This is just a quick follow-up to my previous post – I received some positive feedback about the pre-order idea, so now I’ve made it possible to pre-order (backorder) the packraft kits in the Shop. These orders will ship after the fabric arrives. I have already paid the deposit for Read more
TL;DR: Normal order processing times are about a week, but I’m out of fabric, so packraft kits will be unavailable for several months. Sign up here to be notified when kits are in stock. Happy new year! Like many businesses around the world, DIY Packraft has been affected by the Read more
2021 has been a good year for DIY Packraft, but the supply chain problems that have been plaguing the world have caught up with me and I’m sorry to say that the Telkwa, Ultralight, and 2-Person kits are all sold out, and now I have only enough fabric to make Read more
Update: Shipping times are mostly back to normal. You may have seen in the news that the Canadian province of British Columbia, where DIY Packraft is located, has experienced severe flooding and that all the highways and railroads leading to the city of Vancouver have been washed away or buried. Read more
If you’d like to save some money on a DIY Packraft and give to a worthy charity at the same time, you can bid on a $200 (CAD) DIY Packraft coupon at the annual Rotary Club online auction. At the time I write this, there are no bids and the Read more
James Cummins sent me an excellent build report detailing his experience assembling first one, and then another DIY Packraft Telkwa kit. He shares some great lessons and inspiring photos, so please check it out here. If you’d like to read more customer build reports, check out the links near the Read more
Good news for everyone who has been waiting for airtight zippers to be back in stock – they arrived today! Now I’m catching up on backorders and I’ll do my best to ship them as quickly as possible. Thanks for your patience!
Update: offcuts and scraps are now available in limited quantities in the shop on a trial basis. I have a lot of fabric pieces that aren’t useful to me but they could be useful to someone else – things like irregularly shaped off-cuts, end-of-the-roll pieces that are too small to Read more
Updated March 19, 2021 After being out of stock for about half a year, a new shipment of packraft fabric arrived in February and I received a large number of orders as soon as I announced the packraft kits were back in stock. New orders are coming in at a Read more
I am very grateful for the number of people who placed orders immediately after I announced the new fabric shipment had arrived, and now I am working to fulfill the orders as quickly as possible. DIY Packraft is just me (Matt), so it’s taking me several days to respond to Read more
At long last! The Skeena, Telkwa, and 2-Person packraft kits are now available in all colors and sizes, and spray decks and spray skirts are also available. (Bulk fabric sales and Ultralight packraft kits will not be available for the foreseeable future.) Every DIY Packraft kit is custom made by Read more
The past several months have sure tested my patience, but barring further delays, the new DIY Packraft fabric shipment will arrive in 2-3 weeks (early to mid-February). Then I will start making packraft kits again! Orders will be processed in the sequence they are received, so if you’re keen to Read more
The American Packrafting Association is hosting an online whitewater packrafting skills clinic called, “Boat, Don’t Float” presented by Mark Oats. I’m not associated with Mark or the APA, but it looks like a really cool event, so I will be participating and if you’re interested in whitewater paddling, you should Read more
I have just finished editing a “highlights” video from the 30-day solo packrafting/hiking trip I did this past summer, so if you’re interested in seeing what that trip was like, please check it out. I’m also working on a written trip report that includes maps, pictures, and a gear list Read more
Since I announced there had been a delay in the fabric manufacturing process, a number of you have asked to be notified when the Skeena, Telkwa, or 2-Person packraft kits are back in stock. I’m delighted that you’re keen to know when the kits will be available, but I probably Read more
I have returned from my 30-day hiking/packrafting trip and I look forward to sharing the details of this fantastic voyage with you, but first I have a large backlog of emails to respond to and plenty of work to do in order to get the DIY Packraft shop up and Read more
I am embarking on a solo packrafting expedition for several weeks. This is the trip I have been dreaming about for many years, and it’s the reason I started making packrafts in the first place, so in a very real sense, DIY Packraft owes its existence to the idea of Read more
This is just a heads up that tomorrow will be my last trip to the post office before I leave for my month-long packrafting trip, so today is your last opportunity to purchase a fabric sample pack, valve, etc. (packraft kits are already unavailable). I appreciate your patience and understanding!
As mentioned in a previous post, I will be away on a packrafting trip for the month of August and so I will not be processing orders during that time. Because it takes a couple of weeks to make a packraft kit, I must halt orders well in advance of Read more
There are lots of packrafting videos online, but most of them focus on the paddling and don’t show much of the hiking and camping part. I prefer videos that have a bit of a story to them, so I decided to try making one myself. I just walked out my Read more
Thanks to everyone who has supported DIY Packraft over the years! I will be embarking on a solo packrafting expedition for several weeks later this summer. This is the trip I have been dreaming about for many years, and it’s the reason I started making packrafts in the first place, Read more
After Pilotpeat posted a question in the forum about packrafting paddles, I decided to make a permanent page to address the subject in the FAQ. Here’s the paddle page. I also received an email from Kait P. asking about life jackets (“Personal Flotation Devices”), so I started a PFD page Read more
Here are a few pandemic-related questions and their answers (plus a couple of rants), which I will update as things change: Is DIY Packraft still making and shipping packraft kits? Yes! My region has been mercifully spared by the pandemic, so things go on here with few disruptions aside from Read more
