Gear carry weight

[rancid waders]

We continue to look for lighter material and have shaved grams off rod components and blank walls.
I'm not hearing much from the industry side on breakthrough weight reduction on cutting down carry weight of all our gear, boxes, lead , wader weight, boots etc. Food for thought

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

Experience has directed me to stop packing for every possible contingency, so I shed weight by leaving stuff I'm not expecting to use at home or in the car.

 

[Mike]

I’ve never concerned myself with gear weight when fishing except for one striped bass rod that makes me appreciate a lighter weight rod after about 6 hours of jigging and the number of spare 2.5-4 oz pyramid sinkers carried in my bucket when surf fishing. Generally though, I guess I’m not carrying enough stuff for weight to be noticed.

 

[jifigz]

I love the Tacky boxes, but gosh are they heavy. I have been using a vest most of this year and I am feeling the weight. I used to be much more minimalistic in what I carried and I think I need to get back to those days.

Less flies, less choices, less stuff, etc. Just keep it light and simple and have fun.

 

[sixfootfenwick]

I love the Tacky boxes, but gosh are they heavy. I have been using a vest most of this year and I am feeling the weight. I used to be much more minimalistic in what I carried and I think I need to get back to those days.

Less flies, less choices, less stuff, etc. Just keep it light and simple and have fun.

This is what Iam currently in the process of doing and have been getting better at the last few years.

Smaller pack, less stuff, it's much nicer IMO.

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear rancid waders,

Like many people I always seemed to be carrying 3 times the amount of gear that I needed while still missing some things I wished I had.

I've been working on using smaller packs and sling bags and carrying a large duffle bag with everything I think I might need in my truck. I swap boxes around when I need to and generally manage to get by with what I take with me to start.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂

 

[rancid waders]

Yes Tim. Same process, I have a few "mother boxes" arranged by technique/species then size.

If I am carrying an assortment of shot I will never use a mile back and forth I think rod weight is kind of insignificant.Your mileage may vary

 

[Bamboozle]

Weight isn't a factor for me...

For decades all of my fishing gear is organized in various gear bags by the type of fishing and in that bag is the tackle I use. In other words I only transport what I need for the type of fishing planned.

For example, I have a bag specifically for fly fishing small streams for trout. In that is my shoulder bag with the single fly box I carry and other necessary gear. When I plan to do that kind of fishing, I grab a reel or two, put them in the bag, grab a rod and go fishing.

I have a different bag I take when I'm planning on fly fishing for trout on larger streams. In that bag is my Richardson Box and a belt with pouches that goes around my waist and holds other essentials like floatant, hemostats, etc.

I have separate bag for spin fishing for bass, one for bait casting for bass, yet another for bait fishing for panfish, and a single large bag where I store my gear for Tenkara, BFS & micro fishing. Each bag has what I need in it including a fishing hat, license, fishing pliers, etc. so no gear swapping between bags is necessary.

When I'm on the water I'm somewhat of a minimalist so the way I carry that gear varies from a belt with pouches around my waist, a shoulder bag or a chest pack. I haven't worn a vest since the late 1980's and folks using backpacks and carrying multiple rods make me chuckle... 😉

It's definitely more expensive doing it my way but I never forget anything and I don't have to carry 1000 lbs of stuff in the back of my SUV which is a good thing for a lot of reasons.

 

[teedee]

I also use a separate pack depending on the type of fishing I’m going to do.
Saves hauling things you’re not going to use.

 

[poopdeck]

Weight has never been a concern of mine. My water bottles and lunch weigh more than my gear. I only carry a rod and a few small fly boxes that contain general flies that cover every base. I’ve yet to think I wasn’t catching fish because I wasn’t carrying enough flies.

 

[troutbert]

We continue to look for lighter material and have shaved grams off rod components and blank walls.
I'm not hearing much from the industry side on breakthrough weight reduction on cutting down carry weight of all our gear, boxes, lead , wader weight, boots etc. Food for thought

Lighter lead? Hmmm, something to think about.

 

[rrt]

I wish I were a minimalist, but I'm a 73-yr-old packhorse. My loaded vest weighs over 8 pounds. I can't imagine what I'd leave out of it.

As I said, I wish....

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

I wish I were a minimalist, but I'm a 73-yr-old packhorse. My loaded vest weighs over 8 pounds. I can't imagine what I'd leave out of it.

As I said, I wish....

Good for you! Weight-training at your age!

 

[bigjohn358]

The only equipment change I made to make things lighter was my net. I ended up getting a MaxCatch net thats a knockoff of the Fishpond nets. With the net hanging off the back of my neck that did make a big difference. Biggest thing is having the right equipment to carry your gear. My vest seems to dstribute the weight very well for me. Its an older Orvis vest that I liked so much I bought a second one I found off ebay for a backup since its no longer made.

