Our Gear

First and foremost, thank you to our sponsors, friends, family, and helpful folks along the way who made our trip possible! Here is a partial list of the equipment we used on the Inside Passage in 2009.

A great thank you to:

We will be paddling the Cypress and Infinity from Current Designs. These are British style kayaks: fast, extremely maneuverable, and yet large enough to carry an expedition load. The boats feature day hatches, which will keep our lunches, cameras, and maybe fishing gear handy without having to carry lap bags. Our boats also have skegs to provide a bit of extra tracking in rough conditions. Skegs offer many of the benefits of a rudder but have less windage, fewer moving parts prone to breakage, and provide the boat with cleaner lines. Click here to visit the Current Designs website.

Our kayak expedition will be wearing Kokatat outerwear including PFDs and Gore-tex drysuits.  Apryle will be wearing the Sea02 PFD, which has a partial mesh back and does not hit her in the back of the head.  Phil will be wearing the MSFit Tour PFD, which was a great fit and has plenty of room to hold electronics and safety gear.  Click here to visit the Kokatat website.

We will be paddling with Werner paddles. Apryle is particularly excited to have a small shaft, lightweight design! We are both thrilled with the craftsmanship and weight-savings with these paddles.  We will also be carrying one spare paddle each. Click here to visit the Werner website.

We will be carrying a SPOT satellite messenger to keep us found regardless of what goes wrong. This incredible little device will submit our GPS coordinates to a Google map, so you can keep track of us, and will send out a distress signal to the local authorities should we run into trouble. Click here to visit the SPOT website.

Bear Vault is contributing two BV500s. Grizzly & Black Bear approved, these vaults are light – 2lbs 9oz, with a large 7 day capacity and wide-mouth opening. We also like that they are clear and don’t require a quarter or other tool to open it. Click here to visit the Bear Vault website.

We will both need to carry a knife on our PFDs that can fill safety needs as well as stand up to every day use including everything from spreading peanut butter to cutting rope or filleting a fish. Terry Renner of TR Blades is providing the new Renner Neckolas™ knife, perfect for an extended kayak expedition. Click here to visit the TR Blades website.

We will be keeping extensive journals along our way on these waterproof pads, then transferring our best stories to our blog for you to read! Click here to visit the Rite in the Rain website.

We will use these pans for everything from pancakes to sauteed veggies to baking cinnamon rolls! Click here to visit the Frybake website.

Apryle will be sporting a pair of Chota light mukluks, perfect for warmth and protection while launching and paddling rocky coastlines. Click here to visit the Chota website.

With a little luck, we’ll be using these Waay Cool handlines to supplement our dry rations with lingcod from time to time! Click here to visit the Waay Cool website.

Powerfilm makes a very unique solar panel: flexible, waterproof, roll-able, and free of cadmium. We will use a Powerfilm panel as the workhorse for our solar charging setup.Click here to visit the Powerfilm website.

All Yours Solutions is providing website design. Click here to visit the AYS website.

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Kayaks by Current Designs:
Current Designs Infinity with expedition layup and fiberglass seams
Current Designs Cypress with expedition layup and fiberglass seams

Paddles by Werner Paddles:
Phil will be paddling the straight-shaft Kalliste in 220cm
and carrying a back-up paddle, the straight-shaft Camano in 220cm
Apryle will be paddling the straight, small diameter-shaft Athena in 220cm
and carrying the Little Dipper in small-diameter straight shaft 220cm as a backup

Kayak Accessories
Kokatat SeaO2 PFD (Apryle)
Kokatat MSFIT Tour PFD (Phil)
Seals Neoprene Spray Skirts (2)
Kayak Accessories

Paddling Clothing:
Kokatat Gore-tex Front Entry drysuit w/ relief zips and booties
Glacier Glove neoprene gloves / Kokatat Pogies
Rain/sun Hat by Kokatat
Chota Mukluks

Camping Supplies:
Tent (3-person, 4 season, free-standing)
Kelty Noah Tarp – catenary design
Bear Canisters by Bear Vault (2-4)
Water Filter
Whisperlite International Cook Stove
Cooking utensils
Long 0-Degree Synthetic sleeping bag
Short 0-Degree Synthetic sleeping bag
Knives (2)
Fishing Handline

Food / Drink:
Meals (~125 days)
Snacks (~125 days)
Tea & Mixed Drinks (~110 days)

Technology:
Uniden MHS 550 Marine VHF Radio
GPS unit
Website design

Safety:
1st Aid kit
Paddle Float
Bilge Pump

Special thanks to family and friends who have provided or will be providing various support throughout the trip.. listed in no particular order:

Matt and Emily Belfoure (food dehydrator & FoodSaver, among other things!)

Cindy Craig (Official Food Supply Director)

Phil and Dani Magistro (Temporary Mail Recipient)

Murray Hamilton (Thanks for the charts!!!)

Carolyn Newberry and Terry Bogenar (Property Managers and much more)

Nathan Welton and Alicia Allison (Fish Sitter and etc)

All those who have helped with 257 with borrowing tools, lending a hand, painting, finding us tenants!

All of those along the coast who have offered up accommodations, a home-cooked meal, and friendship!  We look forward to meeting you!