How to carry when kayaking?

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APS

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I have a question for the group since I started kayaking recently. I don't really want to leave my 340M&P in the truck and don't want to be unarmed going to and from the water/truck since it may be a distance. For those who carry when kayaking, how do you keep your gun dry? I suppose I could swap the LG-405s for boot grips but if there is a waterproof solution I'll just keep the grips on.
I did a search and saw that flop-shank double-ziplocks his 340. Any other ideas out there?
Thanks!
Adam
 
Ah, might have answered my own question. Did a google search and found a bunch of 'dry bags' of various configs. That might work best and allow me to carry a phone too.
 
I kayak in the Great Lakes (think ocean kayaking, but in fresh water and no tides to deal with). I put my 360 PD in a zip-lock bag with the opening up, then put the bagged gun in an upside down Zip-lock. The gun stays dry I carry in the strong side front pocket of my PFD. While the trigger can be pulled through both bags, the sights are not of any use. Keep in mind that heavy objects in one's PFD are a hindrance if you wind up in the drink, so a scandium, or airweight J frame is ideal for such a task.

OOPS! Missed the last sentence of your above post, APS!
 
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Thanks flop-shank! You reposting that confirms to me that you hadn't had any problems with that method of carry. Unfortunately my darned PFD doesn't have a big enough pocket and I don't really want to replace it yet as it was $90 and still new. I'm going to the local REI this weekend and check out their variety of dry bags. Hopefully some are fanny-pack size.
 
I don't go kayaking but if I did I'd be more concerned with retention than getting the gun wet. A harsh environment is also one of the very few times I'd prefer to carry an auto, and for me it would be my Glock 21. With my tight leather holster I wouldn't worry about losing the gun and I couldn't care less if my Glock gets wet. Ease of disassembly and maintenance are huge advantages in this case.

Dave Sinko
 
I carry my Glock 27 in one of those flexible nylon insulated drink coolers from WallyWorld. They look like a handbag, so "cooler" is not a very good description, but that is what they are sold for.

I have the Glock sandwiched between two pieces of flotation material scavenged from an old life vest that was no longer serviceable. I strap the whole thing down with my deck bungees. Out of the way, easily accessible and secure.
 
get a stainless steel snubbie and put iit into a ziplock.

Clean and oil afterwards.
 
I also carry mine in the pocket of my PFD in a small dry bag I picked up at Gander Mountain. I specifically picked this PFD for the pockets so as to carry my gun in one pocket and my pocket camera in the other.


42100_R_front_020110_250x250.jpg
 
I'll recommend another alternative, because if you actually dunk a revolver, especially in turbid water with lots of abrasive, suspended sediment (as in most rivers) it's a PITA to completely strip, clean, and re-lube the gun. I like a Glock, as it's easily field stripped without tools, can be cleaned by simply swishing it in clear water, and will run just fine and not rust or corrode immediately without re-lube. I like the Safepacker holster made by The Wilderness in Phoenix, who also make a belt accessory to carry the holster, which is handy if you're wearing a swimsuit or watershorts or similar garments that don't support a conventional belt. The Safepacker holster can be mounted in a number of ways by its versatile attachment options. And, some Glocks come with or can easily be modified (by drilling a hole in the backstrap) to accomodate a lanyard, always a good thing over water. Dry bags are OK, but afford little protection to guns and anything else fragile --- cameras, binocs, etc. --- I use a GI ammo can, brightly painted for easy recovery, which is reliably watertight and crushproof. A more expensive Pelican case would work as well.
 
APS said:
I have a question for the group since I started kayaking recently. ............ Any other ideas out there?
Thanks!
Adam
Click to expand...

Yep, I have an idea. Give up kayaking. You will stay drier, have more disposable income to spend on guns & ammo and you are less likely to get sick or drown from getting wet all the time.
 
oldman45 said:
Yep, I have an idea. Give up kayaking. You will stay drier, have more disposable income to spend on guns & ammo and you are less likely to get sick or drown from getting wet all the time.
Click to expand...
What?!

One of my favorite things is being on the water in my kayak early on a summer morning... with that layer of mist and the quite calm of the still water... :)

Besides, once you have a kayak, it's free to operate!
 
USAF385 said:
What?!

Besides, once you have a kayak, it's free to operate!
Click to expand...

Do you mean it gets to the water free? Or do you have a large body of water in your backyard?

I am old enough and saw enough to know that nothing is free, even after the initial cost.

For years, I was a deer hunter. Loved to hunt. Bought several rifles, loaded my own bullets. Figured the only cost was my annual license. Then I took a good look at my gas card statements for the hunting season. I was paying over $70 a week for gas to get to the $500 yearly lease land. A lot of meat can be bought for what I was paying to shoot my own food.

I bet the same is true for those that paddle a canoe over water.
 
There is a huge reservoir less than 2 miles from my house and a state park with a lake 10 miles away. My truck gets 25mpg. The kayak was less than most of my firearms and doesn't require expensive food. The shooting range is 90 miles round trip and costs ~$300/year. So yeah, I could save big money by cutting one of those activities.

Anyway, I ended up getting one of these from REI:
hipster hip pack :: hip pack :: bags :: Gaia Sports
It's big enough for my 340 and Blackberry (I'm oncall). Hopefully it works out.
 
oldman45 said:
Or do you have a large body of water in your backyard?
Click to expand...
Actually.... yes. I have access to a four acre pond that I visit a few times a year (it's on the land adjacent to mine and touches one corner of my property) and a tributary that leads to the Susquehanna. So.. technically you could say I have access to the Atlantic ocean from my property. :D

I absolutely love the stream... nothing but woods on both sides most of the way and I've never seen another person on it accept for very close to the Susquehanna. It is impossible to get there without getting out of the kayak three times, but that's my kind of kayaking. Sometimes I can't access it from my land if it's been too dry though.

So.. aside form the registration, kayaking can be free for me. :)

I know a few guys who strap their kayak to their roof and head off to some place new each time they go out.. so definitely the cost can add up. You start off with a $300 kayak but if you don't live close to water...

I might be splurging this summer and go on a three day camping / kayaking trip with them. I'm sure it would be loads of fun.. we just have to find a time that works.
 
jfc's comment on dirty river water holds water.... (-:

In the mid to late seventies a model 38 w/ a hip grip was my constant companion when doing my outdoors things...while on a float trip I took a tumble out of a tree overhanging a river. I had to rinse the silt out of the revolver with clear water. I then repeatedly dunked it in kerosene we had for the lanterns hoping to drive out the water and to prevent rust. Three days later surprisingly after removing the cylinder and side plate and repeated flushing w/ mineral spirits I found little debris and no rust. A Glock might be easier to clean in the wild but that model 38 was always an effortless carry.
 
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