The Complete KAYAK CAMPING GEAR Guide | 2024

Here is our complete loadout and packing guide for Kayak Camping in 2024! Here's most of the kayak camping gear list covered in the video, perfect for your overnight or extended kayak or canoe trips on the river.
Essentials
-NuCanoe Unlimited
-NuCanoe Pursuit
-NuCanoe Flint
-Bending Branches Angler Ace 280cm
- Adventure Technologies Pursuit
-Astral
-NRS
-Merrel Vapor Glove shoes + sandals
-Bungees, Carabiners, Straps
Dry Storage
-Remote Designs Rolltop
-Rugid Big Stone 70L
-Rugid Duffel 70L
-Ozark Trail dry box
-Drift dry box
-Okuna mesh trash bag
Water Filtration
-Ozark trail SS vacuum insulated jug (2l)
-Platypus 3L Gravity Filter
-Life Straw(backup)
Sleep System
-Heavy duty poly tarp
-Big Agnes Spicer Peak 4
-Big Agnes Rapide SL 40” + 20”
- Kelty Doublewide sleeping bag
-Sea to Summit Aeros inflatable pillow
-Thermarest compressible pillows(medium)
Personal Effects
-Fiskars trowel
-Toiletries (make sure everything is river friendly!)
-Sunscreen & chapstick
-Bug Spray
-Microfiber towels
Outdoor Supplies
-Trauma Kit
-First Aid kit (with OTC & Rx meds)
- Fire-starting (good ole Bic)
- Folding saw
- ESEE 6” knife
-550 Cord
-Gorilla Tape
-Boat hardware
Kitchen
-Yeti 35
-Otterbox 20
-Ozark Trail 30
-GSI SS Skillet
-Dutch Oven
-GSI SS Folding Spatula/Spoon
-GSI Soloist
-GSI Coffee Grand and Cowboy Pot
-Portable Grill
-Big Agnes Soul Kitchen
-Welding Glove
- Scrub Daddy with clay-based cleanser
Electronics
-Jackery Explorer 240
-Anker PowerCore
-Black Diamond Astro 300-R headlamps
-Streamlight Strion
-Motorola T605 radios
-Flextail Tiny Pump
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▬ Contents of this video ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
00:00 - Boating
01:34 - Footwear
02:26 - Dry Storage
04:46- Campsite & Sleeping
07:40 - Personal Items
09:34 - Water Filtration
10:27 - Wilderness Gear
12:23 - Cooking & Coolers
16:35 - Electronics

[@paddlepedalproductions5452]

Great review you two! I can attest to both the PFDs you use. I have the same NRS and my wife as the same Astral. Both are excellent. I also have that same Bending Branches paddle and love it. For long trips with lots of hours on the water it's worth the money to go carbon and save the weight, and your shoulders. As for trash bags, I agree, litter is the WORST. I use mesh crawfish sacks. They let water in and out so if you flip you don't end up with trash bag filled up with garbage soup. I boil a lot of crawfish every year so they are kinda "free" for me. Great list overall. The only thing I can think to add is a Gator Patch in case of a damaged kayak hull. I keep one in both kayaks. Also, although most sit on top kayaks have a removable chair, if you can spare the space and weight it's nice to bring a separate camp chair just to give you backside a different set of pressure points. But y'all are already pretty loaded down so it might not be worth it. Keep the videos coming!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Gator patches ordered. That should've been a no brainer! Thanks for the idea!

[@paddlepedalproductions5452]

It's the least I could do after all the good ideas you just gave me!@@OzarkMediaCo

[@gregturnbow7089]

Great fire starter- cotton ball, tear almost in half smear a glob of petroleum jelly in middle ( sandwich) . Super easy when your siting around make a zip lock bag full. You won't be disappointed and cheep to make.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

We've tried all kinds, drier lint in Vaseline, too! Tons of ways to do it, fortunately other members of a floating tribe provide.

