Fly fishing rod holder for backcountry hunting

[0311dmd]

Hey y’all,

Im a Colorado resident who has been elk hunting for some years. Recently, my brother and I picked up new bows to give archery season a shot.

I’m a beginner fly fisherman and would like to bring my fly rod on this years backcountry backpack archery hunt.

I have a Redington Voyant that’s 8’6” and I’m looking for a light weight rod holder that I can slide in my Exo 4800.

Anyone have some suggestions? TIA!!

 

[def90]

I’m assuming it is a 4 piece rod? You can get fly rod tubes at any fly shop, otherwise a lightweight minimalist version would just be a piece of white pvc pipe from home depot that is big enough in diameter to hold the 4 sections.

My thought though is that if you are elk hunting you want to be elk hunting, not fishing.

 

[Goatboy22]

Buy a clear plastic tube from the hardware store for storing fluorescent light bulbs and cut it down to the length of your rod. They even come with caps and are very cheap and superlight. Not quite the protection of an aluminum rod case, but work well for backpacking.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

I'd highly recommend a rod/reel combo case such as this. They are lighter than homemade PVC tubes and strap to any backpack better than any singular tube type case. I've been on too many backpack trips where friends have had their rod tubes fall off on the trail because it slipped through the straps, or they forgot their reel in the truck. This way your rod and reel are always together and is one less step when you're ready to fish.

 

[ohoopee]

I have probably tried everything. The lightest option was clear tubing. It is not
the safest option for your rod. I actually pack 2 rods in one tube when my son
comes with me. It saves the weight of an extra rod tube.

I run a Seek Outside and it has pockets to fit the reel and the end of the
tube at the bottom and straps along the sides. Otherwise I would be concerned
the whole setup slipping through just the straps.

 

[Wapiti1]

Depends on where you are fishing and what kind of water. If you're hitting a lake, go with what you have and get one of the tubes suggested or make one.

Or I take a small stream travel rod. LIke a 4 pc 7'6" 3 or 4 wt. Something like the Echo Lift 3wt. Or one of the cheap ones off Amazon. For fish up to a couple of pounds on small water, this is a nice setup.

Most of the places that I elk hunt only have skinny water and a 7' rod is both plenty and a lot easier to get through the brush with.

Last thought, I put the 3 top sections of my rod in the tube with my extra arrows, and take 3-4 extra arrows. The butt section just goes in my pack somewhere with the reel on it.

Jeremy

 

[5MilesBack]

My thought though is that if you are elk hunting you want to be elk hunting, not fishing.

There's plenty of time for both, especially if you want fresh Brookies for lunch.

I have my regular 2 and 4 piece river rods, but for packing into the high country I take a 7 piece rod that came with its own rod tube. It will easily fit inside of my pack.

 

[ohoopee]

Forgive my getting away from op's topic. I just wanted to say I picked up
the new 6 pc Demon Smuggler from Hardy and it is an amazing rod. Picked it up for my
Son and was expecting more stiffness and lack of feel but most of us probably couldn't tell
the difference between it and a 4pc. We fished Asquith, NRX and the Hardy Demon and really
couldn't tell the difference for most casting situations.

 

[0311dmd]

I’m assuming it is a 4 piece rod? You can get fly rod tubes at any fly shop, otherwise a lightweight minimalist version would just be a piece of white pvc pipe from home depot that is big enough in diameter to hold the 4 sections.

My thought though is that if you are elk hunting you want to be elk hunting, not fishing.

Plenty of time for both. I should have stated that I am looking for ideas to pack the rod not only for the elk hunt itself, but all of my scouting, backpacking, and fishing trips. I was looking for people who have experience with lightweight methods of carrying a flyrod in the backcountry. PVC would be heavier than a rod tube. Thanks for your thoughts.

Buy a clear plastic tube from the hardware store for storing fluorescent light bulbs and cut it down to the length of your rod. They even come with caps and are very cheap and superlight. Not quite the protection of an aluminum rod case, but work well for backpacking.

^^^ This. Thank you for the tip. This is exactly what I am wanting. Something lighter and more compact than my bulky rod tube. I am willing to sacrifice some protection for weight and size.

