Gateway to Fun
We like to make a very enthusiastic welcome to Alpacka Packrafts to the Cali Collective family! If you haven’t heard about packrafts…well holy moly…you are totally missing out! In the spring of this year, we ran an Introduction to Whitewater class for a woman who had gone packrafting in New Zealand, fell in love with it so when she came back to the California and bought one for herself. She had an Alpacka, which is what she brought to the class, and of course being total gearheads, we had to check them out…
“But wait! What’s a packraft?”, you ask. A packraft is “a small, portable inflatable boat designed for use in all bodies of water, including technical whitewater and ocean bays and fjords. A packraft is designed to be light enough to be carried for extended distances.”
Okay, back to our story…
We were so impressed with the responsiveness of the boat, and durable lightweight construction, we contacted Alpacka straight away and ordered a couple Gnarwhals (their reinforced whitewater craft), and started using them on our clinics and trips.
From beginners nervous to be in a hard shell kayak to expert paddlers who are interested in trying out something new, everyone has been STOKED on this craft! They’re stable, yet maneuverable, comfortable, fun to surf and handle well in pushier whitewater. We were so stoked on our packrafts, we even loaded them in our suitcases and brought them to New Zealand (hang tight for photos!).
A little bit about the manufacturer-
Alpacka Raft started by making packrafts in the USA in the fall of 2000 as a collaboration between Sheri Tingey, the design genius behind all of our products, and her son, Thor. Thor had just completed a 600-mile packrafting traverse of Alaska’s Brooks Range and had some ideas for how to make a better-performing packraft.
And dang did they ring the bell on that one!
You can try out one of these super fun crafts at any of our clinics or trips throught our season. Contact us at [email protected] for more details.
All words and images copyright California Women’s Watersport Collective 2019. All rights reserved.
