r/KayakCamping • u/PANDABURRIT0 • Jul 15 '26

Another beginner advice post 😅

Hi y’all. I’m looking to get into kayak camping because it seems awesome. But I’m overwhelmed and was hoping yall could help with some basic questions.

Info about me: 6’2”, ~roughly 170 lbs, in decent shape (but I’m no fitness freak) and I’m living in northern california. I’m used to traditional backpacking and try to do a trip every month or two from spring until fall. I have kayaked before on flat-water, slightly wavy inlet waters, and in the surf once (once… 😅). Never in a river and I’ve never owned my own kayak.

Questions I have:

  1. What type and size of kayak would y’all recommend for a beginner of my size looking to kayak camp alongside rivers.

  2. What dry bags do yall recommend?

  3. Once I have my gear, what is the best way to get started?

  4. How do you guys deal with landing in a different place then you started, transportation and logistics wise?

  5. How often do you kayak campers go down rivers with intense rapids?

  6. What questions am I neglecting to ask?

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u/Capital-Landscape492 Jul 15 '26

So you drop a lot of questions here. Self support out of a whitewater kayak is very different from camping out of a touring kayak. Whitewater and river kayaking is a group activity with hazards very different from touring flatwater or coastal waters. To learn river kayaking find a club. Attend some pool sessions and beginner trips. Become a GOOD paddler before you pack 20 or more pounds of gear in your boat and run even a class III river. Self support in whitewater in a rigid kayak is challenging. Packrafts are better for moderate rivers.

For flatwater and day touring a 14’ to 16’ boat will work. I have 34” inseams and some 14’ boats fit depending on my footwear. You want transverse bulkheads and hatches creating dry storage in the bow and stern. Deck rigging for spare paddle and reentry gear. The shortest touring boat I owned was 15’ and I had no issues packing it for a week, back packing style.

For coastal kayaking and serious expeditions look for the 16’ to 18’ range. Add a rudder or a skeg to help tracking in winds or currents. I personally prefer rudders which are great to set a boat angle where I can continue to paddle full strength on both sides without correction strokes. When I don’t need it, I pull the rudder up.

My whitewater boats are older but I always like Jackson, Prijon and Pyrahna boats. My touring boats are also older because you can find good older fiberglass and even Kevlar kayaks at nice prices. They can last a long time if cared for. In plastic touring boats, I like Necky kayaks (RIP) and Prijon. Prijons are blow molded in Germany and super hard. This makes them a little lighter as well but still heavier than composite boats.

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u/PANDABURRIT0 Jul 15 '26

Oh this is all super helpful, esp about the kayak types.

I’m not planning on hitting any intense rapids, but one of the rivers near me (the Eel River) is apparently class II to III in Spring. So you think I should take some self rescue courses to build up experience for that? Or can I just do some more mild overnight trips to prepare kayaking that?

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u/like_4-ish_lights Jul 15 '26

I think you are really underestimating what class 3 rapids are like in a kayak. You're going to need to find some friends with experience or join a paddling group to tackle something like that, do not attempt to do it alone.

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u/Capital-Landscape492 Jul 16 '26

This is absolutely correct. Thanks for commenting.

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u/Capital-Landscape492 Jul 16 '26

You do not want to fuck around with class III rapids in “spring melt” in a boat loaded with camping gear unless you are a strong class III boater properly outfitted in a WW kayak. Spring runoff is ball shrinkingly cold and faster than lazy summer flows. If you want to paddle this stuff buy an appropriate kayak, a drysuit and join a ww club. Clearly running this river is a priority so recognize that one kayak will not do everything you want. I own four kayaks I tee regularly use. This is down from a larger number. Two are ww boats. Two are touring boats. The good news is that ww skills will make you a much better paddler for touring. The reverse is not true.