What it costs to kit yourself for a sea kayak camp
The essentials, bought new, are about CA$1,410 (US$1,029);
the whole list is CA$1,911. Priced from the sea kayak base camp packing list, at street prices.
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Wildcoast Adventures. From a week at Orca Camp in August, checked against the operator's own list.
A sea kayak base camp is the cheapest trip on this site to kit yourself for, because the operator brings the expensive part. The kayak, the paddle, the spray skirt, the life jacket and the tent are theirs; the guides are theirs; the sauna, where there is one, is theirs. What you bring is what keeps you warm and dry on the water and comfortable on the beach.
These are the prices behind the sea kayak packing list, which is the one I packed from for a week at Orca Camp in August, added up two ways: the essentials, and the whole list with the things that are nice to have. Most of it is clothing you may already own.
The figures
Two ways to add it up
The essentialsCA$1,410US$1,029 · 15 items not marked optional
Everything on the listCA$1,911US$1,394 · 18 of 20 items name a product
Approx., at 1.37 CAD per USD. Street prices, not quotes; a sale or a used one changes the sum. Where an item offers a choice, the
cheapest prices it and the line says "from". The kit budget on the list lets you tick what you own and see what is left.
What you bring
The list, priced
Every item on the list, in its groups, with the product I used and what it costs. An item with no price is one nobody sells you: a form, a prescription, a weight limit.
Sea Kayaking Tours on the record, every one stayed at and photographed in person.
Questions about the kit
What does the essential kit for a sea kayak camp cost?
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About CA$1,410 (US$1,029) for the 15 items on the list that name a product and are not marked optional, at street prices. The whole list, with the paddling gloves, binoculars and a travel rod, is about CA$1,911 (US$1,394). Most of the essentials are clothes and a headlamp; if you own a rain jacket and warm layers the figure drops to a few hundred dollars.
Do I need to buy a kayak, a paddle or a life jacket?
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No. The operator provides the kayak, the paddle, the spray skirt and the PFD, and the tent at camp. The list is what goes on you and in your dry bag: layers, rain shell, two pairs of shoes, sun and warm hats, a towel, a headlamp and a battery pack.
What is the most expensive thing on the list?
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Burton GORE-TEX jacket, at about CA$480. It is also the one that matters most: when you are on the water the rule is stay warm and stay dry, and a proper shell is how.
