PackRafting

[medwyn]

Hey,

I just wanted to see if anyone had any experience in packrafting?

for example: http://www.alpackaraft.com/

Would love to hear people thoughts,

Cheers

[climberman]

medwyn,

yes, there are a few packraft owners here. I own one.

What are you interested in knowing ?

[medwyn]

I have always been keen on trekking in and paddling out, but didnt know a solid, light weight product existed.

Do you own an alpacka?

If so, what is the durability, comfort etc. like?

Also, where have you ventured on yours?

Cheers

[climberman]

medwyn - yep, I have an alpacka dory, the forerunner of the Fjord Explorer (awesome name).

They are amazingly durable for a ~2kg boat. They are not anything like the pool toys you may think of classing them with. Comfort - well, they are pretty minimalist, but I think you can get a good idea of what they are like from you tube etc.

SteveJ on this forum is a mate, and uses his widely in estuaries, coastal lakes, rivers etc. Craig is also a raft owner, and has a better paddling background. Check out the Aust/NZ section of the alpacka raft forums.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cEmugkBEDY shows a trip last year. Steve has afew more - check his youtube acct.

I think they are amazing.

[medwyn]

Nice video! they look so good. Did you go on the trip?

I am so tempted to take the plunge and buy the alpacka denali. I was just a bit apprehensive (uni student) as it is $1000 purchase (with paddle), so i just wanted to some real feedback/experience from an AUSSIE user.

I might give SteveJ a msg and get some advice on which one i should look at.

Thanks heaps for the quick replies!

really appreciate it

[SteveJ]

No need to PM, I am looking but not often at the mo, a bit slow onto this one .

I have recently upgraded to the newer model of the Alpacka and have gone with a decked Denali Lama for more whitewater paddling. I previously owned a Unrigged Explorer, a good general raft but prolly not the best white water option. I have done a range of mixed trips with the rafts over the last few years and they are simply an amazing little boat. As Jules suggested, jump into the Aussie section of the Packrafting forum as there is a growing group of us out there mixing it up (I am Fishdejour over there). I initially got my first Alpacka for fishing in remote walk in locations but the rafts now dominate all my adventure travel, they simply open up a whole other world of options. They are stupidly tough, very light and pack to the size of a 2 man tent, they are hard to beat. They feature in the vid section of my blog;

http://x-streamfishing.blogspot.com/p/videos.html

Happy to answer any questions you may have? or hook up so you can have a paddle of one.

BTW that is Climberman making a graceful exit and swim at the end of the Tooma video whitewater section being the camera man my swims do not feature too often....

Steve

[ninjapuppet]

Recently did the Barrington river on both an alpack packraft, then on a Mini Mystic (one of the world's best whitewater kayaks)
The mini mystic is designed to boof off 30 metre waterfalls which is above my level, but for easy grade 1-2, a packraft trumps it for all round stability. it is much more forgiving than learning in a creekboat (white water kayak), where one little mistake and you'll roll over very quickly.

Get a tipee tent and then you can also use the paddle to support the tent too

[kaite]

wow very cool now i want one of these! all my friends have kayaks but this i like! Is the Scout good? -a bit lighter and cheaper i see but i am 164cm long...so may be long enough? but not tough enough for shallowish creeks? there seam to be other brands, for instance http://flyweightdesigns.com/default.aspx lighter and cheaper, do you know about them?

[wander]

We have a pair of them. The best rip so far was about Bathurst Harbour. A bunch of pics of that trip are here https://picasaweb.google.com/105622138270107185062/2010TasMtRugby# . Great method of getting about an so much more capable than a lilo.

[frenchy_84]

There are a quite a few alpackas about lurking on this forum. I recently got myself a llama, have only been on a few rafting trips so far but they have been great fun. Unfortunately i had to send my raft pack to alpacka to get fixed. The velcro that holds the spray deck on ripped off the boat. They fixed it under warranty but it still cost me the postage to the US and the time that i was without it.I wouldnt recommend buying the alpacka packattach system, its only 15 bucks but its no good, if you want to lift the boat by your pack, just check out roman dials video on attaching the pack to the raft. Also while the spraydeck is good and i cerainly wouldnt want a boat without one, they still dont stop water getting in the boat completely so you will still get a wet *&%$#! atleast.