[@rangerdoc1029]

Awesome. Headed to the Buffalo for a week. This will come in handy.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@evilmonstar6910]

Folding bow saw beats the collapsible hand saws. The replaceable blade makes it easy to upgrade.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Already upgraded and love it.

[@dublixtube]

Great video editing. Looking forward to seeing more from this channel!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Thanks for the kind words! Going to be a great year for videos!!!

[@ppaul2246]

Loved this video so much! I'm doing my first kayak camping trip this summer and you guys helped lots :D

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Glad it was helpful! You definitely don't need to bring all that stuff but if it gave you an idea of some things you were missing then we did something right.

[@zacharybonner9188]

Yessir!!! Another solid video. Stumbling up on my fellow Texan Gatewood Brown is what is getting me into river camping. That and my love for the Buffalo River. Definitely a new fan of your channel!! Keep it up

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Can't wait to get on the Buffalo!

[@foshow150]

Agawa saws. Perfect saw great value , durable , get the leather sheath.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Ordered. Kind of hurts the pocketbook a bit for a little saw, but being able to hog through some big limbs for the fire will be nice!

[@foshow150]

It is an investment but I’ve had mine for 3 1/2 years with above average use, perfect saw and never lets me down. Never let me down.. great company, and they stand behind their products.

[@foshow150]

By the way, subscribed, I love the idea of kayaking, my 11-year-old son and I fly around our little lake all summer long up in Minnesota. We both love Greenland paddles, which give us so much stealth , passing wildlife nearly feet away. Since you guys are so high up out of the water, if you do decide to shoot a Greenland paddle on one of your journeys, I would suggest getting a very very long one and speak to a company in Maine. If you want to google they will make you spruce wood paddles thatyou can customize once he delivers them to your door

[@marissasun77]

Loved this. I want to try kayak camping this year

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Do it!

[@mackjenkins7721]

That was a nice layout camping gear. Those are things that you need on the water. That very good information for someone who is starting out kayak camping. Good video buddy thanks you for sharing this video.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

You definitely don't need all the stuff we bring. We're river glamping!!

[@JohnMontgomery-zi6wz]

Recently purchased kayaks and camping with them is on the bucket list. This vid is definitely going to be helpful!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Glad we could help! There will be more informational videos soon.

[@tombryant6061]

Nice list. I have been floating and camping on Missouri streams for 50 years…. Camp shoes for sure. Camp chair for sure. We bring a folding table too. It makes cooking prep nicer. Nice channel!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Thanks!

[@deadrat117]

Great video! Loved it. I would definitely love to hear more about those kayaks, as my wife and I are both avid paddlers/campers with a couple young children, and being able to haul that much gear on the river while the kids can stay comfortable is a game changer. Keep up the good work! And yeah, Gatewood has a great line of products with RD.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Incoming!!

[@LakeVermilionDreams]

Super informative, and some super cute humor between the two of you! I'm taking notes: I hope to take my GF out into the woods and on the water this Summer!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

You won't regret it!

[@HebrewNomadOverlander]

What a great video and the information is detailed and priceless. I have been kayaking for more than 20 years. My first kayak was a sit on top Tarpon 120 and I sold it years later. I now own a Aquaglide Blackfoot Angler 130 Inflatable Kayak, it's great but I would never take it in larger areas of water . I love the stability and hardshell non puncture proof kayaks, so I'm in the market for one. Thanks for your work in the outdoors. I am in agreement on every topic.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Thanks for the kind words! 🙏

[@magicworldbyjorg]

...cool video keep up the great content.. Thank you… Greetings Jörg

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Thanks!

[@magicworldbyjorg]

@@OzarkMediaCo Thank you very mutch... have a nice day.... see you…. Greetings Jörg

[@bulletsbbq2576]

Thx guys

[@OzarkMediaCo]

You bet!

