"Packrafting" a pontoon boat

[cvandervort]

First off....not sure where this thread should go....so I default to "Backpacks"


I am planning a trip through a 40 mile "wilderness" section of a river (shouldn't get bigger than class II+)
I am interested in taking a 9 ft. pontoon boat, in lieu of a raft: cheaper, easily ported, etc.

I have a couple of questions for those that have done this, or decided not to do this:
-Why?
-considerations on weight of gear?
-handling in rapids?
-any other considerations?

Thanks!

 

[larryschwartz]

I have not done it, but I do have a concern with a pontoon boat, and that is...I would think that putting your center of gravity a foot or more above the water might not be most stable platform or traversing a wilderness river. Something like a pack raft (different from a regular raft) might make more sense given your concerns about weight and packability.

 

[squeekieslayer]

I use my 9ft bucks bags bronco on the blackfoot up here all the time and it does great. Supposedly gets up to class 3. I have almost no "whitewater" experience but have never had an issue. Never even felt close to rolling it.

I have never packed it, but weight would be my main concern. My brother has a pontoon that actually is built into a backpack... its not a whole lot lighter that mine, but packs smaller. You definately sacrifice quality for that option though. I would say you could take a good bucks, fishcat, outcast etc and shave a bunch of weight off. I have debated some trips where I throw it on my horse.

Joe

 

[cvandervort]

good point...

I know I'm going to get a tongue lashing for this, but I'm trying to do this on a budget, so $1k for a good packraft isn't in the cards right now.

 

[luke moffat]

good point...

I know I'm going to get a tongue lashing for this, but I'm trying to do this on a budget, so $1k for a good packraft isn't in the cards right now.

If thats the case get a intex Seahawk II....I have floated over 100 river miles here in Alaska on them. Far from the best but they seem to take a lickin' and keep on tickin' and are about 30 pounds or so.

 

[DaveC]

By "pontoon boat" I'm assuming you mean those fishing-specific micro-catarafts? Darn heavy I'm assuming (~50-60 lbs?), but for class II+ I'd assume you'd do fine assuming it's neither big water nor super low and rocky. I did a late summer packraft trip on the wilderness section of the Middle Fork of the Flathead a few years ago, and ended up leap-frogging with two guys in pontoon boats the first day. At low water the Middle Fork has a ton of technical rock dodging, and the pontoon guys with their wide boats and oars were getting their butts kicked, so that's a potential concern.

There are a number of packraft rental companies out there, which might be a good option.

 

[cvandervort]

Yeah, that's what I figure as well.
I was looking at putting float bags in my 12' canoe and possibly going that route too...
I guess I have a few months to decide.
Thanks for the input!

 

[zman]

First off....not sure where this thread should go....so I default to "Backpacks"


I am planning a trip through a 40 mile "wilderness" section of a river (shouldn't get bigger than class II+)
I am interested in taking a 9 ft. pontoon boat, in lieu of a raft: cheaper, easily ported, etc.

I have a couple of questions for those that have done this, or decided not to do this:
-Why?
-considerations on weight of gear?
-handling in rapids?
-any other considerations?

Thanks!

Use to be a flyfishing guide in a former life...floated the Colorado and eagle rivers a lot. The little catarafts are great. They can be run through class 3 water no problem.
How far do you have to hike with it on your back? That will weigh more on your decision than anything else. Also check out the water master inflatable boat as an alternative to kickboats.
I have an old bucks bags Bronco 8 footer... fished it in a bunch of place and it never let me down. But... If I was going on an extended trip I would go with the 9 footer to increase my weight capacity. And if this is a fishing trip, wearing a pair of fins can let your feet do the boat positioning and you spend your time fishing.
PM me if any more ?'s

 

[Bughalli]

Really need more details...
- You hunting, fishing or camping
- Do you need to carry the raft any major distance at the put-in or take-out?
- what time of year (cold weather or warm)
- doing solo or others?
- What do you want to bring and how comfortable do you want to be?
- Budget

