Sometimes a big mass of land gets in the way of a good time. Other times the same mass of land can be the source of a good time. Perspective is everything.
In the case of portaging with a kayak, perspective is particularly important. Why? Because walking around with a kayak on your head is really hard.
To portage with a kayak, one must: 1. Prepare spiritually for the task, 2. Bring the lightest kayak that fits the gear, 3. Strategically pack (and unpack) the right boat, 3. Plan and scout the portage route, 4. Use a yoke that has been tested for comfort and performance, 5. Execute an organized portage.
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How to spiritually prepare for portaging with a kayak
Canoes are the go-to mode of transport for adventurers that like to paddle and walk around, all on the same trip.
Canoes take less time to pack and unpack. They fit on your shoulders better if you’re carrying a backpack. Heck, it’s even easier to share the load of a canoe because you can fit two people under one boat. This is why outdoor-types portage with canoes.
So, ask yourself this question: Why do you want to portage with a kayak?
The answer is likely this: It is more fun to paddle a kayak than it is to paddle a canoe.
Hard-core canoeists might disagree. But nobody else will.
If you are paddling your kayak alongside friends that are in a canoe, you won’t be beside them for long when out on the open water. Embrace your relative speed on the water, because you’ll give it all back on land.
Going into your adventure, understand that the pace and freedom you enjoy on the water will be lost at the beach and on the trails.
If you can come to terms with this fact, then you just might be able to spiritually make it through a portage trip with a kayak.
Bring the lightest kayak that fits your gear
Kayaks are heavy. Light ones weigh around 50lbs. Heavy fishing boats come in over 100lbs.
The word ‘portage’ is inexactly defined (by me) as the process of walking around the forest with camping crap on your back and a boat on your head.
While you want to bring as much gear as necessary to make your trip safe and enjoyable, you’ll also want to select a sufficiently light kayak that equally makes your trip safe and enjoyable.
Inflatable kayaks are lighter than hardshell ones. I wrote all about this weight differential here. Consider this when selecting a kayak for your portaging adventure.
If given the choice, aim for a kayak that weighs less than 50lbs. If yours weighs more than 70lbs, seriously consider switching over to a canoe for your trip. <GASP>
While shorter inflatable kayaks do not track as well in the water, they are easier to carry than their longer, hardshell counterparts (unless you are faced with a stiff breeze, in which case the calculus changes).
Also of importance: short, light, inflatable kayaks hold less camping gear than long, heavy ones. What works for a three-day trip will leave you with too little food and equipment for a 10-day adventure.
Plan accordingly and bring the lightest kayak that fits the necessary gear.
How to strategically pack (and unpack) your kayak
One of my very first PaddleGeek articles was about packing your kayak for an expedition (here).
Kayak real estate is at a premium when trying to jam all your food and dry sacks into those tiny bulkhead compartments. This is particularly true when you’re trying to pack a boat that is sufficiently light, yet ever-so-slightly too small for your gear.
All of this to say that it takes a lot of time to pack and unpack and then re-pack a kayak.
This is why there is wisdom in beating your canoeing compatriots to the beach. To portage with a kayak is to devote more time to packing and unpacking your boat than those portaging in a canoe.
Consider the following tips to help you pack and stow gear in your kayak:
Stow your sleeping gear at the bow and stern of your kayak. This gear is lighter and will not negatively impact your stability. Furthermore, it doesn’t need to be quickly accessible. Do not pack sleeping gear on the outside of your boat. Wet sleeping gear equals miserable adventure.
Food should be stored closer to the cockpit. Food is heavier than sleeping gear. To maintain the stability of your kayak, position it closer to the middle of your boat.
Be conscious of both the front-to-back balance as well as the side-to-side balance of your kayak. A well-packed kayak with good balance can actually feel more stable than an empty one.
Consider stowing perishable food below the waterline and closer to the hull. Cooler temperatures can be found below the waterline and close to the hull. Fruits, vegetables and meats benefit from these lower temperatures.
