Still scrambling to find holiday gifts for the river runners on your list? Here’s our list of gear that any river runners would appreciate—all of which you can likely find at your local hardware, discount, or sporting goods store. We found most of the picks on our list either at REI or Target (the links here are to items that we have or similar ones. Some are affiliate links, meaning we earn commission if you buy something, but at no cost to you). But you can probably find them at any sporting goods store.

Luci solar lanterns lighting path in camp
Luci lights make great gifts because you can never have too many
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Table of Contents

1. First-aid kit

Every river runner could use a new, freshly stocked first-aid kit. It never hurts to have more than one, especially smaller kits that can be used as back-up and carried by kayakers or stand-up paddleboarders. Another related idea is to furnish a resupply of frequently depleted first-aid staples such as bandages, ibuprofen, and antiseptic ointment.

First aid kit for river trips
Replacing or restocking a well-worn first aid kit is a gift any river runner would appreciate

2. Water bottle with a latch

Keeping hydrated while you’re paddling seems simple enough, but not if you can’t easily reach your water bottle during the day. If you have an inflatable kayaker or paddleboarder on your list, a water bottle like this Contigo with a clip that can attach to a strap keeps water close at hand. A carabiner works, too. But since carabiners often get swiped for other duties, having a water bottle with a built-in clip is clutch.

Contigo water bottle with clip
This Contigo water bottle has a handy clip for attaching to straps other gear on the boat to keep water handy for paddlers

3. Solar lights

You can never have too many Luci lights on a river trip. We bring more than a dozen on most trips and use them to light the kitchen area, mark a path to the groover, simulate a cheery campfire when there’s a fire ban in place, and generally create a festive atmosphere. The variations on solar lanterns just keep coming: Check out these nifty dragonfly solar string lights, which we think are worth the extra space they’ll take up in the dry box.

Luci solar lantern
You can never have too many Luci lights on a river trip

4. Water filter

Every river runner could use some kind of water filtering device to supplement the fresh water supply carried on the rafts. In addition to bringing some water bottles with built-in filters (like this LifeStraw Play Water Filter Bottle), we also bring a larger hanging filter like this MSR MiniWorks EX.

Most of the Western desert trips we run (like any section of the Green River in Utah) have silty, filter-clogging water. So on those trips, we plan to bring all our water in 5-gallon jugs. But we always have a water filter on hand as a back-up in case we go through water faster than we thought we would, or disaster strikes and a jug gets spilled or tainted with river water.

And sometimes we plan to supplement our jug water if we know we’ll have access to a clear feeder creek along the way. For example, On Desolation Canyon, we often filter water at Rock Creek during a long lunch stop, hanging it in a tree and letting gravity do the work while we cool off in the clear, icy water. Having an additional way to get more drinkable water (besides bringing jugs) gives more peace of mind.

MSR hanging water filter
Our hanging water filter packs up into a small bag and filters a lot of water quickly.

5. Thin stackable plates

Our kitchen gear scheme specifies that whichever raft hauls the kitchen gear brings enough dishes for everyone. (See our tips on planning river trip meals here.) Having super-thin, stackable plates cuts down on space in the dry box. We bought ours in the summer seasonal section at Target years ago. These plates from Target look fairly similar, and they’re BPA free.

Thin stackable plastic plates for camping
Thin, stackable plates take up less space in the dry box

6. Neck gaiters

This would have been the year to own stock in Buffs, right? When the pandemic first bore down, every outdoorsy person I knew tapped their supply of neck gaiters, which turned out to be just as handy when worn as a Covid mask as they were when used for sun protection.

Now that the supply chain for essentials like toilet paper and mask-like items has normalized, you can once again buy Buffs or other brands of neck gaiters at sporting goods stores. And whatever they end up being used for in 2021, river runners always need more neck gaiters.

Woman with cloth neck gaiter
Audrey with a neck gaiter as mask on our hike from Aspen to Crested Butte—and unmasked Tully

7. River games

It’s always good to have a communal game that everyone can play in the evening while the cook crew is slaving away—or as an after-dinner way to unwind. Our favorite pick is glow-in-the-dark bocce, especially on a nice sandy beach, because a nearly unlimited number of people can play. (We’ve only seen this on Amazon, but you might find something similar at your local Target.) We also like these big wooden yard dice that you can use to play all sorts of games.

Glow in the dark bocce
Glow-in-the-dark bocce is our favorite river game

8. Square storage bags

These Mountainsmith Basic Cube bags are excellent for organizing gear in your dry box. They are very, well, cubic, so they don’t waste any space. Use them to store dishes, dishwashing items—anything that you want to keep corralled together. They are easy to tote around and cut down on multiple round trips to the boat to get bits of random stuff.

Mountainsmith Basic Cube storage
Mountainsith Basic Cube keeps random gear corralled into logic groups in your dry box

9. Chicky pails

We talked about how much we love chicky pails in our post on essential river kitchen gear. These simple metal buckets are indispensable on river trips as they can be used for many purposes besides doing dishes. And they are easy to find at your local hardware store..

Metal buckets
Chicky pails (simple metal buckets) are indispensable on river trips

10. Whistle

Does everyone in your crew have a whistle for signaling? This Vargo Titanium Emergency Whistle is tiny but mighty, and is pretty much indestructible. Buy one for your own life jacket, and buy several more for your river-running friends and family.

This Vargo Titanium whistle is tiny but mighty

Consider this list of last-minute gift ideas for the river runners on your list as just a starting point. Especially when you start thinking about gear that is even better in multiples (like Luci lights), you’ll come up with plenty of ideas. This list gives you a solid place to start, and your shopping can probably start and end at your local REI or Target.

The best thing about these gifts is they’ll start everyone thinking about next year’s river trips—the greatest gift of all.

Read more about river gear

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