[@edstein5642]

Great vid. Great chemistry. I admire your commitment to reasonable comfort while yakking as a family. Gotta share with you the RunningSnail radio. 3 by 6 by 1 & 3/8, it has a folding hand crank to initiate charging then the solar cell on it can take over. Has a powerful flashlight on one end, telescoping 7” antenna & carabiner style clip on the other. AMFM & NWS band too. Piercing alarm, digital face, clock, & you can charge other devices off it. NOT waterproof but fits in a ziplock bag. Try this fire starter; smear cotton balls in petroleum jelly & stuff them into a medium sized pill bottle with screw or snap lid. Dig them out with a twig or knife blade & stack twigs around the ball. It will light with the FIRST spark from a striker stick & burn about 5 minutes.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Good tips, thanks!

[@pootinplays]

Very thorough. Well thought out. Ive been a backpacker for a while and looking to get my first kayak to stay outside during the peak of summer. I was curious to see what gear and how they bring it. Maybe an idea for a video is how to physically pack your stuff and different items and gadgets to help you (different types of dry bags and features they offer). and like ways to secure your items and stuff. YOu covered it a little but might be able to make a 5-10 min vid on it.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

We absolutely have several videos planned over just those topics!

[@henryhaake500]

Okay, packing my bags now

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Soon....

[@andrewvautour1795]

Great video, very informative! I am saving my money for a PakaYak Bluefin 142 (in Canada they are rather expensive) as we don't have the space to store kayaks and inflatables are not my thing. I also don't like the typical sit on top kayaks but your kayaks capacity is very impressive and I will probably be looking into them thank you! I have sub'd your channel and looking forward to more videos like this one!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Don't have any experience with inflatables beyond the really cheap ones that are not so great. NuCanoe is incredible!

[@mcheebler]

Great list. Yeah having an extra pair of sandals for camping is huge, doesn't seem like water shoes are built for comfort 🥲

[@OzarkMediaCo]

They're more comfortable than walking barefoot on rocks, that's about it...

[@jordanduncan2136]

This was the first video I’ve seen on your channel. Seems like we have a lot in common. I’m a bigger guy myself and share some of the same issues with camping pads and pillows. I have found the holy grail Amazon find for a sleeping pad and have recommended it to several people after their air mattresses have left them deflated on the ground. My wife is also my kayak/camping buddy and we love getting outdoors. We moved about a year ago and had to sell our kayaks due to not having a place to store them. Now we have moved again and I’m back in the market. The Nucanoe Unlimited is on my short list but I cannot find hardly any videos of people using them in rivers. How has yours performed in river waters? We have several slower rivers that can get skinny at times and I take a few trips a year where there are some class 2/3 waters which I’m probably going to buy a different kayak for. Just curious how you like it for general use but really for rivers if you could shed some light on it.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Nucs are born for rivers. They're really tough which is great for our Ozark boneyards, they sit up high in the water, they bail really easily. I wouldn't hesitate on a NuCanoe.

[@jordanduncan2136]

@@OzarkMediaCo That’s great to hear, thank you. I know several folks who love their flint’s for the rivers, just haven’t seen the unlimited in that world much. I will give it a look.

[@weshuber8055]

Check out grayl water bottles i live mine. Solid pick with the fresh dry shoes for camp. I also use the little white fire starter cubes burns for like ten mins and you're good.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

I've seen 'em. I almost feel like I drink too much water for their size. I could be wrong. I'm just so dang thirsty all the time!!! 🤣

[@weshuber8055]

@OzarkMediaCo you might be right there 😆 you'd be pushing that thing every 20 mins. I just like em cause you do all the work up front. I know the straws can be hard to pull water thru.

[@rangerdoc1029]

I've gone through a bunch of folding saws. The Silky saws are worth the money. In a class of their own. Cuts like an ozarks beaver on meth. As far as a larger, while they don't pack as well, a full bow saw like a Bahco will make suoer short work of processing wood. Mine just barely fits in my barrel.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

This may be one of the greatest comments I've ever received. 😂 Some Ozark beav will do just about anything for meth too...

