Across the Southwest / Adam Schallau

On my recent river trip down the Rio Grande River through Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park I carried with me my Canon 5D along with 4 lenses, the 17-40mm f/4L, 24-70mm f/2.8L, 70-200mm f/4L IS, and the 300mm f/4L IS. In addition I had numerous filters, extra batteries, and of course memory cards. My biggest concern on the trip was water. I was going to be surrounded by it for three days navigating through rapids and hopefully I wouldn’t capsize the canoe.

The guide service that I hired would be providing dry bags for my clothing, tent, and sleeping bag, but I needed something more to protect my camera gear. I contacted Lowepro and told them what I was going to be doing and they graciously provided my with a DryZone 200 AW camera bag.

If you’re not familiar with the DryZone series of bags let me give you a quick run-down. The DryZone bags are soft sided camera backpacks that feature a waterproof inner compartment known as a drypod that is sealed with a TIZIP™ zipper. This bag will float even when fully loaded!The real test of the DryZone bag came on the last day of my trip as we made our way into the deepest section of Santa Elena Canyon. Allow me to set the scene for you.

I have experience canoing on day-trips, but not on multi-day trips when the canoe is loaded down with lots of gear and it’s not as easy to maneuver. Strike 1!

The river makes several sharp turns in this part of the canyon where the water runs right up against the canyon wall, what our guide Billy referred to as a “wall shot”. You have to be prepared and position your canoe in advance for the “wall shots”, otherwise you’ll be in for a rough ride. Strike 2!

Santa Elena Canyon is strikingly beautiful. Everywhere you looked, up to the left, up to the right, and even behind you there was something new and magnificent to see. Strike 3, you’re out!

I’m sure you’ve guessed by now that we went right into the canyon wall. I guess I should have paid attention to where we were going. We slammed into it broadside and even though we leaned into the wall it wasn’t enough to keep the canoe from rocking back towards the current. In the process we took on a lot of water eventually filling the canoe and submerging the DryZone. I have no idea how we stayed afloat, but we did. The canoe spun around 180 degrees with us going backwards through some fast water. I was having a blast and best of all I didn’t have to worry about my equipment because it was securely packed away in the DryZone. We eventually got everything under control and pulled the canoe up against a gravel bar to bail the water out.

There are some drawbacks to the DryZone such as the TIZIP™ zipper takes more force to open and close, but I can live with it seeing as how it is a waterproof zipper. It’s also very deep which moves the center of gravity farther from your back. I wouldn’t use the DryZone as an everyday pack, but then again it’s not meant to be used that way.

I feel that the pack saved the day and was happy to use it. I consider it mandatory equipment for any future river trips or a hike up the Zion Narrows.

I’d like to thank Lowepro for their sponsorship and for making a great product.