: I can barely get may sleeping bag, tent, stove, food,
: mats,...into the holds of a WR164, we do 1-3 day trips in the san juans.

It all comes down to how much do you want to bring with you. I havent' yet camped out of my low-volume Outer Island (and I do plan on doing that before the snow flies), but I'm certain that there's enough space for the usual backpacking gear. Actually, that West River of yours should be able to take an entire backpack's-worth in one hatch. Are you bringing a dutch oven, too?

There's a woman named Star Swift who's doing a circumnavigation of Lake Superior this summer. She's in a flat-decked, low-volume stitch-and-glue kayak that's 17'x20.5" -- probably half the cargo capacity of a West River.

Dean