[Kenneth churchill]

I have been looking at all the posts on here about tackle boxes anf some of the quite ingenious things that folk do to make their tackle boxes more angler friendly Please please folks do not take offense at what Im going to say one reason is because i have bern guilty of exactly the same but look at it this way out of everything you lugged fown to your chosen mark dif you actually use during your session?Im sure that when you got home snd countrf whst you actually udef and the amount you didnt use you will be in for a reality shock I can hear the voices now saying I had to take things just in case and yed sometimes if fishing rough ground a lot of leads and traces may be lost anf a seat box is something to sit on myself due to mobility probs mainly fidh piers and eady access msrks but i still see lsds with over flowing boxes that a lot of the gear in there never sees the light of day I start to really look at where I will be fishing and have learned to cut down so mutch to only take what I need 5-6 leads a trace wallet with the traces I know will catch a small box with a few lead links swivels ect a good knife lighting if im going to fish into darkness 2 rods 2 reels or if its a bit snaggy 4 spare leader one spool greased weasel grey one amnesia 25lb and a stainless steel unbreakable flask maybe a pasty or something to eat this lot can be put in a decent size bag that goed over your shoulder obviously a rod bag with a shelter if you want one or a 50inch brolley im not trying to tell folks how to fish just look at what you are taking that is not going to be used ive no doubt that I may get some stick over this thread but really hsve a look and think about your ladt trip where things just sat in the bottom of the box and never got used just trying to keep it light and easier folks bedt wishes to all ken

 

[Mr Fish]

Very true Ken. Growing up fishing rock marks on the North Devon coast I learned to only take what I could comfortably carry and climb with.

Stoves n such would be nice but I don’t really need it so I don’t take it.
I guess if you’re fishing south coast shingle with a low tidal range and don’t need to walk too far, you can take what you want for a full on base camp, but that doesn’t work on my local marks

 

[NIrishDane]

Depends whether I am fishing by myself or with the OH. If I am by myself I tend to strip my gear down to the essentials to fit in one over shoulder bag. If she is along with me then I can carry my full bag of tackle and a tripod which caters for the both of us, she takes a bag of other items like cleaning wipes, knives, chopping board, food etc...

There is no doubt that I carry too much and will not use 50% of what I have with me, but, what tends to happen in life is that when I need a certain item, I had decided to not bring it this one time. Better looking at it than looking for it.

 

[Kenneth churchill]

Depends whether I am fishing by myself or with the OH. If I am by myself I tend to strip my gear down to the essentials to fit in one over shoulder bag. If she is along with me then I can carry my full bag of tackle and a tripod which caters for the both of us, she takes a bag of other items like cleaning wipes, knives, chopping board, food etc...

There is no doubt that I carry too much and will not use 50% of what I have with me, but, what tends to happen in life is that when I need a certain item, I had decided to not bring it this one time. Better looking at it than looking for it.

 

[Kenneth churchill]

I understand exactly where you are coming from it really is a very fine balancing act to make sure that you have what you need and when my wife was alive I woud almost take the kitchen sink to make sure she was completely comfortable and had sll the comforts of home so I could stay and vish both tides up and down without any complaints thzt she wanted to go home!!!The only point I was trying to make is that there are a lot of snglerx tnat xeem to drag the lot down when there's no point The statment you made about when you went by yourself and obviously thought about what you would need sort of sums up the point im trying to mzke that z bit of thinking about the mark you want to fish should help you be able to help you organize your tack!e accordingly I really do understand that when tbe other half is with you a portable TV would help sometimes i think thanks for the reply sorry its a bit late bug Im a bit of a nite owl now im disabled best of luck to you ken

 

[NIrishDane]

I understand exactly where you are coming from it really is a very fine balancing act to make sure that you have what you need and when my wife was alive I woud almost take the kitchen sink to make sure she was completely comfortable and had sll the comforts of home so I could stay and vish both tides up and down without any complaints thzt she wanted to go home!!!The only point I was trying to make is that there are a lot of snglerx tnat xeem to drag the lot down when there's no point The statment you made about when you weng by yourself

Of course Ken, I have been guilty of this myself. Although my definition of 'the lot' may differ, I have a wychwood bankman tackle bag, can fit a big 20 way box, shakey rig wallet and 2x large savage gear lure boxes in the middle as well as extra pockets for loads of different lines , scissors / cutters, weights, big hook boxes etc... as well as long forceps and bolt snips in the lid. Now, if anybody has more than what I carry then they are definitely carrying too much. The only thing is that it is light and has a big comfy strap, that is why I carry what I do. It ain't no cumbersome seat box, don't really get them tbh.

