Extremely fun, addictive hobby, I am thinking of becoming one of these degeneratesMy only pet peeve is that, how does the TPU Nylon handle fishing hooks? What are your personal experiences?
>>2834010why not just get a kayak? kayaks get blown around in the wind, I can only fucking imagine how brutal it must be to paddle one of these balloons
>>2834010I fish from my raft and I have yet to poke a hole. Doesnt mean its not possible but you should have a repair kit that can deal with any hole like that anyway. There is probably a scale of durability of different manufacturers and designs.>>2834014You cant hike a kayak up to backcountry alpine lakes
>>2834029>You cant hike a kayak up to backcountry alpine lakesNot with that attitude.
I bought a klymit packraft and took it out on the Snake River in the Tetons during high spring flows. It was stressful and not very fun, I had practically no control in the fast moving sections, paddling that thing is slow as molasses, just goes in circles. Taken it out on some alpine lakes also and it's fun I guess, still insanely slow, I should probably get into fishing to make it more worth it.I've got some rough plans to take it with me down into the Grand Canyon in October or November and paddle a few miles just to say I've rafted the Grand Canyon, if I don't die and the raft survives I'll let you guys know,
>>2834029well it's a packraft for it's packability. Like my grand canyon idea wouldn't be possible with a real kayak, not realistically anyway. Cool to be able to design some loops into the wilderness where a significant leg of the trip is on a river, and another leg is hiking or biking. It's also way more convenient on the kinds of long road trips I do not having to carry a whole ass kayak around when I might only use it once or twice a month.
>>2834042oops meant for >>2834014but this klymit is a piece of shit though, fuck it's slow. Super light so it would have its uses even when I eventually upgrade to a better packraft.
Any of you around?I am in choice battle between:https://www.erikoistukku.fi/product/8517/anfibio-delta-mx-packraft--keltainenvs https://www.vesiurheilu.fi/collections/packraft/products/packraft-trek-viininpunainen-yleismalliWhich one to get?
>>2834434Know that in either case you are getting a chinese manufactured raft that is just sold by a brand in finland or whatever silly language country you are in. If youre fine with that, the first looks like the smallest pack down of a raft ive seen. If you can actually pack it down like the photo that is
>>2834461Yeah and I know, everything is made in China. It's a nightmare world.I bought the second one, it looks good overall packraft, wider for beginners and good for windy conditions. I am slightly scared the packaging is bit too big and it's 2,9kg, too heavy since my plan is to use it with bicycling, hiking and rarely with car to spot.I'll get ultralight one next year if the Saimaa Kayak Trek feels steady.
>>2834010should i get aqua marina inflatable kayak or something from decathlon? i don't have money for a rigid kayak
>>2834010I've ordered a packraft and hope it arrives this week. I'm in Stockholm so I'll mostly use it in the nearby lakes and nearby archipelagos. I'd like to get into kayaking too.
why do people choose a packraft over a paddleboard? capacity? if you don't need the capacity, surely the paddleboard will paddle a million times better and not get fucked around by wind.
>>2834729You cant fit four paddbleboards and people in a car. You cant backpack a paddleboard into a backcountry lake or river access. You cant portage a board and gear. You cant hold a weeks worth of food and supplies on a paddleboard. You cant do serious whitewater on a paddleboard. You cant hunt and pack out on a paddleboard.
>>2834744> what is an inflatable paddleboardalso, you can't serious whitewater in a packraft either. you need a specific heavy duty whitewater raft to be safe near sharp rocks nd shit in real whitewater. also, people have portaged 60lb canoe in more remote places than any packrafter has ever gone. kek. have you ever heard of canada? the most hardcore wilderness travelers portage canoes.
>>2834747A canoe can be worth the effort of getting it into the wilderness if you have large lakes and rivers to travel on later. More so if you're two people or have a dog and plan to be out for some time.Packrafts trade some durability for portability and are great if you mix hiking and paddling. Most good rafts can handle some whitewater, if you're going in the bigger ones you should have specific safety gear anyway, and packrafts are light enough to carry past any obstacles so it's kind of an irrelevant critique.Packrafts also open up the possibility to cover otherwise inaccessible areas blocked by rivers and lakes.So with large two person rafts available today weighing 5 kilo or below, is it worth dragging a canoe into the wilderness?
>>2834747There are whitewater packrafts that can do the toughest whitewater that any whitewater kayak can. Look up alpacka raft. People are doing virgin runs on backcountry whitewater the past decade as this sport grows because they can hike rafts into places kayaks have never been able to get to.And sure you can portage a canoe across forest or tundra, but you cant portage one out of the canyon of the colorado river and across red rock desert and down canyon to the green river. You cant do class iv crambling portageing a canoe
>>2834756I won't hate on packrafts for specific use cases, but I'll warn people who are thinking of getting one just for portability sake or people who plan to just do basic openwater stuff that you can easily get a paddleboard or kayak to. on water performance will suffer greatly.>>283476199% of the population is not doing that kind of whitewater. that's not for exploration it's an extreme sport for adrenaline.
