Travelling Rod and Reel Recommendations

[Patfin]

I am taking a sabbatical for 3 months in November and am going to bring some kit with me. Can someone please recommend a decent light compact outfit as i will be backpacking.

I need something that can handle Nile Perch , Tigerfish and smaller palegics in Africa and Oz.

Any recommendations on what and where to buy from would be appreciated.

Thanks All

Patrick

[lucky]

Will you be shore fishing or boat fishing?

[Patfin]

well , i would say a mixture... the majoring will be just chucking a lure or a bait into a lake , sea from the shore. But perhaps something that would and could handle trolling a reef etc?

[lucky]

I haven't got one but a lot of people on this forum seem to rate the 4 piece 15-50gm Mike Ladle Surespin which you can get from Veals. It would handle casting lures from the shore as well as a bit of bait fishing with light weights but the 10' length might be a little awkward in a boat. If you wanted something a bit more powerful you could keep an eye out on ebay for a 4 piece 9' Greys Missionary Spin (30-100gm). They're discontinued now but they do pop up on ebay from time to time and would handle most things you're likely to catch from the shore. Another option would be a travel salmon/steelhead spinning rod like the 3 piece 8'6" (15-50gm) Lamiglas Kenai Travel which is a moderate action/heavy power rod. Its shorter length would be more suitable for use in a boat but would still be fine for spinning from the shore. The Kenai models also seem to be discontinued now but I think you can still find them on sites in the States. All these rods come in a strong cordura travel tube. It really just depends how heavy you feel you need to go with the rod. Some of those Nile Perch run pretty big.

[Ken L]

I have the heavy version of the Ocean Master travel rod from BassPro and it's light and compact. At 7" and with a short butt, it's doddle to use in a boat or on an overgrown bank. It's rated to cast 2oz and I've landed Mahseer and Barramindi to over 20lb with it. This little rod is lite and has a tippy action that makes it a pleasure to use, even for smallish fish

I also have the StCroix Tidemaster travel spinning rod. Again, it's rated to cast 2oz but this is a much heavier rod with a parabolic action. I'm confident about throwing 3oz with this and it's landed my two biggest fish ever - mahseer of 47 and 77lbs.

As lure fishing is my thing, I take both rods in one tube (the one that came with the OM rod) and also pack another tube with a heavy rod and a fly rod.

[marktheshark]

Hullo matey
I'd agree on the 30-100g Greys Missionary ... I've had one for two years and it's a lovely spinning rod. It's surprisingly delicate and can cast 1oz spinners and 3oz plugs with equal ease. It might, however, be a bit light for big Nile Perch, and the foregrip is a little short if you need leverage to raise heavy fish.
I bought a Masterline Nifty Nige catfish rod, the 10ft 3pc version, for £60 from Harris (they're sold out now) when I went to Cuba this spring and it's turned out to be an excellent heavy all-rounder. I've used it for spinning with 4oz fat poppers and baitfishing for tarpon from the shore, plus light trolling and livebaiting with braid from the boat. It handled a 30lb tarpon, jacks, snappers and barracuda with ease and it's light enough to be comfortable to hold for long spells with either a 7700-size multiplier or 8000-size F/S reel. It's another one with a short foregrip which I've customised with some roll-up grip but for the money, it's superb for what I do.

[Ken L]

Heavy rod options will include the Wynchwood travel Catfish rod and the Fladen travel uptider.

I've played with the Wynchwood and it's a nice rod and I own the Fladen. Both are to long for lure fishing and the Fladen is way to heavy to hold for long periods.
I'm off to have a look at the ABU Conolon boat road tomorrow. At 7' 9", they just might be the muts nuts, but I have to see if they can be set up for use with a fixed spool reel.