The tradeoff is that your precious pears might sustain some bruising.
Pack dry food in a dry sack. If you want your dry food to remain dry, that is.
Pack sufficient water. Bring a couple of bottles of purified water to start each day.
If you like your water cooler than lukewarm, tie a chord to your kayak and attach a bottle of water to its end. Let the bottle of water float around in lake/river/ocean. Voila. Cool water.
Be thoughtful about how you stow larger amounts of water. It is best located near the middle of the kayak because of its weight. Anywhere else messes up the balance of your kayak.
Bring a large empty duffle for the portage. This is a serious pro-tip. The empty duffle can be rapidly filled with smaller dry sacks and food to carry to your next put-in location.
Store larger bags behind footrests. If your kayak capsizes and you are required to make a wet exit, you don’t want to be encumbered by a large, unwieldy sack.
Keep your deck clear of heavy gear. Keep a bilge pump up top – perhaps in the bungees. Anything else you might need, of significant size or weight, can be stowed in the day hatch.
Practice. Practice. Practice. Ok, this isn’t totally practical, but hear me out. The better you are at packing and unpacking your kayak, the less of a burden you will be to your fellow voyagers when it comes time to portage.
Spend some time planning the strategies you will employ, the moves you will make and the order in which you will make them, in order to gather and carry your gear from one beach to the next.
Don’t stop at planning. Practice the moves. Why not become so proficient that the kayak portager winds up waiting on the canoeists to get organized? How about that for a turn of events?
How to plan for and scout the portage route
I like to plan a portage (or series of portgages) on a paper map. To me, plans on a computer screen are simply ideas. Plans on a paper map are real life.
In real life, I like to know where I’m going before I get there. This is true of most things, including portages.
I use a highlighter or yellow grease pen to mark a trip route on a map. At the end of the trip, I never throw the maps out. I either store them as mementos, or re-use them for another adventure.
Similarly, when it comes time to take my kayak out of the water, I like to know where I’m going to carry it next.
I like to scope out the route I plan to carry my gear and boat. This means walking the full length of the route, looking for obstacles, uneven terrain and anything else that might prove problematic. When you get back to the rest of your party, you can provide them with a reconnaissance report, which they`ll appreciate.
Use a yoke to carry your kayak
Anyone that has ever portaged with a kayak agrees that a yoke is an absolute necessity to get the job done without completely breaking your spirit (and back).
A yoke is a tool that helps you carry a boat on your shoulders. In its simplest form, it looks like a strip of wood that sits across the back of your shoulders. It has a notch cut out of the middle to allow room for your neck.
With a yoke attached to the cockpit of a kayak or canoe, the boat can be hoisted onto your shoulders and carried comfortably along a portage trail.
However, if you paddle a kayak, then there is a wrinkle when it comes to yokes. You see, most portage trips happen in canoes. Yokes are principally manufactured to balance a canoe on your shoulders.
When you attach your kayak to a run-of-the-mill yoke, after putting it on your shoulders you`ll quickly notice that your face is deep inside the cockpit of your boat. (This assumes you’re paddling a sit-in kayak.) So you end up wearing your kayak like some kind of awkward StormTrooper mask.
Yokes require modifications to work with kayaks. You can either ‘use the force’ to craft a custom mod, or you can purchase one that has already been customized.
If you choose to modify your own yoke, two changes must be made.
First, raise the kayak so your face isn`t planted in the cockpit. Do this by adding foam pads (blocks) under the yoke that lifts the yoke off your shoulders. This will serve to increase comfort, though perhaps slightly decrease stability.
The main purpose though, is to allow the kayak to fit less like a mask and more like a hat. Still awkward, but an improvement, nonetheless. Furthermore, you can ‘tilt the brim’ to allow for even better visibility.
