The Packraft Handbook (English)

Available in English only

The Packraft Handbook is a comprehensive guide to packrafting, with a strong emphasis on skill progression and safety. Readers will learn to manoeuvre through river features and open water, mitigate risk with trip planning and boat control, and react when things go wrong. Especially for whitewater packrafters the Handbook is a must read. Even though not absolutely necessary, also beginners and calm water packrafters might find some interesting details about packrafting in general. The Packraft Handbook is a great guide for any packrafter who wants to improve their skills and knowledge.

The Handbook offers 432 pages of well explained instructions to the topic, complemented by 150 detailed illustrations as well as stunning photography. The illustrations and graphics make the guide ideal for visual learners.

“This is the book we’ve all been waiting for. It is both approachable for newcomers and deep enough to satisfy experts. I know that I will refer back to it often as I continue to develop my own skills.” – Joseph Bell, President, American Packrafting Association

Content:

• Risk Assessment
• Boat Control
• Paddling rivers and open water
• Safety and rescue
• Equipment and repair
• Overnighters and trip-planning

About the author: Luc Mehl
Luc grew up on the Kuskokwim River, McGrath, Alaska, and returned to Alaska after completing graduate programs at MIT and UCSB. When he is not playing outside, Luc works in the environmental sciences and an outdoor skills instructor. Luc has traveled 10,000 miles of Alaska by packraft, ski, foot, bike, and ice skat. Luc serves on the education committee of the American Packraft Association and is a certified instructor for the Swiftwater Safety Institute.

About the illustrator: Sarah K. Glaser
Sarah grew up in a log cabin near Kenai Lake in Moose Pass, Alaska, and is currently transplanted to (and in love with) Anchorage. Sarah works in illustration, where she is delighted to make quirky ideas come to life, whether it’s the Mountain Man of Alaska calendar, books on packrafting safety, or illustrated maps. Sarah became immersed in whitewater kayaking at Bowdoin College in Maine. After taking the American Whitewater Association course under the tutelage of director Mike Woodruff, she ditched her senior year honors project so that she could teach pool sessions and explore New England’s whitewater rivers. Sarah graduated without honors and without regrets!