Forgive my getting away from op's topic. I just wanted to say I picked up
the new 6 pc Demon Smuggler from Hardy and it is an amazing rod. Picked it up for my
Son and was expecting more stiffness and lack of feel but most of us probably couldn't tell
the difference between it and a 4pc. We fished Asquith, NRX and the Hardy Demon and really
couldn't tell the difference for most casting situations.

Thanks for the input man. Maybe I should look into a 6 or 7 pc rod for my backcountry endeavors?

 

[def90]

Plenty of time for both. I should have stated that I am looking for ideas to pack the rod not only for the elk hunt itself, but all of my scouting, backpacking, and fishing trips. I was looking for people who have experience with lightweight methods of carrying a flyrod in the backcountry. PVC would be heavier than a rod tube. Thanks for your thoughts.



^^^ This. Thank you for the tip. This is exactly what I am wanting. Something lighter and more compact than my bulky rod tube. I am willing to sacrifice some protection for weight and size.



Thanks for the input man. Maybe I should look into a 6 or 7 pc rod for my backcountry endeavors?

Not the thin white water feed stuff, I can tell you it would be lighter than my Orvis tube.. PVC piping comes in many forms. Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out though.

 

[JoshOR]

I got a Redington backpacking rod, 6-pc, for $125-$150 as I recall. I pack it In the tube it came in. An aftermarket carbon tube would fit your needs, but not cheaply.. sounds fun!

 

[.204smokechaser]

Maybe something to consider would be a tenkara rod? Especially for the trips where fishing isn’t the main goal? That way you’re not toting around the full size setup.

Tenkara Rod Co | Tenkara Rods Tenkara Lines and Tenkara Fishing

Tenkara Rod Co. is based in Idaho. Tenkara is not only about catching fish, but simplicity. In Tenkara we use a rod, a line, and a fly. Shop the latest in tenkara fly fishing gear from Tenkara Rod Co. We offer a minimalist, more-approachable way to fly fish all with very little cost to get started.

www.tenkararodco.com

Agree with this post.


I've ditched all of my fly rods on any back packing trips unless I'm fishing big back country rivers.


It's hard to beat a tenkara for the weight and how compact it gets.

 

[Jxferg7]

Maybe something to consider would be a tenkara rod? Especially for the trips where fishing isn’t the main goal? That way you’re not toting around the full size setup.

Tenkara Rod Co | Tenkara Rods Tenkara Lines and Tenkara Fishing

Tenkara Rod Co. is based in Idaho. Tenkara is not only about catching fish, but simplicity. In Tenkara we use a rod, a line, and a fly. Shop the latest in tenkara fly fishing gear from Tenkara Rod Co. We offer a minimalist, more-approachable way to fly fish all with very little cost to get started.

www.tenkararodco.com

Thanks for planting this here....this looks perfect for myself!

 

[Clovis]

I have used the fluorescent light tubes--very light and some protection. If your bundle the sections with a hair tie either in the rod sock or without it I think you get a bit more strength too. I prefer a fly rod with a reel and fly line over a tenkara and there are very light reels out there if you are counting ounces.

 

[Clovis]

Forgot to add that I put a cordage handle on those tubes or any tube going on my backpack and run a strap through it so it is secure.

 

[SmokeNFeathers]

I'll third that suggestion to use a fluorescent light tube- works great. BIG POTENTIAL FOR GLARE, so keep that in mind. Some advice already given is to use your rod sock to keep it from jostling around/add rigidity. If you've got it cut the way you want it use some super glue and make one end cap a permanent fixture. Take a piece of duct tape folded over itself (2-3" of non-sticky stuff), then take two more pieces of tape (electrical holds well for this) and tape the duct tape to the tube so as to create a small handle or a place just big enough to slip some webbing thru like Clovis mentioned. I've had my top (non secured) cap pop out before, but I just ended up sticking that end down in the water bottle holder and it seems to work fine.

 

[Coopsdaddy]

Take the light tube and wrap the whole tube in one one layer of black gorilla tape,a lot stronger and you have some tape.