Guest Post- PJ Orsi: Packrafting North Fork Blackfoot River

     This account of a packrafting trip on Montana's North Fork of the Blackfoot River was forwarded to me by a good buddy.  They entered via Dry Creek TH, hiked trail 483 and 481. They paddled from Camp Creek to North Fork Falls, portaging to the pack bridge. Then they floated out to the car bridge below North Fork TH. I asked for and received permission to publish it here. The author is PJ Orsi of Great Falls, MT. I just met and chatted with him for a while. He allowed me to snap a few photos of his newly customized packrafting backpack. Enclosed are those images.





Written by PJ Orsi-

     So the idea was... me and a buddy get a couple of packrafts (ultra-lite inflatables that are rated for whitewater)... backpack into the back country and shoot some elk, butcher said elk, tie them onto our rafts, and ride the river out to glory... this was our dry run:

     What we didn't consider? If we climbed 2700 feet to put into the river... the river then had to drop 2700 feet before we got back to the truck.

     Well, we left at 4:30PM on Friday, backpacked 11 miles/climbed 2700ft over Red Mountain and into the Scapegoat Wilderness. Then, we inflated our rafts floated 1.5 miles through an alpine meadow where we saw a bunch of harlequin ducks, and caught some fish for dinner... after that we ran into log jams, and after 6 hours of going around a log jam, then wading 30 yards and going over the next one, we deflated our rafts and bushwhacked a quarter mile to the trail (everything is wet at this point so I am wearing water shoes instead of soaked hiking boots)... and then we hiked 5ish miles until it got dark.

     In the morning, we were studying the river ahead of us, when we noticed an area of the topographic map where a couple 100ft elevation lines ran together and through the river in front of us. After examining the map, we inflated our rafts and floated a mile downstream until we hit the gorge we saw on the map... we fished there, caught two more trout, and cooked them for lunch... then we climbed out of the canyon and hiked another 5-ish miles along the rim of the gorge. We confirmed our suspicions about the gorge when we looked over the edge at one point to see a 100+ ft waterfall midway through the gorge. After the gorge we came to a back country ranger station; upon our arrival,  some old guy who happened to be there informed us that "Boys, there is significant river ahead of you... but who knows, you might live.”

     So we inflated our rafts and started to float... only thing was, the next 10 miles of river was one huge cascade of class 4-5 whitewater with virtually no breaks. We saw a bunch more harlequin ducks, and almost died multiple times. Both rafts flipped at different points, we lost some gear, and at one point my boat became lodged between two rocks on the edge of a 6 ft waterfall, my only option: jump over the edge holding onto a tie strap attaching my pack to the boat. Luckily I am heavy enough that the boat dislodged and followed me into the pool beneath. I had enough time to scramble back onto the boat in time to hit the next drop.  At first we were careful, scouting each curve of the river ahead, but  at some point we stopped scouting ahead since we were running out of daylight and all our gear was soaked. Another night in the mountains would have been very cold. All our gear getting wet included my dry bag, which failed at some point leaving my gps and 1911 in a bag of water, which also meant that we lost some ability to track our progress.

     Eventually we saw a fisherman on the shore and asked how much further to the bridge (our takeout where my truck was waiting),  the guy got confused and pointed around the bend in the river,  about 100 yards away… was the bridge. We got home at on Sunday night  around 9:30PM. We covered 32 miles as the bird flies, and I have no idea how far we actually went between the river bends and the switchbacks, all in two days and two nights.

Underwater shot from mounted camera when PJ's raft flipped!

     We saw an elk as well as a ton of bear and wolf tracks... and alot of harlequin ducks too... but this probably isn’t a feasible way/area to hunt elk.

Scopa modeling the "Orsi-Pack"

Note the room on bottom to mount the packraft for hiking.

The use of zip-ties allows for attachment of alternative dry sacks.

Double tied at higher stress points.

Use of the sack's buckle for additional reinforcement.

It's not MYOG, It's CYOG(CUSTOMIZE your own gear)

I had been searching for the perfect gaiters for years. Probably the stoutest, most commonly used gaiters on the planet are the OR Crocodiles. But they seemed like overkill in terms of weight and sturdiness. They are as close to bombproof as a wearable fabric can be. And they are expensive. For what they are, anyways. So I kept my eye out for something similar, but lighter and cheaper. I stumbled upon a set made by Outdoor Designs, called the Tundra. I found them at a local outdoor gear store for $24.95. At that price, I was willing to give them a try. 

The listed features:

Waterproof breathable rear zip lightweight gaiter

Waterproof breathable 2 layer Watergate technologies fabric

Rear entry zip with jetted storm flap

Webbing underboot strap

Lace calf adjustment

This isn't a review, but I played with them on multiple weekend hikes and on a 4 day trip into the Bob. Also, I watched their performance on one of my hiking buddies for even more miles. In the meantime, I was able to observe the performance of the aforementioned OR Crocs on two other hiking buddies. What I decided was that in this case, you get what you pay for. The Tundras were very finicky, while the Crocs were robust and easy to use. The Tundras like to slip down on your leg, while the Crocs stand tall. The Tundras were a pain to remove and reinstall for wet foot crossings, while the Crocs wearers were waiting for us. Sure, the Tundras were lighter, but were giving up a lot of the versatility of the Crocs. I still think that the Crocs are a bit of overkill for what I need to protect my legs, though. I'm compelled to state that I am not really comparing "like" items here. Outdoor Designs makes many types of gaiters. But what I had in my possession were the Tundras. So, what could be done to gain some of the features and ease of use of the OR product? How about replacing the calf laces with shock cord and the zippers with velcro? That's what I did. Here's how I did it.