Second, secure the yoke to the cockpit. This is easier said than done, but will keep your boat from sliding back and forth on the yoke. You can find DIY rigs all over the internet, including right here.
If you prefer your yoke to be crafted to fit a kayak right out of the box, then consider the clamp-on KaYoke yoke here.
Hoisting your kayak onto your shoulders takes a little practice. Here are the steps to doing it.
Step 1. Remove everything from your kayak, including draining water that might be sloshing around.
Step 2. Confirm that the yoke is firmly attached to the cockpit. (Through trial and error, you’ll learn where exactly to position the yoke so that it is centered between the bow and stern.)
Step 3. Stand on the left-hand side of the cockpit of the kayak (at least for this explanation) with the bow facing in the direction you want to go.
Step 4. Bend your knees and squat down.
Step 5. Take hold of the near side of the cockpit and pull the bottom of the kayak onto your thigh.
Step 6. Grab a side of the cockpit with each hand.
Step 7. Rest the bow of the boat on the ground.
Step 8. While keeping the bow on the ground, lift the rest of the kayak over your head.
Step 9. Position the yoke on your shoulders.
Step 10. Lift the bow of the kayak and be on your way.
Watch a YouTube video about lifting your DIY yoke and kayak here.
As an alternative to carrying your kayak around on your shoulders, you might be able to use a kayak cart instead. A kayak cart is simply a set of wheels attached to the stern of your kayak. These wheels allow you to pull, instead of carry, your boat
To use a kayak cart, you require smooth, even terrain. You also need to make sure that carts are not against the rules of the park you are visiting.
Personally, I’ve never used a kayak cart and will do everything in my power to avoid it. Until I die.
How to actually do the portage with a kayak
Who will carry what? If you are travelling with other paddlers, have a plan regarding who will carry which gear. This goes for inside the boats as well as on top of land.
As I noted earlier, walking around with a boat on your head does not allow for great visibility. Remember to scout your portage route before you start carrying heavy items.
On short trips, carry heavy items first. If your portage route is short, carry the heavy items such as boats, food barrels and heavier equipment on the first trip across land. Then drag your fatigued muscles back to the beach for the remaining, lighter items.
On longer portages, use a buddy system. Couple one person carrying a heavy item, such as a boat or food barrel, with a buddy that is carrying a lighter load, like a pack. If the person carrying the heavy load gets tired, they can switch loads with their buddy.
Use a scout at the front of the train. Trails can be confusing. I like to put a person at the front of the portage line to keep everyone with boats on their heads and barrels on their backs going in the right direction.
For portages that are longer than one mile, have the front person set a timer for around 30 minutes. When the timer goes off, the person at the front of the line stops walking until everyone carrying gear has caught up. While this might seem slow, it is less slow than having to drop everything to look for a member of your party that is lost.
To wear a lifejacket while carrying heavy things, or not. When I’m carrying a kayak or canoe on my shoulders, I don’t like to wear a lifejacket. I find that when I do, the yoke slips and stability is crummy.
Similarly, when carrying food barrels or equipment packs, neither seem to fit quite right if I’m wearing a lifejacket.
Some like the extra cushion that a life jacket provides. I don’t. You get to decide for yourself.
Carry an empty duffel bag in your kayak. I mentioned this earlier, but it bears repeating. Bring a large, empty duffel bag with you. When it comes time to empty your kayak, place the many smaller items that you pull out of your kayak into the duffel bag.
When you get to the other side of the portage, re-pack your kayak with the items you carried in the large duffel.
Other portage advice includes: take breaks, drink water, eat snacks, protect against bugs and don’t leave your paddles to the end.
How to portage with a kayak – Parting thoughts
If a portage is really what you want to do and a kayak is what you want to use to do it, then I hope this article helps.
Remember to select a lightweight kayak and pack it properly. Familiarize yourself with the route and use a yoke that you know is effective and comfortable. Be organized on land and, above all else, don’t drop your boat!