 

[Bronzhaii]

Faced a similar problem a few years ago, my wife had to fish a competition in South Africa, where unlike Namibia they are not allowed to drive on the beach with 4x4's...……….. so she had to walk the 10-15kms of beach allocated for each day of fishing. So, we just took her tackle bag and emptied it out totally. For the mixed ground fishing that she was expecting we ended up with 12 traces in small ziplock bags, 10 sinkers (wired and nylon), braid scissors, braid leader line, bait knife, bait elastic, hand towel, and a few other small odds and ends. All this was packed into a bumbag that went around her waist, she had a cool box modified with carry straps that went on her bag with 5kgs of bait, a small collapsible bucket and a single rod stand clipped on the side of the bait box. She carried just one rod, and managed to successfully fish the 3 day competition without any problems, where she managed to catch a number of medium sized sharks and rays...…….. getting the weight down considerably meant that at over 60 she could compete with the rest of them, and came in 3rd Namibian lady, 6th overall.

'Just in Case' doesn't work when you have to walk and fish.

 

[JonD]

I take very little spare gear even though I fish much lighter than most. Simply don't get crack offs and the lighter line on my reel means it holds far more which gives me more time to wear big fish down (still fish heavy drags though). I carry a bum bag from the shore with 3-4 lures in different weights depending on the wind direction and strength. The bum bag has a heavy cord which attaches to the bum bag allowing me to drag around 5 fish (bag limit) if I keep on the waterline using the shallow waters edge to make dragging the fish easier (fish approx 3-4kg each). Fishing this way allows me to cover around 10km of shoreline in a session, targeting deep gutters or heavily oxygenated sand banks getting hit by surf.


Its only bluefish that may take the odd lure or sharks that eat the bluefish or Aus salmon. Not many people target sharks anymore over here, its kind of looked at as a bad thing dragging them on the beach for a photo, they also can't be weighed in any competition (or rays) apart from a specialty annual boat mako comp.

 

[wilfthebrindle]

Keep it light...hmm never thought of that, guess I could leave my anvil at home [just in case any passing horses need re-shoeing] :Oo: Going to get myself some of those new leads made from unobtainium- a 5oz lead only weighs 2 gotta be the way forward.:Oo: Seriously though going light is a good idea- being an old git with dodgy knees anything that's not going to be used doesn't get put in- ie scales,measuring tape, camera,fish bag.....

 

[JonD]

How much ch gear do you guys normally lose, I honestly don't remember ever loosing more than 3-4 rigs on a big a big all nighter anywhere fishing on the IOW. Surely common sense tells people if they lose gear every cast it's time to move on.

 

[Nutty blanker]

I travel very light , only in extreme cold weather will i bother with a bivvy . I use 2 rods and reels , tripod . I always know what i am targetting , so will have just 4-5 rigs and leads , spare hooklink ,packet of hooks , headtorch and bait in a rucksack , thats it . It makes me laugh some of the guys i fish with , so laden down with gear they get 10 yards from the motor and are ready to drop lol

 

[Norm B]

I understand exactly where you are coming from it really is a very fine balancing act to make sure that you have what you need and when my wife was alive I woud almost take the kitchen sink to make sure she was completely comfortable and had sll the comforts of home so I could stay and vish both tides up and down without any complaints thzt she wanted to go home!!!The only point I was trying to make is that there are a lot of snglerx tnat xeem to drag the lot down when there's no point The statment you made about when you went by yourself and obviously thought about what you would need sort of sums up the point im trying to mzke that z bit of thinking about the mark you want to fish should help you be able to help you organize your tack!e accordingly I really do understand that when tbe other half is with you a portable TV would help sometimes i think thanks for the reply sorry its a bit late bug Im a bit of a nite owl now im disabled best of luck to you ken

Don't forget the sofa to make it like home.

 

[Fishin Mortician]

Well when they halted driving on my favorite beach, I bought a trolley. All these years later it has turned into quite a sight. I load it up with four or five rods, sand spikes, cooler with ice, chairs, umbrella, and lots of other goodies. Bluetooth speaker, hand towels, scale, rig wallet, sinker box, lure box, spool of shock leader material and clips, bait thread, bait, cast net in bucket, and some other things.

But I don’t carry materials to tie up rigs.

