UL/Backpack Fly Fishing Setups

[Poser]

Curious to learn more about your ultralight fly fishing setups for backpacking/scouting/hunting.

-What does your full kit look like?
-Weight reducing hacks?
-tips?
-Must have accessory gear?

 

[JohnB]

The cheapo foam fly boxes are a lot lighter than any of the plastic ones. Also for a rod case I use a piece of clear plastic florescent light bulb protector tube. A 6 piece rod can ride internally really easily and 4 pieces tend to be outside of my pack. My lightest rod is a 5 and I'd really like a 6 piece 4 weight for my high lake trips. I have an Flyweight Designs packraft that weighs about 3 lbs and is great to fish from. It's hard to control your orientation with a packraft so most of the fishing I do from it is trolling using a sinking line. I'll bring a couple spools of tippet 4x and 5x, a few leaders, a couple foam bobbers and a set of hemostats. I pinch my barbs when I tie my flies typically but always fish punched barbs in the backcountry. If I lose a fish it's not that big of a deal, but I'd really hate to solo hike out of some of the places I've been with a fly stuck in my back.

A ultralight 5 piece spinning and some Kastmasters is my real ultralight setup since I can more effectively fish from shore without worrying about my back cast like if I were fly fishing.

 

[willfrye027]

If fishing creeks I have had good luck with a cheapo tenkara rod. Weights a couple oz. Bring a few flies in whatever will hold them. Tin foil and garlic salt, maybe a little olive oil, and for less weight than a single meal I have been able to eat trout for multiple meals.

Tenkara was much more difficult on a lake. I’ll usually bring a Shimano Fx 1500 (cheap, light, effective) and a cheap telescoping rod with a few panther martins.

 

[Poser]

Do you guys bring a hip pouch, chest harness or similar for your fishing gear, or just keep it minimalist as possible with fishing isn’t the first priority?

 

[thinhorn_AK]

mine is just a 4piece rod, reel, small box of flies and then I just bring those little pliers, a clipper and a few extra leaders. Only place to save any weight would be on the rod tube but I’m not that worried about it.

I’m just going to go ahead and say that tenkara is nowhere near as good as an actual rod and I would go so far as saying tenkara is a stupid, hipster thing at best…..hey bro, let’s use a less effective tool that can’t handle big fish because some guys in Japan do it!!! They are light though.

 

[Rfranke]

Do you guys bring a hip pouch, chest harness or similar for your fishing gear, or just keep it minimalist as possible with fishing isn’t the first priority?

I keep it super minimalist and don’t take any pouches or slings. I like a small cup of flies with some tipper and a nippers and pliers. I was in the fishing world for a while and had a bunch of those items and they now all collect dust. If weight is not an issue that stiff is fine but I like a hiking pack with all my stuff and minimal amount of “fishing gear.”

 

[Poser]

mine is just a 4piece rod, reel, small box of flies and then I just bring those little pliers, a clipper and a few extra leaders. Only place to save any weight would be on the rod tube but I’m not that worried about it.

I’m just going to go ahead and say that tenkara is nowhere near as good as an actual rod and I would go so far as saying tenkara is a stupid, hipster thing at best…..hey bro, let’s use a less effective tool that can’t handle big fish because some guys in Japan do it!!! They are light though.

I have a snowboard partner who is a fly fishing guide and he said we can’t be friends if I went the tenkara route. He made it sound like the 6.5 Creedemore of the fishing world.

 

[Ferrulewax]

I've Been waiting for this question my whole life. Honestly though, UL and fly fishing are two of my many vices. I'll post up some gear lists. It's highly dependent on the trip goals, fishery, weather, etc.

My lightest setup is about 5 ounces total (tenkara) and I really just run that light on Backpacking trips where there is a small but not zero chance of fishing

Here's one:

https://lighterpack.com/r/xvyfq2

 

[jte5013]

The clear plastic florescent light bulb protector tube as a rod protector worked well for me on a 4 piece 9ft rod. Stole a pom-pom from the kids crafting bin and wedged inside to stop the sections from rattling against each other

 

[philos]

I've Been waiting for this question my whole life. Honestly though, UL and fly fishing are two of my many vices. I'll post up some gear lists. It's highly dependent on the trip goals, fishery, weather, etc.

My lightest setup is about 5 ounces total (tenkara) and I really just run that light on Backpacking trips where there is a small but not zero chance of fishing

Here's one:

https://lighterpack.com/r/xvyfq2

I am a bit of a UL nut like Ferrulewax. I have a few lightweight fly rods/reels. I have Sage SPLs in 0 weight and in 1 weight and couple of reels that come in under 3oz. and I can have complete outfit with flies for under 6oz. Problem is the factory tubes are heavy. I am hesitant to put these rods in any tube that is not going to provide protection as these rods are no longer made and Sage won't replace them with the same blanks.