I've done a lot of whitewater trips in the U.S. and internationally, mostly in whitewater kayaks with raft support. I also have an 11ft raft which I use mostly for fly fishing trips. In terms of long trips I've done a couple 7 day trips on the Deschutes, 6 day trip on the Rogue, week on a river in Alaska and countless overnight trips on other rivers. All fantastic trips. I highly recommend it. Great way to see the country and avoid the crowds. I always wanted to do a hunting trip, but never got around to planning one or finding a location where having river access would be a true advantage.

Catarafts are great. Just as stable and maneuverable as a raft. Better viewing position for seeing rapids ahead. Downside is storage. You usually can't bring as much gear on them as you can with a raft. You need to spend more time tying everything down. They get a little top heavy if you overload.

There's lots of sizes and options out there. Most anything new gets expensive pretty quickly. Troll craigslist for used deals or look for when rafting companies sell old rafts. I've seen full 10ft raft, frame and oars for as cheap as $400. That's "well used" and not the norm in terms of pricing, but those deals are out there. Heck, I sold my first raft setup for $300. It was 20 years old and you had to pump air in it twice a day, but it could handle anything up to class IV. Good rafts are bomb proof and durable. As long as someone took care of they will last a very very long time.

Depending on the time of year and where you want go, you might be able to rent one. My 10 day, self guided raft trip in Alaska was on a rented raft. Had a float plane drop us off at a lake and we had them pick us up 90 miles down stream.

Size is all about how much gear you want to bring and how comfortable you want to be. You can fill one up pretty darn quickly. I like to be comfortable, eat good food, sleep on a comfortable setup and drink well. If I was doing a trip in cold weather then the gear goes up a lot. My Rogue River trip was in Nov and I had to chip the ice off the raft each morning.

I know you said your River is only class II, which is considered very easy, but an inexperienced person can still get in a lot of trouble. It doesn't take much to avoid issues if you know what to do, what to avoid, but it also doesn't take much to get in trouble. Recognizing the danger is the hardest part. Make sure you talk with someone to learn a few basics. Get in the wrong position with the boat in the wrong spot and even a class 1 can wrap, flip or pin/sink a boat.

 

[Bughalli]

Read your original post again. 9ft cataraft is doable, assuming the frame can handle it. Little on small side depending on gear you bring. You'll want to buy dry bags to keep the major stuff dry and tie everything down. As a general rule of thumb I plan on going 10 miles per day. You can do more if needed, but 10 is a good gauge. So you're looking at 4 days for 40 miles total.

 

[cvandervort]

Thanks for the replies!
I have done a fair amount of time on rivers and in whitewater: took 5 guys with me down the deschutes through class IV, but that was in a raft.
I've never taken a fishing-style pontoon boat on such adventures, so that was where my questions were aimed...

It would be a summer trip, and I'm comfortable going pretty light, so a 9' pontoon sounds doable. Gear list is starting to look like my backcountry muley list, minus the gun, plus the rod!

 

[GibsonKuenzi]

Are you planning on floating the minam?

 

[cvandervort]

Shootin for the rogue

 

[Bughalli]

You should be fine. Going in the summer keeps the gear light. Fyi - the rogue requires permits in the summer...at least the sections I did required them, which is why I did it in late fall after the permit season. If doing the same section I only remember one rapid with consequence because it had a hole at the bottom. Could flip you if you get stuck and end up side surfing. We dragged the boat around it on the rocks. Just didn't t want to risk having my gear spread all over the river in Nov.

The only thing I would mention is a weighted down raft is slower to react and maneuver. So setting up apropriately before the rapid so you can make the moves is important. Most rogue Rapids you can just run straight down them.

 

[cvandervort]

Yeah.
How did you float rainie falls? Far right?

That's the only section that seems like it may get hairy in a small toon boat.