When I lost my job with the federal government following mass terminations this past February, I unexpectedly found myself living out of a storage unit. This change in circumstance caused a rethink of the foolish expectations I had formed as a novice rafter, which I had never questioned. I believed that in order to boat, a garage and a trailer were non-negotiable. How could anyone store their gear without these two basics, I wondered.

My how the mighty have fallen.

The rafting crew I initially began boating with were mellow multiday Oregon boaters. Deschutes, the John Day, the Rogue and even the occasional Owyhee River trip. These dudes were princesses. Or rather, they treated their rafts as such. They exclusively trailered their boats. Over several years of boating together, I never once saw any of their rafts rolled or disassembled beyond the occasional cooler or dry box clean. Frames with hand-cut wood decks never came off. Rafts were never deflated. These men and their methods were my role models. 

As a result, when I had to hustle to sell my trailer, pack up my life (including my multiday raft kit) and move across the state of Oregon to mooch off my dad and his fully furnished—and packed—garage, my only option was to puzzle my giant raft kit into my SUV and rent a storage unit. After a handful of months using these new systems, the initial fog of disillusionment lifted and sunny skies of gratitude to even get the opportunity to raft at all finally appeared. 

Honestly, the rig and de-rig shuffle isn’t that bad. And lots of friends have generously let me be the third boat in their triple stack, thereby saving me the trouble of rigging from scratch at put-in. 

Luckily, I learned I am not the only one who’s faced these storage and transport dilemmas. Read on to learn how three boaters manage small space storage—without killing the joy of getting on the water. 

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PH: Paxton Hall, Senior Developer Community Manager at Amazon. Seattle, WA. 

SH: Seth Harriff, Healthcare Information Systems Manager. Portland, OR. 

KK: Kyle Keys, Digital Media Leader. Denver, CO. 

Q: How long have you been rafting / what’s your whitewater rap sheet?
PH: I went on a rafting trip on the Kennebec River in college back in 2011, which was a blast. But I’ve only just started getting back into it in the last four years. I’m still pretty inexperienced, but really excited to explore more rivers in Washington, where I reside. 

SH: I restarted rafting about five years ago, but I originally started in the 1990s. 

KK: I’ve been rafting for about two years, but I’ve been whitewater kayaking for over seven years. 

Q: Why did you decide to get into rafting and acquire mass quantities of whitewater gear even though you have limited and/or less-than-ideal space to store it? 
PH: Our best friends from college moved to Missoula in 2020 and picked up a couple of intro whitewater inflatable kayaks (IKs). They started floating the Clark Fork and the Blackfoot, among other rivers, and started bringing us along on visits from Washington. 

On one of our first day trips, I was actually on a paddleboard on a section of the Blackfoot, while my wife and friends were in IKs. I had brought along my camera (a used Sony A7III I bought from a Western Washington University professor through Craigslist earlier that year) in a dry bag. Foolishly, I kept the camera out of the bag through a rapid, got knocked off my board and, despite my best efforts, the camera went for a swim. We tried to rice it back to life, but no luck. I lost a camera, but was totally enchanted with my friends’ IKs and whitewater. 

I was hooked, and hell-bent on buying a couple used whitewater IKs. My wife and I have always lived in small spaces since college, so we knew we’d figure out how to store whitewater gear.  

SH: I grew up in southern Oregon and spent time on the Rogue and other local rivers growing up. After a several-decade hiatus, I went on a commercial trip with my son, and we were both hooked (again, in my case). R2ing transitioned to rowing, and the teen paddled an IK, which then turned into overnights and a bigger raft. I’m a single dad; in my experience, whitewater is a great way to spend time with kids where everyone is really having fun. The trade-off for storing gear in small spaces is negligible. 

KK: I got into whitewater sports back in college in San Marcos, Texas, where I learned to kayak on the San Marcos River. I picked up rafting later as a way to share the river with my partner and friends who weren’t ready for kayaking. I decided to invest in rafting gear to make those shared experiences possible. To make storage manageable, I split a storage unit with a close friend—both to save on cost and keep things organized. 

