Atlin and length questions

[krafter]

A couple of questions:
1. How is the bow of the Atlin more stable/more bikepacking-friendly?

2. Does it suffer in any way (speed) from not having a pointy bow?

3. I read the article on how to choose packraft length – is there any reason not to go for the longest packraft and just have the added space in case? Does the yawing become worse?

Topic

[BobDep]

You’re welcome, good luck with the build, I found it a lot of fun . And really satisfying and versatile on the water, adventure awaits!

[krafter]

Placed the order for the Atlin! Thanks @BobDep for your help!

[Matt (Admin)]

I second BobDep’s advice 🙂

[BobDep]

Oh and to answer your question, I haven’t had Ben and the bike on the raft at the same time , he’s a fairly large dog and I wouldn’t run him for 30 – 40 km so it’s one or the other ..

Bob

[BobDep]

Hey , good evening… i pretty much went through the same thought process as you are at the moment . It’s true there’s no one  raft that’s going to get everything done well .
so what I decided was I would build my bike rafting set up first ( make sure I could accommodate Ben, and enough gear for 4/5 days out )  bike raft my local rivers  for quick micro adventures and also have the raft for fishing alpine lakes with him, and get used to running more and more turbulent waters , in the future , now that I know I love it … I do plan on building another raft , probably a lightweight for those fast and light trips .

With regards to other rafts  I’ve only used inflatable kayaks.
My advice would be to get the Atlin.  Get the zip and dry bags .
The only downside I could think of was the fact you wouldn’t get a spray deck .
Bob

[krafter]

Thanks! Two more questions for you (I don’t know if you’ve tried the Skeena, but you said you’ve used other kayaks, so…) – which of these would you say is better playing the “as a” role?

a. The Atlin as a general-purpose packraft (mostly lake paddling and possibly occasional class 1-2 WW in the future, <50% bikerafting)

b. The Skeena as a bikeraft, same conditions as above.

Also, nice on the dog partnership 🙂 – that’s a thought on my mind too. How big is the dog, and can you get both a bike and the dog on the packraft at the same time?

[BobDep]

Good morning, mostly flat water and grade 1-2 is what I’ve had experience with over the last couple of months , , if I were to tackle grade 3 I’d probably get out and portage that section given my current experience , that’s not to say that the raft couldn’t handle it , I’d just be cautious.
The Atlin does seem to be very forgiving  and the learning curve over the summer has been swift , so hopefully next spring I’ll try a few more turbulent sections.
I don’t regret my choice in raft .
lots of fun , and easy to build.

[krafter]

Thanks for the response! Do you do mostly flatwater (lakes) or rivers?

Also, do you think it works well as a general-purpose packraft? Say bikepacking < 50% of the time, future class 1/2 rapids possibly. I’m looking to use it as a raft on lakes mostly though, with or without bikes.

[BobDep]

Hey, here’s my experience.

1 – more surface area to strap heavy items on the bow  and a little tucked up off the waterline to give increased floatation and control.

2-I personally have seen no difference in speed compared to kayaks I’ve paddled with.
3- My Atlin tracks really well  .

I went for the 147 because I bring my dog along too . There’s tones of room for gear .

[Author]

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