My Lightweight Fishing Kit

I like to be able to go fishing whenever it is at all possible while I’m out hiking/backpacking or anytime as a matter of fact. There is nothing better than freshly caught fish cooked over a fire well out in the wilderness. It is very satisfying! I tend to like to scale things down as much as possible and not carry all kinds of needless weight. My fishing kit is no exception. I wanted to put together as small and light a kit as possible without losing a lot of functionality. So I scoured the internet and stores for products that would help in this endeavor and boy are there a lot of great products out there these days to help put together a small fishing kit.

First off, I was not going to restrict myself to a small emergency fishing kit where I had to tie fishing line on a stick. Well those are great for emergencies (I do carry one on me almost always) I couldn’t see myself pulling the kit out to use every time I got a chance to do some fishing. So I definitely wanted a real usable fishing rod and reel. Well after much time and effort looking around I found the perfect rod and reel combo for my kit.

I stumbled upon the pen fishing rod and boy did I want one. I read a lot of reviews before I bought one but sure enough after all the reading was done I bought my very own pen fishing rod goliath with front drag reel. Here is the link for the one I bought: http://penfishingrods.com/shop/product_details.php?category_id=13&item_id=165

Here is the link for the main page:

http://penfishingrods.com/shop/index.php

These Rod and reels are made very well and they are very easy to cast. You do have to learn to be more careful about how you cast and catch fish. It’s an easy learning process. The big thing is not to use the rod to pull fish out of the water. Always reach down with your free hand and pick the fish up out of the water no matter how small the fish may be. This will save a lot of wear and tear on the rod and save you money from having to replace a broken rod. I chose the front drag reel because that is generally what I always fish with. They do make a bait casting reel and a fly rod and reel combo as well. At some point in the near future I’ll be getting my hands on and testing one of the fly combos. I love the idea of a small fly fishing setup.

As far as the rest of my kit, it contains a small Plano tackle box that is 1”x3”x4 ¾ “. I generally carry a bunch of different types of small spinners, different size hooks, some weights and some swivels. I adjust what is in the tackle box according to the time of year and where I’m going to be possibly fishing. You must also check all local fishing laws for the area you’ll be fishing in. Please save yourself some trouble and follow all fishing laws. It’s not worth ruining a beautiful day fishing because you are using the wrong lures or in an area where you shouldn’t be fishing.

I keep the rod, reel and tackle box in a small ditty bag. The whole kit, bag and all, only weights 11.6 oz. I can definitely legitimize carrying that on any backpacking trip. Having this kit can also supply some extra meals for me as well, which only adds to it being worth carrying. I know there are other small fishing pole companies out there and their products may be great but this is the one I chose and I love it. You can carry a kit like this anywhere you go or leave it in the glove box for that last minute fishing adventure. This is also a perfect fishing kit for a bug out bag. I hope this was a help and gives you some ideas about how to put together your very own lightweight fishing kit. Let me know what you put in your kits and please feel free to ask me any questions you may have. One final thought, keep it simple. Spring is coming so get your fishing kit ready.