plan on doing the eveglades from everglade city to flamingo and i know i have to carry 9 gallons of water in my kayak …any suggestions on cheap containers to store the water …and where does one easily store 9 gallons …any advice is appreciated stan
You have the option of recycling
– Last Updated: Nov-28-09 4:31 PM EST –
your two liter soda bottles. Freeze them at home. Cold fresh water..They fit where nothing else will way up in the bow and stern..but dont jam them in.
The screw top is important.
I never ever buy water. Its a belief of mine that water is not a commodity to be stolen from one and sold. There is a water bottler that takes from my aquifer and we suffer in dry years. It is not their right to over harvest. End of off topic rant.
My husband and I had a kayak and a solo canoe. Critterproofing your water is a must.'
We had for our 10 day trip 20 2 liter bottles that fit in various places in his kayak..plus you got to squish the empty ones.
I had a seven and a four gallon hardsided water container..which fit fine in my solo canoe but never would fit in his kayak. That was our other half of the water. Using recycled soda bottles was not an option for overnight canoe storage..rats and mice can get through incredibly small openings.
That is a great trip!
– Last Updated: Nov-29-09 8:23 PM EST –
You didn't say what type kayak you have or the size of the hatch covers, but we use plain old gallon jugs, and half gallon jugs. The half gallon might fit behind your seat.
We have also used the collapsible poly larger ones.
The most important thing is to not leave the water containers out in the open at night.
Make sure they are either in your hatches or in your tent.
The racoons will chew right through the plastic jugs to get at the water.
Cheers,
JackL
Along with bottles…
– Last Updated: Nov-28-09 4:59 PM EST –
some friends also carry a large bladder in front of their seat.
A great trip, good luck
Water
I use Boatabags as well as others that I paddle with. They hold a gallon each and will fit in any hatch. They conform to the shape of the hull. I store one under my legs in the cockpit. I store them as close to the center and bottom of the kayak as possible. They are extremely tough, easy to fill and dispense from. boatabag.com
Zephyr hills bottle
Zephyr Hills makes a 3 liter round bottle here in Florida with a screw top lid. The reason I say this is that unless you have a filter, the water here in Florida tastes pretty bad out of the tap (it’s REALLY bad in Everglades city and Flamingo) we used them on our 4 day trip out of everglades city last week and they worked great. Other people in our group brought the 2.5 gallon water containers you can get at the grocery store (I’m aways afraid of them leaking). They put them inside their QCC boats (one in front and one in back)that gave them 5 gallons of water each. The other member of our group put his 2.5 gallons in the tankwell of his scupper pro.
Capt Charles Wright will drop off water for you along the way for a fee. http://www.evergladesareatours.com/
Since we know we have to bring all our water anyway, we end up bringing non dehydrated food like boxed soups. We end up going though about a 1/2 gallon of water per person per day.
I guess I do not have a palate for fine
– Last Updated: Dec-01-09 5:44 PM EST –
water or it didnt ruin my coffee too badly..Of course at four its mixed with other things..
I got it from the tap in back of the Ranger station.
However thanks for the tip on the 3 l bottles. That might be handier for the kayak.. I will have 11 gal in the canoe.
Like you I dont seem to go through a gallon a day. I figure I might as well bring food with water in it like canned stuff and save the dehydrated for other portage intensive trips.
Canoe
I think that trip would be more enjoyable in a canoe, but perhaps I am biased. The canoe can carry lots of weight, though.
I’ve not tried it, but before there were platypus bags folks used the liners from wine in a box. They would be more flexible than pop bottles for some places - so some of each would be a good solution.
9 gallons is about 80 pounds, so smaller containers distributed for trim would be better than one big one in the bow.
It is good for both, but
when a front comes through, (which they do often this time of year) you can be stuck in one place for several days if you are in a canoe, where as you can battle the wind and waves out a lot easier in a yak.
Cheers,
jackL
Each has its good and bad points
Kayaks can make it difficult to haul yourself into a chickee…which at some tides is up there a bit…you have to stand in your boat. Easier from a canoe. And the vision of my hubby hanging off the chickee trying to unwedge something that didnt want to come out of the kayak still gives me a chuckle. He gave up and hauled out the entire boat.
Kayaks can usually keep going longer than canoes but my canoe is a solo and skinny and has a spray cover and I do use a double blade. That keeps me going in very shallow water where a canoe blade would only be partly submerged.
I learned not to bring the big tubby high canoe after sitting on Mormon Key for four days.during one wind event. And it was cold…cold cold. A little bit of water in the pot froze. Day 4 I left when the wind abated a little at midnight. Yes night paddling is sometimes the best way to get around.
so much for margaritas under a palm tree.