org and you'll find horror stories. Whatever they were/are making them out of, they were about as durable as a WalMart pool toy.
IMO, packrafts arent for roadside boating, though more people are buying them because of storage space issues and using them that way. If packrafts are analogous to Dynafit bindings, then hard boats are DIN-18 alpine bindings. Sure you can ski your backcountry tech binding setup at the resort or dawn patrol in trekkers and race bindings, but that's not what either one is best at.
Packraft are rad when some part of the trip involves a long hike or pedal. The first packrafting trip I did was: Put in on the Main Salmon, ID. Paddle ~60 miles to the South Fork. Hike 10 miles up the South Fork, paddle back down to the Main. Hike 35 miles up and over to Big Creek, paddle 25 miles down Big Creek to the Middle Fork. Paddle 20 miles down the Middle Fork and end at the car. +115 miles of paddling lots of II-III with a couple IV moves made for an awesome week-long loop.
Here's some pics from that River of Return trip.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-00rEIUDYQY...Return+Map.jpg
Z- There's a little packraft festival happening in MT next month. Sounds like there'll be lots of boats to demo and stuff. Think I'm going to go. http://www.packraft.org/American_Pac...t_Roundup.html
That's a sweet trip! Unfortunately I won't be around for the round-up otherwise I'd be there for sure.
I threw down for an Alpacka! Really doesn't seem like there is anything comparable out there yet. Kokopelli rafts look cool, but they won't be shipping until end of August. Have some trips planned in the Bob Marshall and Glacier NP. If you find yourself up this way give a shout?
I am pretty psyched on this whole thing. Have so many ideas it pains me that I actually need to work and can't go on 10 day trips all summer. South Fork of the flathead seems like a must do. Tons of variations on it. Have you seen this - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...7F0vUcRsc/edit Good stuff for this area...
Congrats, post up sum TR pics when you can.
I like the viddy above but had to mute that noise.
Nice! You make the right call getting an Alpacka boat. Though the Kokopelli rafts look like they have potential.
Yeah, packrafts open up a lot of potential for creative routes. They make you look at maps in a new light, seeing lines where there was no obvious one before.
Dave's guide to Glacier NP looks useful. I've been on a handful of trips in the Bob, but only spent a couple days dayhiking in Glacier.
Also, you dudes should join the American Packrafting Association. The APA's free and was formed to give land managers something tangible to see before banning the boats. The guys running the org have spent a lot of time and energy working to get packrafts allowed in places like the Grand Canyon and Dinosaur NM. Now they're going to bat for the rights to paddle within Yellowstone and Teton NP's
Best money I ever spent. I love the fact that you can hike in, inflate, float, and hike out. I have an Alpacka Denali. Super stable. The innovations they are coming up with are really slick ie stowing gear, better skirts.. There are even a few folks I know can Eskimo roll in them. Join the APA and if there's a place to demo one give it a shot. Here's some stoke:
http://vimeo.com/28578059
http://vimeo.com/25943565
Gnarwhale: Did you go on the Veracruz trip? Somewhere there's a vid of Todd's drop over the falls.
Solid choice, congrats. Packrafting is the beesknees...Quote:
Originally Posted by Z
Attachment 156446
actually it's not. the flatwater that packrafters covet is always full of bugs and you get ticks galore while hiking all the time. when you finally reach any real water, you have the performance of a beach ball. too much gear is involved, because your focus isn't about running quality features it's about slogging in the heat with rotting feet and trying to fish when your not patching your pool toy. every pack rafter I've seen in the woods has been preoccupied with some god-damned gps device, trying to plot out where his next death march starts. and beware those boats will fold on you quicker than Kenny Rogers, especially in the pinny, low water mank that pack-rafters call rapids.Quote:
Originally Posted by bigAK
bottom line here is that wilderness rivers are best enjoyed by going rafting during spring run-off, with lots of coolers, chacos and t-shirts. When the water drops, SUPing in whitewater parks is where it's at.
Reminds me of all the nay-sayers to Dynafit clamps 10 years ago. "There's no way those can hold me in. Alpine Trekkers and DIN 18 bindings are the way to go." But yeah, packrafting trips are pretty miserable. Better to stick to rubber houseboats or roadside runs.
http://i1.wp.com/www.perpetualweeken...242.jpg?w=1120
http://i0.wp.com/www.perpetualweeken...451.jpg?w=1120
PedPro - Thanks for letting us know that SUPing is "where it's at." Not sure where we would be without you.
A few recent trips - gotta figure out my waterproof scene for some action shots. These things are incredibly stable. Really fun for class III-IV.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Z...5-no/Table.jpg
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-c...o/SheepMtn.jpg
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-M.../SheepMtn2.jpg
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-S..._45_07_Pro.jpg
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--...5-no/nFork.jpg
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-f...5-no/Sfork.jpg
North Fork of Montana Creek. Try it some time. Ship Creek is quite spicy.
For packrafting with SLRs, here's the combos I've tried:
Seat moved forward & closed cell foam kayak back band to make room for drybag with SLR inside. Advantages: camera is relatively safe, even if I swim. Disadvantage: Hard to access
Alpacka bow bag with SLR case inside. Advantages: Easy to access, even from in the boat. Disadvantages: Easy to think it's fully zipped when in fact there's that last 1/4" that will leak. If the boat flips, then the camera could bonk rocks
Ortlieb waterproof SLR case inside bow bag. Advantages: I can hop around on wet rocks out of my boat and even if I take a spill, my camera might make it. Disadvantages: $pendy for a camera case.
Used to do it in Walmart boats back in the day. We called it "micro-rafting". Lot's of carnage. We carried vinyl waterbed repair kits.
Got an Alpacka this summer. What a cool little boat! Have floated in some weird places already. Looking forward to more. Due to it's packability, it's not in my way when I'm not using it, so it's in the "road kit" for sure. As a bonus, I don't have to stop for the goddamned snail inspector.
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haven't seen any true class IV boated in these and have seen all the low volume waterfalls, pinny-steep mank and huge III- wave trains posted around. your III-IV is only III, just admit that already before you get into trouble.
I'm all about people enjoying rivers, mainly just busting the balls of this thread because if y'all don't shut up about this you're going to have rangers checking your poop at the takeouts. If you don't know what that means: it means you should do some research on the history of hike-in ww runs in wilderness areas. this user category has been unjustly regulated and managed relative to the number of participants, which has been extremely tiny--that is until the advent of packable pool toys. to quote a guru: a wise man once said nothing...
it's all good till ya hear the banjo and realize the rubber duckies are for bathtubs;)
18 din? try bombproof race stock 30
somethin to say about the ability to fill your boat w/ salmon leavin it in bear country for a week and comin back knowing you'll row out
As far as fishing kinda like men peeing sure you can do it sitting down but why?
s up and fish:tongue:
I have done multiple alpaca trips in the grand canyon. and though I am a whiterwater kayaker at heart, you can design some really cool trips with pack rafts.
She's made of wood.