Outdoor Designs "Tundra" Gaiter

Showing Calf Lace

Showing Rear Mounted Zipper and Storm Flap.

These seams had to be removed, non-flap side.

View from inside, non-flap side.

It's not really Velcro!

It's not as easy as it looks, but I used a seam ripper to remove threads.

A bit trickier at the top, when zipper panel meets lace channel.

Dismantling the lace channel to remove upper end of zipper.

Who needs to measure?

The horizontal tab at the bottom of gaiter.

First seam.

I used a full polyester thread and had to be very careful with the needle on the "Rocketeer" in order to sew through several layers of fabric and a layer of Velcro. I had to hand sew the junction of the 2 pieces of Velcro. It was just a bit too many layers of fabric for my skimpy needle. Below, you can see already how difficult it was to sew a straight seam with the machine on Velcro sections.

I wasn't happy, but it got the job done. My mom wasn't available!

I used 2 seams on each piece of velcro, and an additional horizontal tab at the bottom of the gaiter to attach one side to the other. The picture shows this tab before I trimmed it to length.

Cutting off zipper teeth, leaving the rest of the panel.

After finishing the sewing, I tied a piece of shock cord to one end of the lace and just pulled it through. Using a toaster style cord lock, I secured both ends. This means that now, the wearer has to put a foot through this loop before installing the gaiter. I think it's a small price to pay for a more firm calf mount and better adjustability.

I tested one gaiter with these adjustments vs. the factory produced gaiter on section 6 of the OHT. I was pleased with the adjustments. The only observation my hiking partner had was that seeing one blue piece of Velcro showing on only one gaiter drove him crazy for almost 20 miles. I will now complete the other gaiter. It worked. But, I will admit that I asked for a pair of OR Crocs for Christmas. I guess I'm a hypocrite.

Initial Foray into MYOG(Make Your Own Gear)

     I've been reading for years about the joys of making your own gear. While not creative by nature, I have always thought about ways to improve gear. I may never create something entirely new, but  will now be able to customize my own gear at least. The first step to entering the world of MYOG is to decide on a project/projects. This calls for something simple. My first items will be hammocks, followed by stuff sacks, tarps, custom sleeping bags/quilts, and of course, clothing repair.
     With this in mind, I needed to research tools for the job. I scoured the web looking for the sewing machine of choice. From all of the MYOG forums I came to several conclusions. The first is that I won't be calling it a sewing machine. It'll be my "Electro-mechanical Thread Injector". Sounds manly enough for a backpacker to operate, eh? The second thing is that the machine would be simple enough to learn on, while still having all metal moving parts(pre-1970). As Singer was the brand of choice for my own mother, it would be mine as well. After watching Craigslist for weeks, all I found were collectibles. The Singer Featherlights were the coolest looking machine of this nature, but all cost way too much. So, I stumbled upon a Singer Slant-O-Matic 500A "Rocketeer". How much more manly can you get than a Thread Injector known as "The Rocketeer"? Shoot, it was even originally marketed as "the best (sewing) machine ever made".  I purchased it for $75, and it arrived within days.

Singer 500A "Rocketeer"

     The next thing I did was looked for materials for my projects. My source was Rockywoods.com. They had everything on my list. I ordered 8 yards of 1.9 oz. Silnylon(for 2 hammocks), 8 yards of hook & loop(Velcro), 8 yards of bug mesh, some thread, some stretchy lycra/nylon for gaiters, and a zipper for customizing a sleeping bag. Shockingly, it was $135 worth of materials. They shipped them out the next day, and they arrived even before the "Rocketeer".
     After making these purchases, it was time to learn to operate the new tool. So, like any newbie who is nervous of asking about these kinds of things, I went straight to Youtube. There, I found hours and hours of instructional videos. Some even using my machine! I felt like I was going to be able to do this now. Besides, there is no turning back once the toys are bought! Last stop at Hobby Lobby for scissors, pins, and some cotton material to practice with. The old lady who helped me didn't even laugh at me at all. Maybe more men make their own gear than I originally suspected.

     There's a great website that shows how to make hammocks, with step by step instructions(and even pictures). Jeff's Hiking Page is my favorite one-stop source for all things hammock. I would be following his instructions for my project. The only difference is that I would eventually plan on adding bug screen. Here's some pics of my progression. Note that the rolled hem on the outsides is to prevent the hammock from tearing. It's not supposed to be PERFECT!

Sewing a Rolled Hem without proper Presser Foot.

Hem failed to Roll on first attempt.

It's easier to sew an 9.5' X 5' piece of Silnylon when rolled like this.

A tightly whipped end.

Finished! Lacks suspension for now.

  And there it is folks, minus the bug screens. I need to decide how I want them to work. Which means actually sleeping in the hammocks first. My suspicion is that I will want modularity, so may use the hook & loop fastener to make them removable. I ordered the "tree hugger" straps from JacksRbetter.com. Once they arrive, we will test both of my new hammocks.
     The second project I tackled was to repair a split butt seam on my REI Sahara Convertible Pants. They are great pants (used only in the woods), but still, I kinda want my butt INSIDE the pants. So, I looked at them a bit, decided what to do, and did it. It turned out kind of ugly. I got some extra material pinched into my seam. It took an hour to carefully remove the seam. On the second try, I got it nearly right. The only problem is I was still using black thread. It sticks out like a sore thumb. And guess what? It doesn't bother me at all. I'll wear those pants like a badge of honor. I had a dream of repairing them, and I fulfilled that dream! Here's the pics:

Busted seam, outside view.

Busted seam, inside view.

Viewed from outside of pants.

Viewed from inside of pants.

 P.S. If anyone has any small(ish) stickers they want to donate to "The Rocketeer", you can email me. JakeWillits@trailsavvy.net