Also be aware that while the purchase of the raft may fit in to your budget, there is also alot of gear on top that costs dollars. Helmet, life jacket, sprayjacket etc. Im still using a wetsuit which will be no good when we have to start walking to the river and packweight becomes an issue. I highly recommend sealskinz gloves and socks.

http://www.paddletasmania.canoe.org.au/ ... Page=15629 is a great website for the river guides.

the attached image is of a recent trip down the ringarooma which was a great half day outing.

[medwyn]

Thanks for the responses! I want one even more now.

SteveJ i was also looking at the Denali Lama. looks like the best option as im 6ft1.

Did you buy your paddle through alpacka? or should i buy that somewhere else?

What PFD do you use, obviously when trekking a large item like that could be a bit annoying to fit in? Is there any suitable, packable alternative?

Also, where do you live? id love to come and see one. Im in Melbourne.

Hopefully we can all get out on one this summer!

Cheers

[medwyn]

Hey Wanda,

Just had a look through your photos, WOW!

That looks like the perfect trip to start with when i get my hands on one.

Do you have any trip notes etc. i can have a read of? if not could you give me quick break down of the trip (if you have time).

Cheers again.

[Craig D]

Hi medwyn,

I own a packraft (Yukon Yak) and am from Victoria, shoot me a PM and we can meet up sometime so you can try before you buy.

Alpacka Packrafts are expensive but the quality and durability of the product is amazing, and you'll be blown away by the weight. There are other brands out there but Alpacka have the majority of the market, for good reasons IMO.

With paddles, you've got two options: either buy a cheap 1 or 2 piece kayak paddle over here (from Rays/Anaconda etc, should get change from $100), or buy a 4 or 5 piece paddle from Alpacka directly. The other consideration is a spray deck; if you're ever considering paddling whitewater then buy one with your raft. They make a big difference.

Most of my paddling is whitewater so I use a proper PFD, it's a little bulky but you can strap it to the outside of your pack. Others have experimented with inflatable designs for increased packability; they may be appropriate in some circumstances but for the type of paddling I do it's not worth the risk.

wow very cool now i want one of these! all my friends have kayaks but this i like! Is the Scout good? -a bit lighter and cheaper i see but i am 164cm long...so may be long enough? but not tough enough for shallowish creeks?

Hi kaite, strongly suggest you buy the appropriate full-sized raft (Alpacka/Yak/Llama) rather than a Scout. That way you can paddle creeks & rivers with confidence, rather than being limited to flat water. Buying a Scout for weight saving alone isn't worth it IMO, as once you take into account all the other things you have to carry (paddle, PFD, helmet, wetsuit, paddle top etc) the weight saved is negligible.

Btw, if there are any other packrafters down here in Victoria I'd love to hear from you. Would be good to organise a group paddle.

[medwyn]

Hi Craig,

Thanks for the info.

That sounds great. Im in the Eastern suburbs, id love to come and have a look.

When i get mine id love to head out with a group.

Cheers

[wander]

I'd also suggest the Alpaca over the Scout. I looked real hard at the Scout knowing that I was buying it with trips that involved long portages. But the Alpaca is the smallest That Alpacka recommend to carry a bike as well and I figured I would have some trips where this would be useful.

And having now stooged along in 1 & 1/2 M swell (in the Bathurst Narrows) with a 7 day pack on the front and 10 litres of fresh water on the floor I can say I was glad for the boat the size it was. A smaller boat would been more and harder work. As it was the boat handled the conditions very well and I was able to go up and down wind / swell and make turns without issue.

[kaite]

thanks for very useful info Craig!

[SteveJ]

I agree with Craig, no other rafts come close to Alpackas for quality, most of the others are pool toys or too heavy.

Please note, Alpacka have not changed the dimensions of their rafts since changing to the new design. I ordered a new Denali and it was 50 mm's smaller than the max internal size stated in their specs, this made my new raft too tight for me It was a big hassle, but they are making a replacment raft for me at the moment but still have not adjusted their specs to show the new internal dimensions, makes it hard to get a well fitted raft. I hope they redo their specs charts to reflect what they actually make.

