Backcountry fishing

[Timberghost]

Hey guys. Not sure If this is the right spot but plan to do some back country hiking this summer and figured I should do some fishing.
What’s do you recommend for a lightweight yet backpacking setup?
Thanks in advance, rob.

 

[huntsman22]

A 10 yd spool of leader line and a pack of hooks. Cut a willow for a pole and turn over rocks for worms. Don't get much lighter.....

 

[Philsummers21]

3 piece 7’ 3wt.



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[BRWNBR]

I used to just carry a collapsable spinning rod with some 3lb and lures or flies for whatever I was after. My Sheep country has some fantastic laker and grayling fishing in it. I don’t carry a rod anymore because the one pound freaks me out.

 

[COlineman78]

Your question is too broad. 1) fly or spin fishing 2) Where are you going to be fishing; my setup changes depending on size of fish that I expect to see, species, river, stream, lake, etc.

 

[5MilesBack]

3 piece 7’ 3wt.

I have a Cabela's Stowaway 6 piece in a 3wt that only gets used for pack-in trips.

 

[Philsummers21]

Dang bet that 6 piece packs down nice


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[boom]

i love having fishing gear with me. admittedly, i just do spin fishing. since i actually want to catch fish.

i have a shimano (long forgotten the name/model) 2-piece rod that i have not broken..miracle! i use the smallest phleuger president reel. some super clear ($$) 3lb line and a fist full of kastmasters and some jigs. it is the best time ever. i have only mixed hunting and fishing once. and honesly, the fishing dominated. it was good no GREAT, the deer hunting sucked.

i usually just go into the wilderness to fish. i am going to buy that Presso 4 piece spinning rod soon. i think it will pack nicer.

 

[amp713]

Honestly if you are doing the hiking to get in shape or scout or fish I don't see a reason not to take a real pole that you are familiar with and like using... if you don't have the chance of packing out 100 pounds in meat what's the harm in 5 pounds of fishing gear?

Now if you are looking for something lightweight to take on a hunt id follow huntsmans set up he mentioned.

 

[COlineman78]

I have a Cabela's Stowaway 6 piece in a 3wt that only gets used for pack-in trips.

I have a Stowaway 5wt and the thing casts like crap. Hopefully the 3wt works better. I mostly fish lakes when I backpack in, so casting is fairly important to me. If you're going to fish rivers and streams it's not going to be as big of a deal.

 

[philos]

I have some ultra light fly rods that are pretty light. Rod (2.6 oz -Sage SPL 181-3 ), reel (3.4 oz with line- Sage 3100). If I include a lanyard with forceps, extra leaders and flies I would likely be about 9 oz or so. The problems is how to carry the rod to protect it-the rod tubes are probably heavier than all the other gear combined. If you can store if safely in a pack you can go very light with fly fishing gear.

When I used this in the Wyoming back country I never cast more than a few feet so even a novice could make it work to catch fish in small waters.

 

[5MilesBack]

I have a Stowaway 5wt and the thing casts like crap. Hopefully the 3wt works better. I mostly fish lakes when I backpack in, so casting is fairly important to me. If you're going to fish rivers and streams it's not going to be as big of a deal.

Ya, they aren't what I would consider "performance rods", but for lightweight fishing in the back country they get the job done. I use mostly small dries on the lakes and don't have to "get it out there" so it works.

i love having fishing gear with me. admittedly, i just do spin fishing. since i actually want to catch fish.

When I was a kid I'd watch my dad pulling fish after fish with his fly rod and I'd never catch anything with the spinner and jigs. Started fly fishing very young and was catching fish almost immediately. I've tried the spinning game many times since and can count on one hand the number of trout I've caught with spinning gear in my lifetime. Fly fishing I'll surpass that after the first 15 minutes.

 

[Copen1822]

Anyone use the Tenkara rods?

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[FLAK]

Anyone use the Tenkara rods?

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Yes, and they're awesome. I have one that weighs a couple ounces and telescopes down to about 8 or 10 inches.

 

[Philsummers21]

I’ve looked at the tenkara rods. But sometimes on the high mountain lakes you might need to cast a bit further.


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[FlyGuy]

I plan to pick up a tenkara soon. Starting to see them come down in price. Seems like a few years ago they were all several hundred bucks.

I've used this cheap collapsible spinning rod off of Amazon a pretty good bit this past year. Light, short but good enough to make decently long cast. I've landed 3lb bass with it here in TX and it's held up well.

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[Timberghost]

Thanks for the replies guys. I prefer to fly fish but not opposed to spinning rig. Thinking I need to get a 3 weight 4 piece. Will have to start searching.

 

[frankrb3]

I have a Cabela's Stowaway 6 piece in a 3wt that only gets used for pack-in trips.

I have the same rod in 5wt and carried it for two entire summers while sampling trout populations in the high mountains lakes of the absaroka/beartooth wilderness in Montana. I paired it with a pflueger trion reel and it has caught hundreds of fish. The 6 piece is great for packing down but honestly gets a little annoying when setting up. The other two fish techs also carried rods. One used a tenkara rod and the other used a 3 piece fly rod. They all worked great and all three setups were pretty different.

 

[DWP51]

I have used a 6wt fly rod with an ultralight spinning reel and 6lb line to catch quite a few steelhead in the past... so my rig in the coming years for backpacking trips will be a cheap 6wt fly rod (just a 2 piece rod) and the smallest Pflueger President that I could find. I will also likely bring a fly reel so that I have options. I plan to use a tube to protect the rod no matter the weight penalty.

Kastmasters and various spinners when using the spinning reel and assorted flys when not. I haven't weighed it all and frankly I don't care because I will have anything that I need.

You can cast a country mile with any action of fly rod and a spinning reel if you know how to load up the rod properly so I will be able to cover most any high country lake scenario that I encounter.

$150 for the whole rig minus lures, lines, and such.

 

[Gumbo]

I have the same rod in 5wt and carried it for two entire summers while sampling trout populations in the high mountains lakes of the absaroka/beartooth wilderness in Montana. I paired it with a pflueger trion reel and it has caught hundreds of fish. The 6 piece is great for packing down but honestly gets a little annoying when setting up. The other two fish techs also carried rods. One used a tenkara rod and the other used a 3 piece fly rod. They all worked great and all three setups were pretty different.

As a very avid mountain lake fisherman I would suggest a 9 foot 5 or 6 weight for its versatility. A 3 weight just doesn't have the muscle to handle wind and longer casts. I typically take a 9 foot 6 wt and 9 foot 4 wt with me. The only downside to the heavier rods is that small fish don't put much of a bend in it. But the first time the wind or distance keeps you from reaching the fish with a 7.5 foot 3 weight you will be very bummed. Plus roll casting is easier with a longer, heavier rod too, and it is an essential cast in lakes with wooded shorelines.

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