 

[Silent Ocelot]

I am the king of over-packing! There was a time where I'd cram every fly box I owned into a sling pack to the point I could hardly move anything around in the pack. Now I regulate myself to a single box for nymphs, albeit it is the Fulling Mill 960 count box, and yes, mine is filled, although the amount isn't quite 960 because larger flies take up more space. I'd say my fly count is in the low 900s, most of the slots do have a fly. I also have another quad page box with less flies. I keep the more gaudy stuff line big stones and worms in there.

For ponds, I carry double sided boxes with dries along with a quad page box that has poppers and droppers and larger terrestrials. One of the dry boxes contains emergers and I have yet to grab a fly out of that box. I am typically throwing terrestrials/poppers on ponds.

For me it's not about taking what flies I need with me, but rather I like having the option to experiment with as many patterns as possible.

I suppose I could condense and make up a box that is a bit more versatile but my OCD dictates that each major type of fly (nymphs/dries/streamers) will have it's own dedicated box and due to the quantity of the flies I have I put them into as few boxes as possible so I don't want to disrupt that level of organization.

As for packs, I run slings, all major brands besides my Bote, which has a very cool camo pattern on it. For dry days I prefer my Orvis guide sling as it has more interior space than any other sling I've owned. I also like its internal organizers and there's an exterior pouch on the sling itself that is just perfect for holding my janky flip phone. I use whatever pack I think matches my rod/reel combo unless it is raining and then I go with a waterproof sling. I hate how much resistance the waterproof pack main compartment zippers have, one of my Fishpond slings desperately needs some lube!

I organize my pack the day before my trip. Right now I am pond fishing so my pack and its contents stay relatively the same, making it all the easier. During trout season I will have a trout "loadout" and transfer it between the pack that best matches said reel/rod combo.


Ultimately I don't concern myself with weight as I haven't done any multi-day trips. I just choose said pack that appeals to where I am fishing and what rod/reel combo I am using. If possible, I like to match my sling to my carryall.

 

[Bamboozle]

It's somewhat amusing to me that everybody does it differently to an extent and for the most part everyone is successful and happy with the system they employ...

...which once again reinforces my belief that "there is no such thing as a consensus amongst fly anglers..." 😉

 

[JoeE]

My Smallmouth bass rod has 3 agates stripper guides and probably weighs more than 3 trout rods! I gave up being competitive 40 years ago, so I don't need to make 1000's of cast as day. I'll fish 3 or 4 hours and then take a break and they back at it. Now 40 years ago I did wear a vest and every pocket had to be packed. so i guess i did lighted my load weight a little wearing only chest boxes.

 

[sixfootfenwick]

It's somewhat amusing to me that everybody does it differently to an extent and for the most part everyone is successful and happy with the system they employ...

...which once again reinforces my belief that "there is no such thing as a consensus amongst fly anglers..." 😉

All Fly anglers agree with this

 

[jeffroey]

I fall into the "carry way too much than most" bucket. I talked about it in this thread:

My Small Stream Kit

I've been planning my next small stream walk-in - a pretty aggressive 6+ mile out & back with limited opportunity to get out sideways, about 900 ft of elevation gain, and completely off the grid. I took a little time tonight to inventory and weigh my bag and I thought I'd share with you what...

www.paflyfish.com

Since I posted this thread, my kit has actually grown a little bit. If my plan takes me off the grid and is more than a . . say . . . 5 mile loop, my day pack weighs ~13-1/2 pounds. That includes 2 rods, lunch, and a whole bunch of stuff most would consider unneseccary.

That said, I do follow Ocelot's approach: depending on the plan, location,etc., my gear pack-out could be that full day pack, a basic lanyard & Altoids tin of flies, or something that lies in between like a small bag or sling pack.

 

[sixfootfenwick]

I fall into the "carry way too much than most" bucket. I talked about it in this thread:

My Small Stream Kit

I've been planning my next small stream walk-in - a pretty aggressive 6+ mile out & back with limited opportunity to get out sideways, about 900 ft of elevation gain, and completely off the grid. I took a little time tonight to inventory and weigh my bag and I thought I'd share with you what...

www.paflyfish.com

Since I posted this thread, my kit has actually grown a little bit. If my plan takes me off the grid and is more than a . . say . . . 5 mile loop, my day pack weighs ~13-1/2 pounds. That includes 2 rods, lunch, and a whole bunch of stuff most would consider unneseccary.

That said, I do follow Ocelot's approach: depending on the plan, location,etc., my gear pack-out could be that full day pack, a basic lanyard & Altoids tin of flies, or something that lies in between like a small bag or sling pack.

I think one thing that helps me is the mindset to fish how I want, regardless.

If I plan on using dry flies then I do. Yeah I'd catch more if I did this tactic or switched to that kind of fishing, but I planned on fishing dries, so that is what iam doing. I also planned it on this creek which is x big, so I'm using this rod.


Suddenly, regardless of success, I only need a certain amount of so many flies, one rod, one set up etc.


I'm not saying you are doing it wrong. By all means carry two rods for switching if it makes you smile. I'm just explaining why I don't, and how I still smile about it.

The catching is secondary to me.