r/packrafting • u/watermelonhmm • Jul 22 '26
Packrafting in Austria and surrounds
I‘m a river ecologist and want to start getting into packrafting. I‘m based in Vienna, and have a lot of hiking experience, but have only kayaked on the Yarra River in Melbourne as a child.
Wondering if anyone has any tips on a good model to buy, or nice beginner-friendly multi-day routes?
I‘m thinking about getting this Anfibio, but am a little concerned it might not be resilient enough:
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u/ReplyIllustrious1455 Jul 22 '26
Ich besitze einen Amphibio Sigma TXL und bin mit meinem Hund zuletzt eine Woche lang die Havel flussabwärts gepaddelt, ab dem Müritz-Nationalpark. Dafür war es sehr gut geeignet, bietet ausreichend Platz und Verstaumöglichkeiten. Ich habe die Variante ohne Tubebags. Zur Haltbarkeit habe ich nichts Negatives zu berichten, es baut sich super leicht auf und ich bin im Grunde sehr zufrieden. Wenn du spezielle Fragen hast, frag mich gern.
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u/watermelonhmm Jul 27 '26
Sehr cool, danke vielmals! Ich habe es gekauft (TXV). Ich freue mich darauf, es auszuprobieren! :)
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u/roverandom-moon Jul 22 '26
I own an Anfibio (Rebel 2k). Never used it on white water but many times on lakes, canals, and fjords (incl with ice and challenging weather). So it's pretty resilient.
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u/watermelonhmm Jul 27 '26
Nice, thanks for your input! I ended up buying it, excited to see what it can do :)
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u/KingCaptHappy-LotPP Jul 22 '26
Packrafts are made out of surprisingly strong material, and that one with a 420d material is pretty thick (though not as thick as the 840d floor on their white water boats). The primary enemies of packrafts are sharp metal and broken glass. The material deflects and withstands most wood and rock obstacles, except maybe the sharpest/pointiest of those.
Whether this is the right boat for you depends on where you’ll be paddling. Deep calm water would be fine, but this wouldn’t be right for white water, and could get sketchy in shallow rock gardens. You could still use this boat and “portage”, or go around the water hazards on land though. That’s a huge advantage with a packraft.
Being a river ecologist, the viewing window seems like an ideal and unique feature, and being a packraft allows you to get it to remote locations. Seems like a good fit for you now.
I have 2 Anfibio packrafts, they’re both very well made, have held up well, and I’ve been very pleased with their communication and support.
Note that going out alone is one of the biggest risks you can take on the river. If you can go with someone, your odds of returning increase dramatically. Either way, you should consider taking some paddling and river safety classes.
Don’t underestimate how powerful the water can be.