Q: Have you always stored your gear in a small spot? Or did you downsize at some point? And why? 
PH: We’ve always lived in small spaces. College towns and big cities aren’t known for having cheap rent. When we first moved to Seattle, we lived in a 500 sq. ft. one-bedroom apartment for about five years. It was an awesome spot, but the small space did present a challenge as we acquired more and more gear to fully explore the Cascades. 

We got creative. Shelves and IKEA came in clutch! Also, I’m lucky my wife loves to do all this stuff outside too and doesn’t mind tastefully displaying some of our gear. We’ve since moved to a slightly bigger apartment, about 1,000 sq. ft. It’s actually the unit directly upstairs from our old place in this cool house built in the 1920s in Seattle, subdivided into five apartments. It’s bigger, but still a one-bedroom apartment. We share our room with our six-month-old daughter. Her crib is right underneath the open-air rafters where all of our skis (including her future skis) and river gear is stored. Luckily, she’s a great sleeper! 

SH: Since I resumed rafting, I’ve always stored it in this same small space in my house. I’ve considered getting a storage unit as my gear collection has grown. But I like having everything close at hand, so I haven’t done it. 

KK: I’ve always stored my gear in a relatively compact setup. I use a dedicated storage unit to keep everything organized and accessible. Space has always been limited, so I’ve learned how to make the most of what I have. 

Q: What is your favorite part about rafting? What makes the storage juggle worth the carrot?
PH: I love being out on the river, with friends and nothing to do but catch up and be in nature. It’s not quite as disconnected as it probably used to be, but it’s certainly harder to be on your phone out there. I think one of the best ways to deepen friendships or establish new ones is to do stuff outside together, preferably something over four hours. You talk and bond on a deeper level, I think, versus just grabbing a drink in town together. 

SH: I enjoy the serenity of a remote float and the adrenaline of whitewater in equal measure. A trip that combines elements of both is ideal. 

KK: Getting first-timers out on the river. There’s nothing like being the one to introduce someone to whitewater and lead them through an epic day on the water. I love being the “captain” and setting the tone for adventure. 

Q: Is it ever annoying assembling and disassembling gear? Do you have a trailer? 
PH: Deflating and drying out the gear is just part of the process and it’s definitely harder in a small space. I’d love to have a big garage with winches and a big work table someday… But until then, you can’t let having a small space stop you from doing what you love! So what if your IK is taking up part of your living room while it air dries?!

SH: I’ve never had a trailer. It all fits in the back / on top of my old SUV. My routine is to assemble and disassemble the gear before and after each trip. It does take a little extra time and planning, but I don’t mind those trade-offs. Among other things, it’s a great mechanism to make sure your gear is clean, dry, frequently inspected and well maintained. Once you’ve done it a few times, the set up and teardown goes pretty quickly. A well-oiled machine, literally and figuratively. 

KK: I don’t currently own a trailer since most of my setups are for R2 and kayaking, but I plan to get one once I have a frame and a better place to store it. For now, sure, rigging and de-rigging can be a chore, but it’s worth it for days on the water. 

Q: Is there anything else you want to add to this topic? 
SH: I have two rafts, frames, oars, two IKs, paddles, and gear for extended overnights stored in a 4’ x 11’ room. With a little organization, planning, and a bit of extra time, I don’t think a small living and storage space should be a barrier to owning and rowing a boat (or two). 

KK: Gear maintenance and storage are super important to me. I always clean and store my dry suits carefully and keep my raft bagged when not in use. I also 303 my raft at the end of every season to help preserve the rubber and prolong its life. It’s all about keeping your investments in good shape. 

Q: What is your favorite river? 
PH: Has to be the Blackfoot in western Montana. 

SH: I’m not sure I can pick just one. I love the Rogue, the McKenzie, the Siuslaw and the Clackamas. The Grande Ronde and the Owyhee, too. I’ve got trips planned on the Middle Fork of the Salmon and the Main Salmon this summer. So I may need to add to my list shortly. ‘Favorite’ is just not going to be possible to say. 

KK: For kayaking: Clear Creek, especially the Kermit’s section. For rafting: the Arkansas River, particularly Browns Canyon.

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Photos courtesy of K.M. Collins, Kyle Keys, Paxton Hall, and Seth Harriff.