Packrafting sub forum

[Lizzy]

Hi all,
I recently suggested to Matt that a packrafting sub forum may work well as it is becoming increasingly popular for trips by themselves or combined with a bushwalk. I realise we can easily post trip reports under individual states or international - and have done so, but thought it may be better to have them all together. It would help so you don't miss any reports and provide an area to discuss equipment etc. I realise there is a packraft forum but I like it over here at bushwalk.com with all the rest of my bushwalking/ gear information. Also good to get a more Aussie perspective. Any ideas? What do you think?
Cheer
lizzy

[sim1oz]

Yes please!!! Once we've recovered from our snow gear purchases, the next item on our list is packrafts. I'm very interested in an Aussie perspective... Where to go, what to watch out for, etc.

[Wollemi]

I am not dismissing the ideation of a pack-rafting sub-forum, but as so much of my overnight canyoning gear is bushwalking gear, why can we not have one of those, too? Tim/Nudey Guy has already tried that to little avail, though.

Can we also have an off-shore yachting and rock-climbing sub-forum? I wear Merino products then, and carry a Macpac backpack. A hand-compass and Nalgene bottle is within, as is the topo. As is when sea-kayaking and mountaineering and rogaining and XC ski-touring.

[icefest]

My 2c:

Personally I can't see where a packrafting subforum would fit in. Not equipment, as it's more of a technique?
I also think the packraft-specific gear questions might be better solved in the proposed gear-advice subforum, where one can also debate the merits of certain PFDs, canyoning harnesses, sea kayaks or mountaineering ice-axes.
Trip reports for packrafting would fit best in the trip reports subsection (as should canyoning, sea-kayaking and other trip reports)

I am not dismissing the ideation of a pack-rafting sub-forum, but as so much of my overnight canyoning gear is bushwalking gear, why can we not have one of those, too? Tim/Nudey Guy has already tried that to little avail, though.

Can we also have an off-shore yachting and rock-climbing sub-forum? I wear Merino products then, and carry a Macpac backpack. A hand-compass and Nalgene bottle is within, as is the topo. As is when sea-kayaking and mountaineering and rogaining and XC ski-touring.

It might just be me, but that sounds pretty passive-aggressive.
Can't you just say you don't like it because you think the gear does not differ that much from other bushwalking gear. Or that that's what the decision was regarding a canyoning subforum?

[Wollemi]

The response is passive-aggressive as much as the original request is selfish - which I doubt the OP thought in terms of, understandably. Just yearning for everything about their passions, as we all do.

[Lizzy]

Relax- just an idea! Maybe rather than a forum people would consider posting packraft or PR in their title so readers don't miss a trip report. I realised that on my recent trip in the NT I didn't specify this in the title that I was using a packraft while paddling at Nitmiluk Gorge so it would be easy to miss. I am just looking for new ideas for trips and reading about others is one of the best ways

By the way I am not opposed to areas for things like canyoning etc- makes it easy to find & hey you don't have to read it if you are not interested! Obviously there is a limit (I imagine) to what can be added, what proves popular. My question was to gauge if there is any interest & then it is up to Matt who runs the forum.

I also figured that if the six foot track could get its own section which baffled me a bit- why not?

[Lizzy]

Just read Fatcanyoners proposal- perhaps as some suggested in that discussion a "other adventure sports" area could be useful- attract a bit of discussion about fun stuff like canyons, caves & rivers???

[ErichFromm]

Since getting a wbbb I've been tempted to suggest a hammock sub forum. Perhaps an "other" section like you suggest would be a good idea...

[awildland]

you could just stalk this one…..

http://packrafting.org/forums/viewforum.php?f=13 - which is the American Packrafting Association forum but has a full Aus/NZ section

[Lizzy]

I do look on that forum awildland but I think quite a few people over 'here' are doing trips/ interested in doing trips so thought this site may be more popular for Aussie/NZ info.... But if people are not interested that is fine- I will paddle/walk on

[johnw]

Just read Fatcanyoners proposal- perhaps as some suggested in that discussion a "other adventure sports" area could be useful- attract a bit of discussion about fun stuff like canyons, caves & rivers???

