My Minimalist Excursion

I have been doing a lot of thinking lately. The kind of thinking that occurs on long car rides kind of thinking. Questions that nag at you for hours on end and then amazingly, if you are paying attention to it, an idea presents itself. That idea is My Minimalist Excursion.

How does it pertain to fishing you ask? If you didn't, I did. From a fishing perspective it applies in a variety of ways.

For me fishing is an escape from the background noise that is the daily routine. A chance to get grounded in nature again and remember that things can be simple and fun if I let them.

Often the fishing gets bogged down in technique, gear, locations, etc. I spend more time worrying about do I have the right rod, line, flies, fly box, waders...am I fishing in the right location, right river, targetting the right quarry...that in the end I missed the opportunity to get grounded again.
So in the words of Thoreau...I am simplifying.

Here are the realities. Married, father of 2 boys under the age of 8, owner of my own business. So let's just say I don't have a ton of time to fish. That is okay. I signed up for all of the other things and everything has a place in my life's schedule, just seems like fishing has been a lot lower on the priority list lately.

So working with that framework, my minimalist idea is to help create for me the maximum opportunity at enjoying this grand sport. This is my idea for me.

I am breaking it down into a variety of categories. Gear, tactics, flies and fly selection, etc. There will be some blurry lines but this is going to be a fun experiment.

Now minimalist does not mean frugal or cheap. I will/have spent a fair amount of money on equipment, etc. The goal is not to do this in a frugal manner, rather an efficient manner. Eliminate the waste so to speak.

Starting with my gear.
I am sticking with my breathable waders from Redington (until they die) and my Chota Citicos. They have treated me well and while I am always tempted by Simms or Patagonia or even Dan Baileys, these work just fine.

Pack/Chest Pack or Vest?
This is a topic on any board you might go to. Something that I experiment with constantly to try and find what works best for me.

I was never a huge fan of the flyfishing vest. I often found it uncomfortable, too heavy and frankly a mess to deal with. So a vest is not an option for me. I recently sold off my William Joseph Confluence...it was the older style. It worked great, comfortable, no issue...but it was almost always near empty. I had plenty of space to add more flyboxes or tippet or camera or sandwich, etc. So I sold it and am awaiting a Fishpond San Juan that is en route to my house. Downsizing. Looking forward to it.

Wow you arent kidding about the Minimalist part, the Fishpond San Jaun Is small...I have a Vest and a Fish Pond Bag you wear around your waist, I have to say I hate both of them..Im in the market for new waders and Im taking that the more expensive waders have more pockets into consideration.. I hate hauling things around, I feel like it kinda holds me back at times.. The fishpond waist thing was a real mistake, its not to offten I wade over mid leg but when that thing gets wet, forget it.. Its a wrap after that!

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I hate hauling things around, I feel like it kinda holds me back at times

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Glad to see I am not the only one who has felt that way.

I have a waist pack as well. One of the older Willie J bags...holds a bunch of boxes, couple of water bottles...usual stuff. But like you, one deep hole and that baby is soggier than a cracker in a bowl of soup.

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http://troutpredator.info/MGalleryItem.php?id=447

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http://troutpredator.info/MGalleryItem.php?id=447
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The Willie J pack...better bankside than on my backside. Still have it...need to get rid of it.

For most my fishing I don&#039;t even wear a vest or pack. I use a lanyard for my tippet and tools. The rest is shoved in my waders. The rest normally equals 2 fly boxes and a camera.

Aaron showed me that wader storage trick too, and it&#039;s really convenient. The only problem is when you have to pee!

I&#039;m with you on not liking the vest. I bought for $20 one year, I think the manufacturer was Eagle, a simple bag with a couple of pockets. It was made for travelers not fishermen. I think the total size is about 14"x8"X6". It&#039;s big enough to fit a couple of fly boxes, floatant ect.

The best part about it is that it can be worn as a waist pack or... and this is how I use it... bandoleer style. Strap over the shoulder and then the pack is pulled into the middle of the back. I have found this to be the most comfortable position of any set up and it&#039;s completely out of the way.

It&#039;s my go to set up for fishing small streams, the shore, ponds. I&#039;m even starting to use it on the Delaware where I carry a dozen boxes. I leave what I&#039;m not using at the moment in a day pack on shore with water food, rain jacket etc.

Works great for me.

Alain,

Yup, that&#039;s the only downside. I can shove it in my wader pocket too, but everything always ends up shoved into the side of my waders by the end of the day.

Peeing with a waist pack and a net shoved in bewteen is no picnic either...I always drop something..

NIPPERS/HEMOS:

This morning I made a quick search of some of the various jackets, gear bags, locations that tend to house these things for me. This is what I came up with after a 5 minute search. I bet there is more hiding somewhere.

http://troutpredator.info/MGalleryItem.php?id=448

Okay..the 2 sets of needlenose pliers probably shouldn&#39;t count but they are in a bag I use when striper fishing. 2 sets of black hemos and a pair of hemos for when wearing mittens. I DON&#39;T WEAR MITTENS...these must go. I can see keeping the black ones. One I can have on my wading jacket, the other on the new chest pack when it arrives.

Nippers...both of the fancy ones are staying. I like the grip when my hands are wet or cold. Remember I don&#39;t wear mittens. The other pair is just like the 3 other pairs I have given away to friends over the course of the summer. Whatever possessed me to think that 6+ pairs of nippers are necessary? Really? A set of 99 cent nail clippers can do the job just fine.

I did not find any of those nifty zingers that slingshot stuff back at your head at a hundred miles an hour. The fishpond one was a gift and comes in handy on the wading jacket. That is a keeper.

So I ask you this...how many sets of hemos/nippers do you think you can find digging through your stuff?