Also worth noting... Alpacka have a 10% off sale every December, with the Aussie dollar going up again it is well worth waiting for to save $$. You also get a 10% discount off any paddle in their range if you order it with your raft. I had my new paddle (Carbon shaft Splat) extended to 230cm, very good thing to do. You need a slightly longer than standard paddle IMHO.

Steve

[Craig D]

Steve, I'm impressed that they're making you a new raft. I assume you have to send the old one back? If not, then I could find a good home for it if it came up at the right price

[SteveJ]

Yer Craig I had to send my one trip 'old' one back after our trip. I could have sold it numerous times for the right price to a few skinny *&^%$#@! rafters I am looking forward to getting the correct sized raft that will accomadate me fat *&%$#! We must organise another trip soon. Mathew tells me the video is still coming.....Steve

[andrewa]

Yep, Steve, I'm looking fwd to video. Did anyone film your little slide off the road into the creek?!!

To everyone else, I've got 2 older ?llamas (the mid sized ones), and I love them. The new design with the big *&%$#! looks good, as the only time I've come out was being sucked back into holes, and backwards, they are very tippy. No probs with durability. Have rafted some very rocky NZ rivers over the last 5yrs, with no significant damage.

Bottom line is that they are great, and incredibly cheap at the moment, with the AUD$ as it is (I bought mine at about 1 AUD = 0.60USD, and still thought they were great value then).

BTW, if ?Medwyn wants to see the older style rafts, I'm in Melbourne, in Camberwell, so, send me a PM if interested, or ....just believe that they are a fantastic adjunct to a back-country trip (and extraordinarily comfy to sleep on when upside down, or even to sit on when around a camp fire)

Andrew A

[kaite]

by the way SteveJ, love your music!

[Tofu_Imprint]

One of my Canadian friends introduced me to the idea of Portaging a long time ago. At the time it sounded interesting, but perhaps more suited to Canada (Many lakes within reach of each other).
In the mean time I did some research, found many Youtube videos and the site mentioned at the top of the page. I believe this would an ideal way to see some very remote parts of Australia (with careful planning and scrutinising of maps).
I plan to buy one within the next 6 months

[SteveJ]

Thanks Kaite, so do I

[passerinum]

We've got three Denali Llamas for our family of four in Norway and absolutely love them. They change the way you look at a map and plan trips. Expensive boats, yes, but so sweet. We haven't had them out on serious white water yet, but hope to do so soon

Here's a video from a week-long packraft-trip in Gautefall, Southern Norway:

http://vimeo.com/29875331

[climberman]

Great film Mikkel ! Good find one the Jonathan Gjersten music too.

[wander]

Sweet video, and the new design for the rafts looks good.

[medwyn]

Hi EVERYONE,

I have just got back from a trekking trip through Vietnam, I was wondering if Packraft had its 10% off sale yet? If so, ill make the purchase now. Any info would be great.

Cheers

[climberman]

Hi EVERYONE,

I have just got back from a trekking trip through Vietnam, I was wondering if Packraft had its 10% off sale yet? If so, ill make the purchase now. Any info would be great.

Cheers

It's been and gone. But I reckon you could contact them directly and ask nicely if it's still on. You never know.

[Genesis]

Top of the morn,

I am thinking about getting a packraft and need to know some good destinations in TAS for beginners that could incoorperate
a walk in boat out or any other combination. I am an experienced walker and have canoed/kyacked in the past but am wanting to
get some packable rafting into the mix. What is the upstream of the franklin from Irenabys like? would this be possible to do with a packraft?

Leg #1 Lyell (Frenchmans cap track Suspension bridge) - Irenabys
Leg #2 Irenabys - Lake Tahune and summit Frnchmans.
Leg #3 Lake Tahune - Lake Vera
Leg #4 Lake Vera - Lyell

Possible or dreaming ?? Also anyone else keen on such an adventure ?

Genesis.

[wander]

Genesis, this is all one trip? There is another forum somewhere that you may get more info on the detailed questions about this or that river, try a bit of googling pack raft.

The rafts do weigh and the paddles take space. You do not want any of these outside your pack in Tas. So the more time on the water the better.

We do have a Frenchman's trip planned with 1 pack raft for a party of 4 to use making the Irenabys crossing and maybe a stop there to paddle a bit.

Found the forum I was thinking of, try asking your questions and doing a search here http://packrafting.org/forums/viewforum ... 06bb5620ad