Yes I think quite a few bushwalkers have multiple interests, including me. I think having either a sub forum for packrafting or including an "other adventure sports" category would be fine Lizzy. I bought a packraft myself, albeit not a "proper" one like an Alpacka. Only done a bit of mucking about with it but good fun. A number of these activities are either ancillary to or facilitate bushwalking anyway. Canyoning is often seen as another form of it, you can use a packraft as a method of transport to access a remote walk, similarly in some places using an MTB on a fire trail can enable access to more remote walking spots. I don't think these things necessarily have to exist in isolation from each other, well that's my opinion anyway. At the end of the day Matt would need to maintain it so gets the final word .

[whitefang]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't an other section be included under the Between Bushwalks sub-forum? I have no problems with there being a new sub-forum if Matt decides make one, but just think that both of these could cover the same things.

[sim1oz]

Personally, I think a separate sub-forum for Packrafting would be very helpful for me and perhaps others. It could logically sit under Bushwalking Discussion (my preference) or Equipment. For me, packrafting (or other adventure sports such as canyoning or snow trips) require a modification of equipment and technique and I value learning from the experience of others. People could share what gear they have used, why they chose it, and where they got it from. Just as importantly, people could share how they packraft - special focus trips or as an integral part of a longer bushwalk - where they go to packraft, and what times of year. So yes, such a sub-forum might cross-over bushwalking discussion, equipment and trip reports. So....?

Having a separate sub-forum would make it easier to focus on an ongoing series of related threads rather than having to use the search function or missing relevant threads because the author didn't put 'packraft' or PR in the thread title. I'm not sure that I understand why some people are so against it? There are certain sub-forums I read on a regular basis (eg. my state) and others on an as-needs basis only (eg. techno-babble). What's wrong with making it easier for people to connect with others who have a particular slant to their bushwalking? (I'm not against a canyoning sub-forum either...) Why not start the sub-forum and if no-one uses it then shut it down. I think it was the movie Field of Dreams that said: Build it and they will come.

When I first read about packrafting I looked at the the packrafting.org forum but it just doesn't have the broad range of people posting who know Australia. Also, I see packrafting (when we have the equipment one day) as complementing and extending my bushwalking experience. Ever walked somewhere and looked up and thought "I'd like to climb that!" or at a river and thought "I'd like to paddle that"? These are what I want to hear about. Getting ideas from other people (and sharing my own thoughts and experiences) is a huge reason I come to bushwalk.com. We've had some great trips thanks to people who post here.

[SteveJ]

Sorry about being a bit late onto this thread, I throw a vote in favour of Lizzys suggestion of a packrafting sub forum, it is a very fast growing sector of adventure travel offering a vast array of new routes never before possible. The packrafting forum tends to lean heavily towards the rafting component of the sport, lots of white water and not so much the combination of walking and paddling (true packrafting). I, like most of the bushwalkers I know, seldom do a trip without my packraft in my backpack nowdays. As skills develop, routes become establised more and more bushwalkers will get into packrafts to expand their sport, it is at the frontier of bushwalking. What is the harm in opening a sub forum? if it does not get used then get rid of it?

Steve (aka Fishdejour on the packraft forum)

[jmac]

Packrafting is inseparable from bushwalking in my opinion. Adventurers have been doing it for decades before the term was even coined, and it's only going to increase in popularity with the revolutionary new gear on the market, and the growing understanding of the way it opens up both land and water for combined adventures. I occasionally use the Australia/New Zealand sub-forum of the APA forums, but I'd also welcome a packrafting forum here. It's a great idea because it's such a great synergistic fit with bushwalking.

[andrewa]

I'm all for a packrafting sub forum, Lizzie. Not sure how to fit it in, but the pursuit certainly adds to some bushwalking trips, and, in my case, the trips are often designed around rafting

I have no interest in the American one anymore...they got too serious, and litigation phobic.

A

[simonm]

I think there is merit in a separate sub forum. I am still keen on pack rafting even though I haven't made the purchase yet.