Weatherproof Gear Boxes and Cases

[Glenn MacGrady]

What kind of weatherproof hard box or case do you use to keep water and other weather from your electronics, photographic equipment, camp kitchen, or just any gear in general?

This article lists some options:

Best Nine Gear Boxes For Camping Canoeists

Weather-proof cases of all sizes to protect your camp kit.

paddlingmag.com

I use a small Pelican box for my non-waterproof P&S camera when I take that.



Otherwise, I've never used any sort of hard box or case. I just use my Duluth Monarch pack with a waterproof eVent liner, plus a small roll-top day pack.

 

[Mason]

I've used a Pelican case for my camera gear for over 40 years. Before that an inflatable Phoenix camera case. I first saw a Pelican case at Bull's Sluice (Class IV) on the Chattooga in 1980. A photographer was shooting rafters going over the drop. When they were through, he tossed the case into the river and then swam it to the other side. I figured that was the case for me!!

 

[Alan Gage]

plus a small roll-top day pack.

I took along a handheld recorder/microphone and kept it in its own small roll top dry bag. I clipped it to the thwart behind my seat so it would be easy to access and would be held right side up and out of any bilge water.

I opened the bag after an all day rain and found the recorder was soaked and ruined. I can only assume the water slowly wicked its way past the folds and into the bag. Or maybe the material (waterproofed nylon) wasn't as waterproof as I thought.

Alan

 

[jdeerfoot]

I like Otter boxes for the protection they provide, but have learned you need to keep the gaskets clean. And if you use more than a few they can be bulky to pack.

A number of years ago on a trip I stopped at the Old Town factory. In the company store they had a plastic box about the size of a wanigan. I don't recall the name but it was widely used and available. As I recall it had a closeout price of about $50 which I thought was favorable. I am sorry I didn't buy it but I didn't think I could get it home on an airliner.

 

[Pseudonym]

I have both sizes of NRS boxes mentioned in the article. They're great but not 100% waterproof when submerged or floating in a river. Perfect for a camp kitchen but not electronics.

While it's not a box, I can't recommend the Yeti Sidekick enough because it has replaced my comparably sized small Otter/Pelican boxes. I can get in and out of it faster and with just one hand. I use it for my binoculars and other small items like my phone. I usually keep my phone in my PFD front pocket (on a lanyard for easy access for photography) but just before any big rapid it's easy to toss my phone into the Sidekick where its just a little safer, in case I end up taking a swim.

 

[Mississippi Mud]

I have both sizes of NRS boxes mentioned in the article. They're great but not 100% waterproof when submerged or floating in a river. Perfect for a camp kitchen but not electronics.

While it's not a box, I can't recommend the Yeti Sidekick enough because it has replaced my comparably sized small Otter/Pelican boxes. I can get in and out of it faster and with just one hand. I use it for my binoculars and other small items like my phone. I usually keep my phone in my PFD front pocket (on a lanyard for easy access for photography) but just before any big rapid it's easy to toss my phone into the Sidekick where its just a little safer, in case I end up taking a swim.

I have the smaller NRS box as well and, as you said, it's great for a camp kitchen. It's good to hear about the Yeti Sidekick; I was thinking about picking one up for just that use.

 

[kahel]

Honestly?
The boxes are simply far too expensive for me. And they're also very bulky.

So I only have a small no-name waterproof box for my camera that does its job quite well.

 

[Mississippi Mud]

Honestly?
The boxes are simply far too expensive for me. And they're also very bulky.

So I only have a small no-name waterproof box for my camera that does its job quite well.

Different usages/trip styles come into play here, I think. I'm not usually on rivers that require anything more than one short portage, such as a low water bridge or a downed tree. Most of my trips are on calmer rivers (Class I/easy II's), so that affords me a heavier load, and I like to cook in camp. The more difficult the river, the lighter I pack.

Those boxes are pricey, though. Mine was a Father's Day present from my son a few years ago, and, even then, it was on sale.

 

[Mason]

Honestly?
The boxes are simply far too expensive for me. And they're also very bulky.

So I only have a small no-name waterproof box for my camera that does its job quite well.

View attachment 141230

When I was serious about photography, I'd carry two camera bodies (35mm or DSLRs) and lenses to 400mm, totalling up to 25 pounds of gear (plus tripod). With portages. Depends on what you need. Now I use a P&S in a small padded case inside a small dry bag. Lots of options for different uses.

 

[ppine]

I have one good Pelican case for camera equipment, but I usually don't bring it on river trips.
I don't bring a phone or other electronics.

 

[Gamma1214]

Despite the fact that neither my phone nor my 2 main cameras are waterproof, I don't use anything other than roll-up drybags and a clear plastic, floating phone case from Cabela's (on a lanyard & tied to the seat beside me). When it's raining, I try to keep one camera in the pack and the other in a sheltered location within reach but I've had them get wet and stop working. (so far, a few days in the dehydrator has restored them)

I don't buy expensive equipment and consider destroying one once in awhile to be just part of the game that we play. I'd be more upset about dropping it overboard and losing the sd card.

 

[SouthernKevlar]

I just use good old fashioned dry bags. They have always worked well for me.

 

[scoutergriz]

I have an otterbox for my GPS and camera, everything else goes in a drybag or barrel, never had a water issue in either BUT, I'm fastidious in keeping the barrel gasket clean and lubricated (I use armour all cleaner followed by armour all protectant), and in how I close my drybags (3/4 full max, no wrinkles, a "z" fold, followed by rolling), worked for me for decades. One bag survived an unauthorized trip down the 7 sisters on the Moon without a drop inside...

 

[Rubbaboo]

I have an aversion to blue barrels and finally bit the bullet and picked up a 30l Yeti pack out and retrofitted an old harness for it, Being flat it feels way better on the back than a blue back breaker and it definitely is a better use of space than the barrel in the boat and it doesn’t roll around! It fits behind the seat sideways in my Monarch and without the harness on it slides a good ways under the deck. For most trips it will probably not wear its harness and will ride on top of a Duluth with a couple of hand straps to help keep its balance while portaging.
Zero buyers remorse.
They make a 60l pack out now, just need my numbers to come up.

 

[Robin]

When I canoe/camp with my wall tent/wood stove I use a wanigan made of 1/4” plywood. It’s got a foam gasket around the lid and two leather straps to hold the lid tight. It’s basically waterproof, but I have never tested it. It carries a lot of stuff, it’s easy to over do it, and is really handy as a table inside the tent.


On a portage trip I don’t bring the box, and my camera is a little point and shoot that I carry in my pocket wrapped in a zip lock. The Go Pro stays clamped to my spare paddle on a bicycle handle bar mount.
That point and shoot takes good enough pics for me and is always handy for spur of the moment shots ( like my avatar)

 

[jdeerfoot]

Not exactly waterproof, but water resistant as long as it stays upright. These are no longer produced but apparently popular as I have gotten offers to sell it. Handy for bulky gears like stoves, lanterns,etc.

 

[Boatman53]

That looks like the box Gil Gilpatrick shows how to build in one of his books ‘ The Canoe Guides Handbook’ .
Jim