Please make sure you bring the following things. If you have any questions call our office. If you don’t already have a local supplier for purchasing your river gear, we recommend Northwest River Supplies. They are familiar with our trips, sell quality gear and provide excellent service and competitive prices www.nrsweb.com

[ ] 1 Sun hoodies (Must) 

[ ] Small, lightweight, compressible sleeping pad. Do not bring foam pads because they do not compress well and space is an issue on the baggage boats.

[ ] Lightweight compressible sleeping bag with a rating down to 30 degrees.

[ ] *waterproof paddle jacket

[ ] *Waterproof Paddle pants

[ ] 3 quick drying synthetic shirts (heavy, medium & light) (also known as Synchilla, fleece, pile, polypro or Capilene. )

[ ] *river shoes (preferably 5-10 with stealth soles)

[ ] *neck buff 1 

[ ] baseball cap to fit under a helmet

[ ] water bottle with locking carabineer attachment for clipping into boat. Note: Carabineer must lock so that if a boat flips there is no way to get hooked on the carabineer. Do not bring non-locking carabineers.

[ ]  hiking shoes sneakers

[ ] *sun glasses with neck strap

[ ] headlamp (flashlight) with batteries

[ ] quality rain jacket with hood 

[ ] 2 synthetic pants (Synchilla, fleece, pile or polypro)

[ ] 4 pairs of underpants

[ ] 5 socks (2 pair synthetic quick drying)

[ ] 1 wetsuit leggings or overall 

[ ] 1 pair wetsuit socks

[ ] 1 medium weight jacket (puffy, down compressible jackets are great)

[ ] 2 short sleeved shirts

[ ] 1 long pants

[ ] 1 shorts (synthetic and quick drying)

[ ] 1 long sleeved shirt

[ ] 1 bathing suit

[ ] toilet kit

[ ] natural soap

[ ] small towel

[ ] Sun gloves and or work out/paddle gloves

[ ] sunscreen

  • *Headlamp (flash light): A good headlamp is a valuable tool for any river trip because it keeps your hands free. Princeton Tech makes an excellent, lightweight, inexpensive ($30) LCD light that will last 80 hours on one set of batteries called the Aurora.
  • *River shoes: River shoes should stick to wet rocks, not come off in a strong current and should protect your toes. The water on the river is not that cold (68 degrees)  Sandals are not suitable river shoes because they do not protect your feet and are difficult to swim in if you unexpectedly end up in the water. We strongly recommend Five-Ten shoes with “Stealth soles. They will work well on the rafts and most importantly for hiking around on wet rocks.  Five-ten is the only company that uses “Stealth” soles. You can find a store that sells them by going to www.fiveten.com . If you can not find a store that handles them they can be purchased directly from the company by going to their website. Any five ten approach shoes are a great river shoe. 
  • *Paddle jacket & paddle pants: It is mandatory to have a waterproof paddle jacket and paddle pants on the river. This will keep you warm and relatively dry and is worn over your synthetic shirts.
  • *Neck buffs (neck gators): Neck buffs are stretchy, circular scarfs that pull over your head and go around your neck. They are available from multiple venders on the internet for between $12 and $20. We purposely wait for August to run the Magpie when most of the black flies have left but there can always been a few remaining and their favorite target is the neck and behind the ears. A neck buff will protect you in these areas as they can be pulled over the back of your head if necessary. They are also excellent for sun protection and warmth.

NOTE: You will be limited to 25 pounds for the expedition, so you must limit yourself to what will fit into the medium size waterproof bag Earth River will supply you with. Additional belongings can be left at the hotel at the start of the trip.

EARTH RIVER PROVIDES:

  1. waterproof river bag
  2. Tent
  3. cup, plate and eating utensils.
  4. life jacket (type 5) paddle, helmet
  5. self-bailing rafts and kayaks
  6. GPS messaging device, first aid kit

OPTIONAL:

[ ] personal medication

[ ] breakdown fishing pole

[ ] camera, film, and soft waterproof case (no metal ammo cans)

[ ] binoculars

[ ] book

[ ] journal and pen

[ ] pocketknife

[ ] tampons, lip protection, other personal needs

*IMPORTANT NOTE:

Each year a few people (approx. 2%) end up on our trips without their belongings. By the time they receive them from the air carrier the trip is over. Because this is a real possibility we highly recommend the following steps to protect your self. Pack all necessary river gear (fleece, paddle jacket, river shoes, hat, sun glasses, bathing suit, etc.) into the largest legal carry on bag you can find and don’t check it. Pack everything else in a regular suitcase. This way if you become separated from you checked bag you will have the most important things for the river as well as the clothes on your back for camp. A couple of year we started recommending this packing plan to our guests. Since then we have averaged about 6 people a year who arrived to do a trip without their checked bags. In each case they had packed their river gear in carry ons and all were able to complete the trip with little discomfort.