My trolley floats atop even loose dry sand with just a finger’s worth of effort. It’s about a 1/2 mile walk from truck to where I like to fish. When my woman comes along, she wants to push the trolley. If sunbathers are about I’ll get out in front of her, and at the right moment, turn around wave my arm and yell for her to keep up. Love the looks and comments that generates. Lol

Without the trolley, I doubt I would fish there. Friday I hooked a nice tarpon. Two jumps and my redfish rig’s snood gave way. So if you like to drag 100+ pounds of stuff, get a trolley.

 

[Norm B]

Well when they halted driving on my favorite beach, I bought a trolley. All these years later it has turned into quite a sight. I load it up with four or five rods, sand spikes, cooler with ice, chairs, umbrella, and lots of other goodies. Bluetooth speaker, hand towels, scale, rig wallet, sinker box, lure box, spool of shock leader material and clips, bait thread, bait, cast net in bucket, and some other things.

But I don’t carry materials to tie up rigs.

My trolley floats atop even loose dry sand with just a finger’s worth of effort. It’s about a 1/2 mile walk from truck to where I like to fish. When my woman comes along, she wants to push the trolley. If sunbathers are about I’ll get out in front of her, and at the right moment, turn around wave my arm and yell for her to keep up. Love the looks and comments that generates. Lol

Without the trolley, I doubt I would fish there. Friday I hooked a nice tarpon. Two jumps and my redfish rig’s snood gave way. So if you like to drag 100+ pounds of stuff, get a trolley.

Who tied the rig???

 

[Pete E]

Well when they halted driving on my favorite beach, I bought a trolley. All these years later it has turned into quite a sight. I load it up with four or five rods, sand spikes, cooler with ice, chairs, umbrella, and lots of other goodies. Bluetooth speaker, hand towels, scale, rig wallet, sinker box, lure box, spool of shock leader material and clips, bait thread, bait, cast net in bucket, and some other things.

But I don’t carry materials to tie up rigs.

My trolley floats atop even loose dry sand with just a finger’s worth of effort. It’s about a 1/2 mile walk from truck to where I like to fish. When my woman comes along, she wants to push the trolley. If sunbathers are about I’ll get out in front of her, and at the right moment, turn around wave my arm and yell for her to keep up. Love the looks and comments that generates. Lol

Without the trolley, I doubt I would fish there. Friday I hooked a nice tarpon. Two jumps and my redfish rig’s snood gave way. So if you like to drag 100+ pounds of stuff, get a trolley.

What’s the tidal range like on that beach?

Where I fish the tide can come in over half a mile and once it starts to flood it’s a full time job moving your kit back to stay a head of it....

 

[Tow-rag]

Very rocky on my favourite mark, and a 20minute hike to get there. So going light is key. I always took too much stuff nevertheless, and was always a sweaty heap when I got there.
So remedy...
I load as much as I want into the car, and then make my final selection after parking up. If it turns out that I've forgotten or need something extra, it won't kill me to leg it back to the car.

 

[Colin Chaplin]

Just the essentials now, and i think it all come down with experience. But i am sure we all have done it, making sure we cover all the bases and loaded up like a packed mule, then slowly realising that you don't need half the gear you take, and only use a quarter of what you took before. If you know the venue and the target species then it become easier over the years, to know what exactly, what to take , even allowing for some crack off, spare line, shock leaders, spare reels, spare hooks with snood lengths, target species rigs, for me they weigh next to nothing so just the ones in need and few variations for different presentations and double pat, weights well you've check the tides, waves and currents so you know what to take and some variations, if i lose 6-7 leads in a session i call it a day, but that very rarely happens, but obviously rock marks you would expect to lose mores rigs and leads so you would allow for that. So baiting needles, bait loader, bait cutting board, sharp bait knife, bait elastic, braid scissors, line clippers, disgorgers, extra long nose pliers, spare swivels, spare lead clips, spool of power gum (stop knots), head light and spare, and small torch, thumb/ finger protection, rigs wallet, (already mention, rigs, line, leader. weights and spare reels) Rods, rod rest, rod holder, shelter, ground sheet, optional clothing, some rag (to clean your hands), waste rubbish bag, rucksack or seat box, bucket and not forgetting the Bait .

 

[Tow-rag]

I don't even put that much in the car!!!!
Like you say, you learn with experience.

 

[rodney adler]

I have stopped taking my Telly with me.

 

[Specihunter]

I'm the same, I take only what I'm going to need and not the kitchen sink. So weights 10 rigs shockleader and a few bits and bobs .