[@tombryant6061]

Agawa saws are good but my favorite are the Silky folding saws. They cut better than anything else

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Just got the Agawa in the mail and already cut myself 🤣

[@philj7169]

Like a racoon getting into your buddies tent.......😂 sounds like you know from experience!

[@OzarkMediaCo]

It's a fact!

[@user-sm4ok8qi3r]

Filzer Buckster Bow Saw, more compact than agawa and much much less hotspots

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Good info.

[@tylerharper3222]

@8:48 you gained a sub and a like. "ENGAGE"

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Make it so!

[@35ABSTRACT]

(Thousands of miles in a kayak) I’m not putting YOU down, I just have no clue why anyone would choose sit atops over a kayak. Sit atops are much more unstable, all your gear is like you stored high up increasing the instability, if you roll your gear and boat stay upside down and takes off away from you until you go retrieve it, whereas a kayak can easily be rerolled right side up and all your gear stays bone dry in the dry compartments, and probably the biggest difference is on sit atops your bottom half is baking in the sun every second you’re on it. Unless your river is an amusement park tunnel of love ride calm and slow, I’d use a kayak 100 times out of 100. Another advantage to a kayak is starting your body just below the water line means your paddle length is almost that of a kids size vs a kid on a sit atop requires a paddle length longer than any adult needs in a kayak. Whatever helps you and your family get out in nature is great, enjoy, Im simple stating there are much safer, stable, less cancer-causing, much easier and faster forms of the hobbie available to you, particularly when adventure paddling over consecutive days.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

I appreciate your perspective, but we've tried sit-insides. Sit-on-tops are WAY more stable my friend. Sit insides are necessary for white water BECUASE they are less stable and you can roll them to prevent falling out and swimming dangerous rapids. These boats are 42" inches wide, they DO NOT tip, you simply fall out. No, they're not very agile(although still more agile than a canoe), show me a sit-inside that can carry the gear we carry and I'll go buy it right now. I'm 6'5" and over 300 pounds. We take, children, dogs and 35qt hard coolers on our boats. Good luck getting that into a sit-inside! But yes, the sun causes cancer. We're very militant about sunscreen with our friends and family.

[@35ABSTRACT]

@@OzarkMediaCo Then you belong in the NFL, not anywhere near the water ; ) Yeah, I concede a sit atop is probably the way to go for you and probably for kids if they’re new to watercraft. Admittedly, I have to wiggle into my touring kayak while balancing the boat until I’m hermetically sealed into the cockpit. Not to mention, to each their own. As long as we’re all having fun, bc that’s really the point.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

@@35ABSTRACT I'll stay in my lane when it comes to real whitewater and touring boats, bc I don't know much about them! But I've got to say, it's hard to beat these giant fishing sit-ons for comfort and stability.

[@Mbolf24]

So you mean sit inside kayak? Because a sit on top is still a kayak....

[@35ABSTRACT]

@@Mbolf24 well, I suppose you could say that a sit atop is a sort of a kayak with a huge caveat, but if we’re being rigidly technical then a sit atop is more akin to a streamlined raft or robust surfboard. A kayak, thanks to the Inuit people, is a light narrow boat tapered to a point at both ends with a closed top except for a narrow opening in which the paddler sits in that is sometimes sealed off from water infiltration. Again, I don’t care what people call what but conversationally it’s just easier calling a kayak a kayak and a sit atop a sit atop because if an acquaintance tells me to leave my kayak at home bc he’s got one I can use and I show up to find it’s actually a sit atop and I have no sunblock or extra clothing to cover my legs/feet I’ll end up charred and miserable.

[@michaelboyle4119]

What is the item that you use for inflating air mattress. Flextail maybe.

[@OzarkMediaCo]

Yes, Flextail Tiny Pump.

[@adventuresofguamboy5471]

bungie nets for motorcycles are FAR BETTER than normal bungie cords

[@OzarkMediaCo]

I bet!

[@rangerdoc1029]

Yes! That's what I use.