The foam fly boxes are the way to go for weight savings for sure. Also I don't typically carry a net

 

[Ferrulewax]

I am a bit of a UL nut like Ferrulewax. I have a few lightweight fly rods/reels. I have Sage SPLs in 0 weight and in 1 weight and couple of reels that come in under 3oz. and I can have complete outfit with flies for under 6oz. Problem is the factory tubes are heavy. I am hesitant to put these rods in any tube that is not going to provide protection as these rods are no longer made and Sage won't replace them with the same blanks.

The foam fly boxes are the way to go for weight savings for sure. Also I don't typically carry a net

I use a fluorescent light bulb cover cut down as my fly rod tube. Not weightless but It will cut a bunch of weight. Also, I believe sage has pretty much all of their old mandrels (I had an RPL+ repaired a couple years ago) but they now charge 250$ a section for discontinued rods.

 

[roosterdown]

If small water...tenkara.

I've caught and released a 20" cutthroat from a treeline lake in the Rockies with Tenkara equipment. Better for creeks however, and not the right tool for a real river.

 

[sndmn11]

The last small water rods I built were 7' 3wt fiberglass with a click reel and carbon grips. Nippers, forceps, 7x, and a medium fly box rounded the rest of it out.

 

[Ferrulewax]

Some more tips to cut down weight:

-Use your pockets instead of a pack
-trouthunter tippet spools are the lightest and come with more tippet, take a pair of wire cutters and cut out the center of the spool to cut more weight
-put gink in a smaller bottle- Garage grown gear has 10 and 15ml bottles
-morrel is about the lightest fly box I know of, but a small plano with 6 compartments holds a crap ton of dries. I use a dremel to turn it into a 5 compartment and use the large section to hold streamers
-umpqua use to have a smaller even lighter 6 compartment box
-lightest fly storage is a fly puck from a shop or a little cup but I like having some organization
-for a really killer fly box check out the C and F designs ultralight boxes. Heavier than the morrel but better organization
-the redington zero is the ultralight king in low priced reels, otherwise get a sage click. I think hardy has an UL reel as well. A lamson pure would be sweet too.
-I use a 1.1 ripstop nylon rod sock to cut weight


I’ll add some photos soon

 

[mtwarden]

Tenkara is so light that I really have no excuse not bringing the rod (ditto for my wife). We almost exclusively fish high alpine lakes and typically the residents are very accommodating

I want to say my entire setup is 6 oz

 

[5MilesBack]

I don't take any fishing gear with me on a pack-in elk hunt, but I do enjoy hiking into some spots just for fishing at other times. So, I have a 6-piece 3wt rod with reel and I just put whatever I need in my pockets while fishing. I keep flies in old film bottles. I really only use 2-3 different types of flies year round.

 

[JoshOR]

I’ve got a 6-piece Reddington I bring along, reel, small box of flies, tippet, 1 extra tapered leader, nippers and a hemostat, done. Not a lot of space or weight, use it or don’t, not enough to feel bad if I don’t fish. The rod purchase is the only backpacking specific item of the bunch. Not to pricey, but well worth it. Much smaller than a 4-piece.

 

[Confluentus]

Does anyone have a specific recommendation for a minimalist Tenkara setup?

I’d like to start bringing along a Tenkara on my packrafting trips, where I often find small grayling or char in headwater creeks. Ideally it would be able to fit inside the carbon shaft of a packraft paddle and be as light as possible…. Ie small size and lightweight being the priority over “fishability”.

 

[mtwarden]

call these guys and have the inside dimension of your carbon paddle ready, they can see if they can find a rod (or rods) that will fit

https://www.tenkararodco.com/collections/frontpage

if it's multiple rods that fit they can help you narrow the choices by what you anticipate using it for

 

[Ferrulewax]

Does anyone have a specific recommendation for a minimalist Tenkara setup?

I’d like to start bringing along a Tenkara on my packrafting trips, where I often find small grayling or char in headwater creeks. Ideally it would be able to fit inside the carbon shaft of a packraft paddle and be as light as possible…. Ie small size and lightweight being the priority over “fishability”.

A keiru rod sounds perfect for that use case. Without the cork handle you drop a good bit of size and weight. I have a diawa kiyose, I think now it’s just called a diawa keuiru-X. Something around 11’ would be a good starting point depending on creek size. For a one rod solution the zoom rods are sweet and are getting pretty common. Might compare dragontail, tenkara USA, and some others.