Imagine spending hours exploring secluded beaches hidden coves on your stand-up paddleboard. When you’re going on a long or short tour, you might want to bring some supplies to stay safe and make the most of your trip. To avoid getting your stuff wet or losing them, you’ll need to take some precautions.
Keep Your Gear Dry While Paddling
Waterproof Pouch. Whether you’re going out on the water for one or a few hours, you may want to bring your smartphone. Smartphones can track your trip, help you navigate, or take social media-worthy images.
A waterproof pouch will help your smartphone survive any accidental water damage. Also, make sure to attach the pouch to a buoyancy aid, so you don’t risk sinking your phone.
Dry Bag. Dry bags are essential for protecting almost all of your supplies. Think of a dry bag like a waterproof backpack. You can use it to store your food, water, warm and dry clothes, and much more. What you bring with you, will depend on the weather conditions and how long you plan to be on the water.
How To Choose A Dry Bag
Dry bags come in a range of sizes and materials. You want to choose a bag that’s big enough to accommodate all your supplies but isn’t so big that it takes up unnecessary space on your board. The size you choose will largely depend on the length of your trip as overnight SUP tours will need more supplies than short, one hour tours.
You also want to consider the environment you intend to use the dry bag. More demanding situations, like the ocean or river rapids, where you’ll have to battle waves or navigate waves or obstacles, increase the chances of your supplies getting wet. So, you’ll want to choose a dry bag with reinforced construction that can handle external forces and internal abrasions and pressure.
Attach The Dry Bag
Once you’ve found the perfect dry bag and put your stuff in it, you need to attach it to your board. Most stand-up paddle boards have elastic straps on the front which allow you to slide a 5 to 60-liter dry bag under. You may also want to connect it using a carabiner to make sure it doesn’t slide out from under the straps.
Touring stand-up paddle boards sometimes have a loop at the back for securing large dry bags during a longer trip. Fastening your bag at the back not only keeps your supplies safe and dry but also provides for easy access on the open water.
Other Options For Protecting Your Belongings
Most stand-up paddle boards over three years old don’t have straps for securing a dry bag. In this case, you’ll need to find a different solution like a waterproof backpack. Waterproof backpacks are essentially a dry bag with shoulder straps so you can wear it on your back rather than attach it to your board. Whether you use a dry bag or waterproof backpack, your supplies will stay safe and dry.
