A look at the equipment list and more

Thought you might all want a quick look at the equipment list as it is evolving...with a current weight of about 47 pounds, without the kayak itself and food and water.  Minimizing weight is critical, especially during portages.  Someone asked this week how many portages there are and I count 16 in my planning spreadsheet, of which 6 are short carries around dams.  The other ten range in length from 1 to 5.3 miles, with the most difficult being the 1.8-mile Mud Pond Carry to enter the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.  On that carry, my wonderful new kayak cart will simply be another 8 pounds of weight to haul, as the trail is actually worn down to a deep, muddy slog that is definitely not wheelable.  There is also a good possibility that I will walk around the section of the Dead River from the Kennebago Road bridge to Stratton, as Sherry and Ardie did, adding perhaps 10 miles to the portage distance.

Sherry and Ardie...known as Team Black Cat...have just finished the NFCT and are now on their way back south to Georgia on the Appalachian Trail.  Their blog is great and can be found under Paddler Blogs on the NFCT website and there is also a hilarious tribute to both their canoe and their speedy journey on the Northern Door Inn's website at http://northerndoorinn.com/canoeing.html. 

Anyway, I digress from the equipment list and should return to my topic.  

• Kayak (48 lbs) - not counted in weight total in above paragraph
• Kayak seat (7 lbs)
• 2 spray skirts, kayak cart, 2 ropes, 2 tiedown straps for cart, paddle, PFD (14 lbs)
• Large backpack dry bag with tent and footprint, sleeping bag and pad, tevas, dry socks and fleece (14 lbs)
• I will be wearing or have handy: my bathing suit, shorts, t-shirt, fleece, rain jacket, river shoes, wool socks, river hat, headnet, knife, nalgene bottle of water, and a nifty combination whistle and compass with matches inside
• Small dry bag with map and trip descriptions, SPOT, GPS, camera, binoculars, TP, space blanket, first aid kit, extra glasses, tiny AAA flashlight, sunscreen, insect repellent, chapstick, inhaler, epipen (3 lbs) - this bag will also carry snacks and my jacket/fleece if it is warm and dry
• Small dry bag with cooking gear:  cookset with stove in bag, fuel can, and lighter inside; aluminum plate; mug; dish towel; zip bag with folded paper towels, foil sheets, matches, folding knife, and utensils; zip bag with camp soap and dish cloth; water filter; folding saw (4 lbs)
• Small dry bag with personal gear: pack towel; book; quart zip bag with journal, pencils, tissues, watch, flashlight, AA lithium batteries, extra memory card and camera battery, extra maps, and matches; net bag with toothbrush, toothpaste, dental floss, mirror, TP, Benadryl, vitamins, antibiotics, chapstick, bandaids, nail clippers, money (2 lbs)
• Small dry bag with clothing: underwear, wool socks, rain pants, warm hat, hiking pants, thermal tights, long sleeve top, t-shirt (3 lbs)

Added to this will be one more medium heavy duty dry bag to carry the food and an extra nalgene water bottle.  I would guess this bag might weigh 5 pounds, but that is a project for the weeks ahead.  Still unresolved or undone are the questions of whether to carry an extra paddle and what to bail with, and the addition of copies of trip descriptions and fire permit numbers.  Right now all of this is packed and will go along on tomorrow's trip, with the exception of the kayak cart, which will stay at home.  It will be educational to see how my paddling speed changes with the addition of 40 pounds of gear to the boat.  Back to the blog after Long Lake...have a great Memorial Day!