Equipment

Here’s a list of everything that I brought with me. At the start of the trip I had quite a number of other items and ended up with two dry-bags on deck, but that was a total pain not least because the contents never stayed dry. I filtered out the stuff that wasn’t being used and posted it home. This is what I had with me for the whole trip, what got used, or at least what had to be there just in case.

Front Hatch

  • Tapered dry bag (Lomo) containing:
    • Thin fleece pullover
    • T-shirt
    • Long sleeved shirt
    • Trousers
    • 4 pairs pants
    • 2 pairs socks
    • 4 handkerchiefs
    • Thin thermal top
    • 2 x thermal bottoms (Helly Warm)
    • 120 x contact lenses (disposable)
  • Shoes (walking, Goretex)
  • Stove and pan set (Trangia 27):
    • Windshield / outer
    • 2 pans
    • Fry pan / lid
    • Kettle
    • Pan handle
    • Chopping board / strainer / lid
    • Gas conversion burner (only, no meths)
    • Firestick (igniter)
    • Scratchy
    • Dish cloth
    • Washing up liquid (very small pot)
  • Cutlery (nothing special)
  • Gas cylinder (Coleman C500, 70/30% butane/propane)
  • 500ml milk flask
  • Fresh food for 3 days approx.
  • Resealable food / freezer bags, small and medium (for waterproofing and food storage)
  • Roll of pedal bin liners (for waterproofing and rubbish)
  • Roll of parcel tape (for packaging / posting maps etc.)
  • Admiralty charts of selected areas, printed A3 and laminated.
  • West-coast Imray charts C54, C55, C56

Day Hatch

  • First aid kit
  • Small clip-seal box of pills (Paracetamol, Ibuprofen etc.) and 4 contact lenses
  • Maps (10-12 off)
  • General repair kit
  • Lunch box (with sandwiches etc.)
  • Clip-seal food box containing:
    • Wallet
    • USB mains charger (Anker 63W 5-port USB)
  • Throw-tow bag
  • Flares / light sticks
  • Paddle float
  • Buoyancy bag
  • Spare batteries (Energizer Ultimate Lithium 24 x AA and 24 x AAA)
  • Spare VHF radio battery pack
  • Planning kit (pencils, rubber, sharpener, length of string etc.)
  • Hand warmer
  • Hurley tape (for paddle shaft, unused)
  • Reading glasses
  • Head-torch
  • Sun hat
  • Warm hat (Extremities Super Windy Cap)
  • Buff
  • Soda bread loaf

Rear Hatch

  • Tent
  • Tapered dry bag (Lomo) containing:
    • Sleeping bag
    • Silk sleeping bag liner
    • Down jacket
    • Soap
    • Toilet roll
    • Hand towel
  • 10l dry bag containing:
    • Sleeping mat (Thermarest)
    • Wash bag
    • Waterproof trousers
    • Waterproof jacket
  • Water bag (Ortlieb), big enough for 2 days
  • Clip-seal food box containing:
    • USB battery pack (Anker PowerCore+ 26800)
    • iPhone SE (track log using Endomondo app.)
    • Bluetooth headphones (Morul U5)
    • Charging cables for cameras / headphones
    • SD card reader for iPhone (Photofast CR8710)
    • Micro SD to SD card adaptor (for GoPro card)
  • Boat repair kit
  • Length of polyprop. rope (6mm x 10m)
  • Clothes pegs (14 off)
  • IKEA bag
  • 2 backup dehydrated pasta meals (Knorr)
  • 4 backup packets dehydrated noodles (Super Noodles etc.)

4th Hatch

  • Snacks (bananas, fruit/nut mix, muesli bars)
  • Hand compass
  • Satellite tracker (SPOT Gen3)
  • Sunglasses
  • Change of GPS batteries (2 x AA cells)

Cockpit

  • 4 x gas cylinders (2 behind the seat, 2 loose, C500 as above)
  • Storm cag in small drybag (behind the seat, Kokatat)
  • Sponge

Front Deck

  • Knife
  • Map / chart
  • GPS (Garmin Etrex)
  • Paddle leash
  • Spare paddle

Rear Deck

  • Pump
  • Flask (tea)
  • Helmet
  • Video camera (GoPro Hero 5 on Delkin Gecko suction mount with Delkin Kaboom pole)

Buoyancy Aid

  • VHF radio (ICOM M3)
  • PLB (McMurdo FastFind)
  • 2 x cereal bars
  • Water (Platypus)
  • Whistle
  • Still camera (Olympus Tough, TG-2)

Wearing (whilst paddling, not duplicated above)

  • Drysuit (Kokatat Expedition). Several years old. Leaked after after the first 2-3 weeks. Posted to System X for repair.
  • Paddle cagoule (Peak UK for a couple of weeks until it leaked, then a new Yak)
  • Spraydeck (Playboater work deck)
  • Thermal top (Helly warm)
  • Fleece-lined shorts (Peak UK Bagz)
  • Neoprene booties

Notes

  • Of the 5 gas cylinders, I used about 3.5 for 20 nights camping. (This is approximate. On a few occasions I cooked whilst at B&B and on a few other occasions I ate out whilst camping.) One cylinder failed when half-empty, I think due to rust. No stove usage at lunch time.
  • I filled the flask with tea every morning. It stayed hot and was sufficient all day into the evening.
  • I used UHT milk where I could get it. The cartons were too big for one day, so I stored the excess for the next day in the “milk” flask. It generally only kept until the next day.
  • About 42 maps were required for the circumnavigation, all OSI / OSNI 1:50,000. These were in 4 batches, posted to Bushe’s bar (Baltimore), Joe Watty’s bar (Kilronan) and The Lobster Pot (Baltimore). I only carried about 10 or 12 at once.
  • I used 14 of the AA batteries, powering the GPS. The GPS was mostly off most days, but on for crossings.
  • I used only 4 of the AAA batteries. They powered the SPOT tracker and headtorch.
  • The VHF radio was mostly off. The rechargeable pack lasted three-quarters of the trip and I replaced that with the AA pack (8 cells), which easily lasted the remainder.
  • VHF communication with coastguard was particularly unreliable on the west and north-west coasts. Mobile phone coverage was good enough for voice everywhere, except for a few places in Donegal. I mostly phoned the coastguard to leave / close TRs.