My two cents:

Mental toughness, combined with power/strength, endurance and good balance = a good portager.  Intelligence and experience are assumed in this equation.

I'm not sure there is an ideal body size for canoe tripping.  I've seen big, tough football-player types that were wimps on portages.  My wife and other women I have traveled with in the far north, on trips of over six weeks in length, are only in the 5-2 to 5-4 range and have done portages of around three miles in length.

I'm 5-10 and 155 pounds, 49 years old, and have yet to meet someone my age that can carry an 80-pound Old Town Tripper like I do.  Not bragging, but just stating a fact. 

I throw a ball like a girl, though .

Like anything physical, it's more a matter of skill and conditioning that comes from spending a LOT of time on the trail.

Mountain_Paddler wrote on Feb 28^th, 2011 at 5:48am:


M_P - the only comment I'd add to all the other good posts regarding your trip is to acknowledge the obvious -- you're going to have less daylight on a fall trip.  Means less light for paddling and more dark in camp.  I like to bring a small lantern of some kind on fall trips, as I spend more time reading in my tent than during spring/summer trips.

prouboy

Quote:

I'll second that.

Aside from the general conditioning, I target my shoulders.  These are the first muscles to ache when portaging a 70# canoe and always seem to give out before legs, lungs, etc.  Experimenting with homemade yokes pads has helped to increase comfort level.  Another thing can be said about pack comfort.  If the pack transfers the weight of the contents properly to your torso and is comfortable, then amount of weight becomes relative.  For this purpose I've enjoyed the backpackers style packs for the heavier content.  Those having internal frames has helped them fit the canoe.  By removing the forward thwart, they easily lay in, 2 side by side lengthwise with the canoe and remain below the gunnels.

Other things being equal, good conditioning results in less time over the portages and an ambition to continue on when others are experiencing fatigue.  It is important to have that extra bit of reserve at the days end to prepare camp and offer leadership to your trip mates.  Energy level is a factor with mental toughness.

-YB

I think a good yoke pad is a big thing. Use a good one and you'll never settle for a thin hard foam pad again. Although some people swear by the countered all wood yokes that are cut to distribute weight across your back and shoulders.

As for exercises, Overhead presses with dumbbells are good, but just simple shoulder shrugs with the same are great too.

Just keep dumbbells close to sides of body and " turtle" up and then shrug your shoulders back and lower. Start light, maybe 10# or so and do a few sets of 8-12, every other day. Work you way up to say 20-25lbs.

Unless you doing a lot of serious overhead/neck work like a football player, you'll find these smaller muscles in "normal'" people fatigue quicker than you might think.

Better yet IF your with a partner and he insists on the thin pads, you carry the  heavy pack and let him carry the canoe