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Tackle kit/fishing equipment

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What fishing tackle do you like to bring? I realize this can change depending on type of water and fish, but what are your favorites?

I am primarily a fly fisherman and typically carry a 10’ 7 wt rod with a floating and sinking line and an assortment of leaders/tippet and flys including streamers, bass poppers, and terrestrials for fishing from the canoe. If I’m on a trout river, I will also bring a 9’ 5wt, waders, and whatever I can expect to see on the water at that time of year and location as far as flies go.

In addition, I like to bring 7’ med action spinning rod with a #10 braided line and fluorocarbon leaders. I enjoy using plastics with a weedless hook for bass/pike and inline spinners in the deeper water. I will troll longer crank baits when traveling. Trolling is effective, but not my preference.

Other than the rods and waders, I can fit everything into a small pouch that travels easily in my day pack or strapped to a thwart.

Bob
 
I usually bring two spinning rods, if I am traveling I tie one under the gunnels and store the reel in a pack, if I'm at camp for a day or longer I rig up the second rod.

I do like to troll with a floating Rapala Original, or just cast to likely-looking spots along the way. If I'm on a river with pools at the bottom of rapids, I rig up a bucktail jig with a black tail. I used to fish a lot more than I have in recent trips, now I just try to catch dinner.

Fresh walleye shore lunch, beautiful Marshall Lake, Northwest Ontario (Memaquays neighborhood)
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As a kid I used to head off with everything I needed inside one of my grandfather's old empty tins of Mac Baren's Navy Flake. I'm trying to get back to that point.
 
I discovered this Panther Martin Spinner a couple years ago. Many times I'll head out with just this tied to the ultralight and no other gear. Many a trout and White Perch have fallen victim to its seductive movements.
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This is a major problem for me! I like shiny things and own way too much fishing tackle. I also prefer to fish with spoons so it gets heavy in a hurry. I use waterproof 3600 series boxes to organize all of my tackle, which are 11"x7.25"x1.75" and, incredibly, used to bring 2 of them on overnight trips, bungeed to the thwart in front of the stern seat (see picture, I have no idea what the orange paracord is doing there, the red bungees are holding the boxes). Nowadays I've pared it down to one, which I will still bungee to the thwart when fishing but gone are the days of it loudly bouncing around on portages like someone has several dollars in change in their pocket. For access I will set a paddle across the gunnels a few inches behind the thwart where it can support box in a level position. This doubles as a small table as long as I don't need to paddle for a while. Assuming trout, pike and walleye are on the menu I'll bring about a half dozen each of spoons, inline spinners, crankbaits, jigheads and plastics along with a couple bobber setups if I'm bringing or trapping some form of live bait. I like to troll deep for summertime lake trout, which for me means bringing a couple one-ounce weights to get a spoon or a Purpledescent Deep Taildancer way down there. I always bring two spincasting setups, a 4'6" ultralight and a 7'6" medium-light/medium.

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It adds up so fast! Every year I try and pare this down more and more but I'm always so worried that I'll lose my 1 of this or that to a big pike so I bring multiples. I keep telling myself that some day I'm going to bring just one rod with nothing but two red devils because that's what I end up fishing with most of the time anyway.

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For years I brought way more fishing gear then I could ever use on a trip. Eventually I pared it all down to two rods (one spinning, one fly) and a small stuff sack with two boxes; one with spinning lures the other with flies. My flies are mostly top water poppers but I do have some streamers in the box as well. As for my lures, the box is mostly a hodgepodge of #2 gold bladed Mepps, some Rapalas and shad darts (used seasonally of course).

In the last year I've lightened this just a bit more by trading out my traditional fly fishing outfit for a Tenkara rod. Having one less rod to carry hasn't seem to get in the way of my fishing prowess; or lack there of :(

That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.

snapper
 
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I take a spinning rod suitable for the size fish/lures I'll be using but that is mostly a 7' medium or med-light, a small 2 sided tackle box with about 8 total compartments with mister twister bodies, jig hooks, a few rooster tails/mepps, 1 or 2 rapalas and 1 or 2 small crankbaits. - this slides under the seat out of the way. A pair of nippers and hemostats and that's it. Everything fits in the small box so it's the box, rod/reel, paddle, boat and PFD.
 
I use one of these military surplus bags for my lures, I wrap the carrying strap around a thwart for security and I hang it off a pack while portaging. I sling it over my neck/ shoulder if I’m walking a bank or stream. I have a second bag for day use items but sometimes combine fishing lures/day use items into one bag as I don’t always carry 3 lures boxes, sometimes just one box and a bag with jigs and tails for walleye.

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Just kinda curious where you might be finding these Walleye...I won't tell anyone, I promise...;)

Always in Canada, LaVerendrye Reserve in Quebec, or out in northwestern Ontario. I'm sure they are out in the BWCA.
For me, mostly in pools at the bottom of rapids with a black jig towards evening or sometimes in a current.
 
Always in Canada, LaVerendrye Reserve in Quebec, or out in northwestern Ontario. I'm sure they are out in the BWCA.
For me, mostly in pools at the bottom of rapids with a black jig towards evening or sometimes in a current.
Actually they follow him around. It's true I swear, I've seen it.
 
Another item I will take along are these double bladed spinners I make. Attach a worm or dead minnow to the hook and start trolling. They weigh practically nothing so trying to cast doesn't work well.
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Another item I will take along are these double bladed spinners I make. Attach a worm or dead minnow to the hook and start trolling. They weigh practically nothing so trying to cast doesn't work well.
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That's very similar to what I used to tote as a kid in the Lanaudière region of QC searching for speckled trout in small streams/ponds. Mine were on a stiff wire, though, and were bright orange. I think they were what is known as an Idaho rig.
 
That's very similar to what I used to tote as a kid in the Lanaudière region of QC searching for speckled trout in small streams/ponds. Mine were on a stiff wire, though, and were bright orange. I think they were what is known as an Idaho rig.
We have these here.
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They have been around since my grandfather introduced them to us when we were kids. They have changed though. They have the big bulbus plastic beads. Heavy monofilament. With the light line, two blades and glass beads the trout just can't let it swim by.
 
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