Portage Pack Liner vs. Dry Bags in Portage Pack

[wjmc]

For my "big" pack - food, cooking, tent, tarp, tools - I have an Ostrom Wabakini. Inside it I use an Ostrom pack liner (similar to RBW). Inside the Ostrom liner, I use a contractor trash bag (3 mil) twisted shut and secured with a velcro strap. This serves both as a second layer of waterproofing and to reduce abrasion on the Ostrom liner. For my "personal" pack - sleeping bag, pad, spare clothes, ground sheet (in tent), reading material, spare maps etc.- I use a sealine 70 L pack, also lined with a 3 mil contractor bag sealed as above.

Both of these packs have survived unplanned downstream testing with no water leakage. I've never managed submersion - unless trapped or lashed in a pinned canoe it's not easy to submerge a pack. Even the heaviest pack is generally very buoyant. An 80 litre pack would displace 176 pounds of water - only a really big guy carrying an awful lot of beer could have a pack that heavy.

Once my two-layer waterproofing is in place, I tighten my belt, snug up my suspenders, and head downstream.

 

[PortageW/Cerberus]

"In an effort to reduce weight"

Well, if that is your primary goal, I would steer you towards roll-top dry sacks...but the DCF ones. Not remotely cheap, but very light. I use 3 in my pack (smaller than the Pioneer, 54L vs 77L) for a week (one for the food, one for clothing and one for my quilt).

Total weight for all three is under 4oz.

Going very light is my thing, should you want to explore more of this rabbit hole.

 

[jdeerfoot]

Canoecopia 2026 purchase. I decided to gave this pack liner a try after years of using plastic bag pack liners with my #2 Duluth Packs. It cost about $40.00.

 

[NikonF5user]

Canoecopia 2026 purchase.View attachment 153699 I decided to gave this pack liner a try after years of using plastic bag pack liners with my #2 Duluth Packs. It cost about $40.00.

I like Recreational Barrel Works - the owner seems like he'd be a hoot to paddle with! This summer when I go to Ontario I may try to nab one of these, I think a stop at Canadian Outdoor Equipment may be in the offing...

 

[NikonF5user]

"In an effort to reduce weight"

Well, if that is your primary goal, I would steer you towards roll-top dry sacks...but the DCF ones. Not remotely cheap, but very light. I use 3 in my pack (smaller than the Pioneer, 54L vs 77L) for a week (one for the food, one for clothing and one for my quilt).

Total weight for all three is under 4oz.

Going very light is my thing, should you want to explore more of this rabbit hole.

DCF I am unfamiliar with - I will check them out, thanks! Where do you find their stuff (or do you order direct)?

 

[PortageW/Cerberus]

DCF is also called Dyneema Composite Fabric; that's not a brand.

There a a handful of cottage manufacturers of DCF stuff sacks and roll-top sacks.
zpacks dry bags
Hyperlite roll-tops
Hilltop dry bags

I'm sure there are others. Etsy might be worth a look.

Cheers!

 

[jdeerfoot]

I like Recreational Barrel Works - the owner seems like he'd be a hoot to paddle with! This summer when I go to Ontario I may try to nab one of these, I think a stop at Canadian Outdoor Equipment may be in the offing...

Andy Baxter, RBW owner, was at Canoecopia while many other Canadians skipped the show this year. He is a very entertaining guy, who serves as the straight man in Kevin Callan’s video. My main paddling group, the Friends of Wabakimi, had a good turnout of US members but none of our Canadian members came this year. We usually have 5-6 members from Canada attending this show.

 

[NikonF5user]

My main paddling group, the Friends of Wabakimi

Oh I very much want to do a train-in / train-out route in Wabakimi - that would be a MAGICAL trip!!!