>>2834010thoughts about this one? https://support.decathlon.co.uk/inflatable-1-person-packraft-kayak-itiwit-pr500doesn't look very durable
>>2834763I was only refuting the stupid claim that you cant do real whitewater in a packraft. Because of how they are made with zipper into the inflatable part, that guy in that pic could easily have a weeks worth of gear in his boat and be on a trip larger than just that one run.For day use, sure there might be better things for flatwater, but thats not why people buy them. They buy them because its the only watercraft you can pack and hike or bike in anywhere overnight.
>>2834764Its kinda weird that it says maximum class ii when it comes with the knee straps for proper whitewater control
>>2834625I have one of these, it's ok if you carry it in a car and take the opportunity whenever it's possible/safe. Save directly for the dropstich if you don't feel ok withe seein it flexing with the first waves. I wouldn't consider hiking with it, that bag carries just the kayak, the seats, and 1-3 skegs it uses, there's no space for the paddle and the pump.
how much weight are your packrafting setups?the idea sounds cool to me but bluntly I think I'm too weak
OP Here and I wanna shame myself.... and admit that my first packrafting trip was somewhat good, fun and solid BUT I actually FELL UNDER WATER I had hard time understanding how the filling of the packraft happen but nexttime will be better.... The actual boating started okay first attempt at launch was fine, second attempt was good too, I quickly learned how to go fast and managed to 5 km/h without the fin. I also saw fine woman, 35-45, fully naked taking a naked swim... wish I had binoculars.Third time attempting to hop in the packraft on shallow water I kinda put my feet first and ended up in standing position and obviously I immediately fell. I was fully under water without realizing how it happened. I rise up, there is audience watching me, 3 people at least from approx 50 meter distance, I was then standing on the slimy lake bottom, covered in this lake debris from the lake packraft on it's stomach all the way out, I quickly take my phone out of my green hoodie and it was fully wet but still actually worked enough to allow me to power it down, weird. I take out the paddle and grab the other shoe floating near me, while other shoe is still on my foot. After that I flip the boat to correct way, then I get out of the water and pull the packraft up. I immediately take the air out, I don't pack it in neat package but rather just pack it fast and go back to my car. I am now at home, taking hot shower and cleaning the boat under shower. My entire bathroom is full of that debris from the lake. I hope my phone will survive!If I ever do that one thing (not-related to this) ever again, I will have to admit everything to my family and other people:13.08.2025 --------> (No End)
>>2834821You can find really lightweight packrafts at around a kilo, but let's say 3-4 kilo including seat and accessories .Paddle ~1 kilo, at least carbon fiber ones.Lifejacket, another kilo. There are popular inflatable ones weighing only about 350 gram.In total it shouldn't really be more than around 5-6 kilo, 11-14 lbs.
>>2834821My main raft is like 5.7 lb, my paddles 2, with inflate bag and dry bag and cordage call it 8lb total, and then my pfd is 2 but i dont bring it if im just going to a small lake. Whitewater raft is a few pounds heavier.
>>2834856Never stand or go feet first in a packraft, you are supposed to kinda roll yourself in landing on your butt, standing is how you break the bottom. Im sure theres youtube videos on how to do this stuff the best
>>2834900Yeah, I was watching videos from Youtube and tried to copy too muchhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PCDdEf1fpEThis guy seems fun!
Fishing and paddling out in the backcountry this week
So far been very fun to be packrafting, this is so much fun!I installed the seat and made the experience even perfecter
>>2834010it doesnt handle it at all and since its a single air bladder you are pretty fucked...that aside i fish from mine all the time, just keep control of your hooks, its when you catch something it start to get dangerous so either strand yourself and throw the fish on land or have a towel or something on your lap you can land the fish in.also, get one of thoose small usb charged airblowers to fill it you got no idea how quick they are.
>>2834010so how durable are these? i don't want to spend 700€ on something that will get torn in a year or two
>>2836617they are durable af and can be patched if needed. the material isnt even comparable to the toy type rafts they look like. you slide over rocks no fucks given, stumps hook into you, nothing. but be aware of fishhooks and knifes its still a thin and light fabric.
Cant you just use the fishhooks with the spring piece? Idk what you call them I used to use them on pike in weedy lakes. You know what I mean.
>>2836617Very durable for being inflatable, but still can get punctured. I wouldnt agree with the other anon about not worrying about objects, rocks and wood can def scrape and cut the sides. But small abrasions from that are easy to seal. It can also depend on the raft, the more serious whitewater are more durable.
bump
I'm convinced these are overly hyped up by marketing companies. I had one, it was great other than how big and heavy everything was (alpacka gnarwhal)
>>2840414There are some awesome remote lakes in the adirondacks that you would have a nightmare of a time trying to hump a real boat to.I'm going to upgrade from my current setup for next season and grab a small kayak anchor to bring along for fishing. Casting from and paddling this thing was pretty shitty. Hopefully the packraft thing is an upgrade
>>2840414You got a whitewater boat, of course its gonna weigh more. You could get an alpacka scout that weighs less than half that
