Carrying while Kayaking

[frreed]

A couple times a year I head down to the coast and fish for a few days. Leaving the pistol in the car, even in a safe, is a no go as there are too many opportunistic thieves. I could leave it in the room safe at the hotel, but that prevents my carrying off the water between the hotel and the fishing spots.

Is there a good way to keep a pistol dry while on the kayak? I'm not too worried about pirates so it could be less accessible, and it needs to be secured in case things go poorly and I end up swimming. I can think of few things as sad as my carry pistol sinking into the depths.

Any suggestions?

[chewy555]

Have you thought about one of the Pelican cases. From what I have read they are water tight. So having it on the kayak should be no problem. Just a thought.

[longtooth]

I am not a kayaker, swimmer, water wader or such but even if you put it in a floating water tight case be sure to tie it to your Kayak. Floating away & lost after a tip over in water that is rough enough to tip over an experienced K'er is as bad as sinking to the bottom.

[frreed]

The Pelican case came to mind, but I have heard mixed reviews on their effectiveness in keeping out water.

I have tipped once in my time yaking. It was flat glass. I got stupid and ended up wet. It was in about a foot of water, two feet of mud and shell. Dumb, dumb dumb. Thankfully every thing was stowed and tied down. Even in shallow water stuff gets away real quick.

[Venus Pax]

I enjoy kayaking too; unfortunately, I don't get to do it often.
I'll be interested to read the other responses as well.

One kayaker on another forum said that she puts hers in two separate ziplock bags, making sure there is air in the second one. She puts it in a bag that is secured (by straps) to her kayak.

One of the benefits of kayaking is that you're in the water and you tend to remain cool in hot weather, or atleast your legs remain cool. It would be nice not to have to worry about damaging your gun.

[Abraham]

I'm here to attest that Pelican Cases work.

I keep it attached to my kayak with a brass snaplock snapped to a padeye. And yes, I've given it the ultimate test, that is, I've turned over. The case stayed attached and pistol dry. It works.

I keep my cell phone in another Pelican Case also attached with a brass snap lock, however, I do keep the phone in a zip lock as well, as everything in a kayak gets and pretty much stays surface wet. If you do need to use the phone, they'll always be some residual water clinging to the case and upon opening it, I don't want even a small drop or two possibly getting IN the phone.

P.S. I carry a Kel-Tec P-32 when kayaking. Why do I carry? I often go alone in VERY remote areas and I've come across some unfriendly folks. My guess is these were poachers and not to keen being seen by me. The first time, I thought it'd be a rare experience. Not so...

[nedmoore]

I guess if I kayaked I would want to carry too. I have seen Deliverance a few times! LOL!

[Venus Pax]

I looked at some of the pelican cases online. What kind do you have? They all look rather bulky for kayaking purposes.

[ProudNativeTexican]

pelican case is the way to go. You can get a nice small one at Acadmey or Gander Mountain that you can bolt/glue down in the kayak to give you a good dry storage area.

[HighVelocity]

A ziplock bag is all you need to keep it dry. Whatever case you secure it in doesn't have to be water proof, just has to float. A small playmate cooler floats and is cheap. Sometimes the best solutions are the simple ones.

[Abraham]

Real estate on my vessel (at least for me and one of my kayaks is 16' long) is at a premium, so a cooler is out as a locker.

Pelican cases come in a variety of sizes, shapes, colors, and cost. I think the one I carry my pistol in costs me $12.00 or so.

I've gone the "Ziplock" route and it DOES keep whatever is stored dry, if it doesn't get bumped hard and cut. It doesn't protect the contents from abuse though. A hard case like a Pelican or Otter Box will also keep the contents from being banged up.

For simple cost savings, I've used a quart sized (liter?) nalgene water bottle as a water proof, hard container for my cell phone. I carry it in the back bellows pocket of my wade fishing vest. It's very handy, light, waterproof and practically indestructible. I've never had the threaded cap come unscrewed either. I bought one on my way to Port Mansfield on a wade fishing trip when I realized I didn't have a proper container for the phone with me.

I stopped at a Walmart , headed to the sporting goods section and paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $3.50 for one. I didn't want the phone rattling around in it so I used the expedient of some plastic Walmart bags stuffed in the bottle as cushioning. It worked like a charm. The phone didn't budge in the bottle, stayed dry, in fine working order and didn't make any annoying rattling while I carried it.

[Keith B]

The kayaking dry bags with the bladders are pretty good. Put the Ziploc inside one of those for extra security. They can be form fitted to the size you want and will float also.

Here is what REI carries http://www.rei.com/category/4501503

[Abraham]

Keith,

Page 3 reveals the smaller, clear dry bags and at much lower costs.

Clear's the best way to go on dry bags. Also, bigger is not always best.

I too use a dry bag within easy reach of the cockpit. I attach it with a brass snaplock to a padeye and the bag itself under a bungi system I installed on my rear deck to hold my two piece spare paddle that I always take with me. (Lose a paddle in a dicey sea kayaking adventure and not only are you up the creek, so to speak, but good ones are VERY pricy. One of my carbon fiber paddles cost $400.00 and the other $210.00)

The dry bag holds my zip locked sandwiches, fruit, clear glasses in a sturdy case, and those items I don't already carry in my PFD pockets, like chapstick and a small, high quality compass etc. It should be noted, dry bags cannot be relied upon to be water proof. They're mostly dry...and sometimes completely dry, but don't put anything in one that must be kept completely, unfailingly dry. You'll eventually be disappointed.

NRS is another fine supplier of high quality, relatively low cost gear for kayaking. http://www.nrsweb.com/

Have a look at their stuff. I recently bought a farmer john wetsuit with a relief zipper. No small thing when you prefer your wetsuit, ah, shall we say, NOT fragrant...It was on sale and I bought it far lower in cost than at full retail. A couple of times throughout the year a lot of their stuff goes on sale.

A lot of kayaking gear can be used for other sports too. I use the wetsuit not only for winter paddling, but too for wade fishing in the winter and tubing the Frio.

[bpet]

Why not just carry a Glock. I hear they shoot well underwater.

[razoraggie]

Why not just go with a sealed plastic bag as mentioned above with a nice compact Glock on the inside.

LT...this may be a new venture as an "updated" shower rig.