I’ll share my impressions of the craft and my experience with CampingHikingAdventures, but what I also want to tell you, is the Nomad lets me experience places that would be otherwise inaccessible to this 68-year-old.
One of the benefits of opening an online store that I was not expecting is the people we have met and the relationships we have developed. I have so much admiration for the adventure athletes that we sponsor and their dedication to each other and to challenging their physical limits. I have enjoyed meeting elderly couples who are entering the packrafting world because their traditional kayaks are too heavy and bulky to manage anymore. I had so much fun being an exhibitor in several markets and outdoor shows and seeing people's eyes sparkle when they are first introduced to packrafts. And I really love connecting with Canadians from coast to coast, knowing that I have a quality product that serves them in exploring our beautiful country. It's also been a fun benefit that my family can participate and help out in so much of the business.
We are so excited to interview Nathalie Long, creator of Canada's first 7 day Expedition Race. Find out why she switched to a MRS Barracuda R2 Pro as her packraft of choice for racing; what TV series just launched about her, and what she is looking forward to in 2023. Enjoy!
Luc, you are a bit of a legend in the packrafting community! Can you tell us what motivated you to write your book? The Packraft Handbook started as a short safety manual. I had been teaching swiftwater safety courses for the Swiftwater Safety Institute for a few years and wanted to figure out how to get safety techniques out to more people. I was only reaching 30-40 people a summer with the in-person courses. But after writing the safety and rescue content, I realized that it would be even more valuable to write about how not to need rescue! (Duh!) So,...
Guest blog by Byron Hartzler “Man, I don’t want to be anywhere else in the world right now!” I exclaimed to my Danish paddling partner, David, just 5 minutes ago. I had spent hundreds of hours guiding waterfalls and canyoning on the Nam Yao River in a back corner of Shan State, Myanmar (Burma) with my company, Myanmar Adventure Outfitters. Myanmar is remote as it is, and now after a military coup on February 1, 2021, it's plunged this nation that had so much promise back a decade or more and imposed isolation. I’ve been passionately curious and explored so...