Preferred gear for a tandem (two person) trip?
Big water tripping canoe with it’s deck supported by bomb-proof barrel packs, and use of durable helmets, PFD’s each with diving knife, throw bag and Fox 40 whistle, and paddles. Compass, watch and map of shoals when paddling out of sight of land, and usually a topo map inland as part of the rescue or self-rescue plans.
Bug net tent(s) with retractable fly (so you can use it in the day to escape the bugs) and vestibule, a Thermarester sleeping pad/chair per person (open cell foam inside an inflatable envelope for use as a sleeping pad that can also be inserted into a fabric sleeve to form the seat and back of a chair), a closed cell foam pad per person for added comfort on bumpy tent sites and for when it drops down below freezing, and a good book(s).
Water filter, 2x1l Nalgenes, single burner naphtha stove, a couple of pots, a couple of spoons, a small Nalgene of biodegradable dish soap, 3x small microfibre cloths (one for washing dishes, and one for each paddler for personal use), toilet paper (sorry, but I’m not one of the stick adherents), baggies for the cloths, and a garbage bag for the used food packaging (no need to pack out the poop in my region – just cover it with some moss), and DEET, DEET and more DEET, 'cause where I go in North Ontar-i-o thar be Black Fly.
Sensible footwear for portaging 86lb canoe over rugged terrain where there may not be trails, and for lining and tracking along rugged shorelines, quick dry everything (socks, lined shorts, light nylon long pants and light nylon long shirt with rollable sleeves, light long base layer bottom and top, light fleece top, waterproof and breathable rain pants and rain jacket with neck and hood).
A multi-tool that matches the head of the canoe’s bolts, fairly small vice-grips, nylon cord, needles and nylon thread, a small Nalgene of antiseptic, skin stapler or suture kit, gauze, polysporin, meds/epi for particular individuals, and whatever else you are trained to use for first-aid, a pocket copy of Forgey’s Wilderness Medicine to smack over the head of trip-mates who are not reasonably up on it, and for them to smack you over the head for not being reasonably up on it, a couple of big rolls of Gorilla tape, sat-phone, epirb, SPOT or cell phone in depending on where you will be, and a rescue plan and self-rescue plan.
Thinking through the possible ramifications of one’s actions, and communicating and working closely with one’s team, are absolutely necessary more than any particular piece of gear.Playing well in the sandbox, patience, empathy, respect, determination, a sense of humour, and a sense of wonder, make for a great trip.
The most useless gear? A macho He-Man conquer the wilderness/river/ocean attitude. You can’t fight wilderness and expect to win. It doesn’t work that way. You must learn to understand it and work with it.
