GADawgs Posted April 16, 2015 Posted April 16, 2015 The title pretty much says it all. I fish out of a kayak and have plenty of room for what I bring (jig box, 2 plastics boxes, topwater box, crankbait box, terminal tackle box and another box for misc stuff) but I want to try to reduce what I am bringing so that I can learn to be more versatile and minimalistic and not have everything I own in the boat with me haha. I do carry at least 3 rods and will continue to do so (jig/topwater setup, plastics, crank/spinner and spinning setup are what I usually have) but wanted to see if anyone who has decided to minimize what they carry had any good advice. Overall I think I am going to try to pare it down to 3 boxes. Thoughts/suggestions? Quote
LunkerFisher Posted April 16, 2015 Posted April 16, 2015 Dump out all your stuff and fill up 3 boxes Quote
Super User Master Bait'r Posted April 16, 2015 Super User Posted April 16, 2015 Each day you go to leave, take out at least one item you didn't use last time and leave it home. Quote
Heron Posted April 16, 2015 Posted April 16, 2015 Will Power...and pre-rig your plastics Pack only what will fit into one box, and bring one box for every 4-hours of fishing time that you expect to be on the water. So then 4hrs = 1 box, 8hrs=2 boxes, 12hrs = 3 boxes...and so on. Why 4 hrs? Because one box, easily holds enough crap, for you to fish your waters effectively, and satisfactorily, for at least 4 hours. 2 Quote
Super User Senko lover Posted April 16, 2015 Super User Posted April 16, 2015 Each day you go to leave, take out at least one item you didn't use last time and leave it home. The last time he said this, I actually thought about it and started to do it. It works! I put away a lot of stuff I don't use. 1 Quote
atcoha Posted April 16, 2015 Posted April 16, 2015 I get the ziplock snack bags, throw several different colors of craws and worms. One hard box with terminal tackle. I use that for bank fishing, has worked out pretty good, refill with plastics that worked...put back the ones that did not. Helps with carrying too much stuff I won't use. And makes it easy to put stuff back into my big tackle bag. 1 Quote
Super User A-Jay Posted April 16, 2015 Super User Posted April 16, 2015 Many a good man has traveled down this Mysterious & Ominous path, some made it half way, some went a little further; but No One has been able to go All The Way. I have tried many times and failed miserably every time - It was Ugly. So I say it Just Can't be done. Now, if I Think I'll need it, I bring it. Good Luck to you. A-Jay 5 Quote
Super User Cgolf Posted April 16, 2015 Super User Posted April 16, 2015 When shore fishing a small amount of prerigged baits with some spares. Always carry the old stand byes and one or two new options. In the boat pick the tactics I want to fish and only carry baits for that. Then always carry a one panic box, soft plastics, with prerigged baits of all types and sizes. Also have one 3600 size box with an assortment of Crankbaits too. With a small boat this keeps ,me from tripping over stuff. Quote
Dypsis Posted April 16, 2015 Posted April 16, 2015 some made it half way, some went a little further; but No One has been able to go All The Way. A-Jay This made my day. 2 Quote
Super User bigbill Posted April 16, 2015 Super User Posted April 16, 2015 I'm down to four tackle boxes. Two 9606 split roof boxes one for topwater, one for cranks, one box for weedless, one for plastics. I can't go much smaller. I never know where I will end up fishing. I move around. I have 17 tackle boxes stuffed. I use those large green spinnerbaits boxes for storage and have cardboard boxes for backup. If I ever get a boat it better have room. I'm a fishing tackle hoarder. Quote
Super User gulfcaptain Posted April 16, 2015 Super User Posted April 16, 2015 I shore fish quite a bit, bring what I think I'll need as well as what I'm gonna fish. So needless to say for my short trips around town fishing different area waters there is a minimum of 6 rods, 1 tackle bag loaded with 4 3600 size boxes and who knows how many bags of plastics. Then once I'm there I decide what gets put into the small pack a carry with me and which rods I need. Like A-Jay said "if I think I need it it's going with me". I may not take it out of the car, but if I need it it's a short walk up to get it or swap out a combo for another one I have in the car. Besides I have all that nice fishing equipment, if I fish with the same baits every day how am I going to know how the others fish if I never take them fishing? This is also how I learn new techniques and gain confidence in other baits. Only time I do not fish this way is when I fish swimbaits, then I ONLY take the swimbaits so I have no choice. Quote
ClackerBuzz Posted April 17, 2015 Posted April 17, 2015 I'm with atchoa and use zip lock bags instead of plano boxes. boxes look pretty and organized but they are extremely insufficent compared to bags. i use a master duffel bag full of zip locks and a fanny pack. depending on the lake i'm fishing i load the fanny pack for shore fishing. and load the fanny plus take 2-3 zip locks for of gear for kayaking. I take the full duffel bag in the canoe/jon boat and the bag always stays in my truck so I can cherry pick whats needed Quote
Big C Posted April 17, 2015 Posted April 17, 2015 If I go minimalistic I take three rods with me when I fish from my kayak, 1. finesse spinning 2. medium casting 3. heavy casting. Two lures per rod (including the one tied on). I have all my tackle stored in an orderly fashion so I can take a handful of lures and go. Out of the three I always have a weedless slow moving lure (jig or Texas riggged soft plastic), a reaction lure (frog, crankbait, or chatterbait), and a kicker fish lure (big swimbait or big topwater). So pretty much whatever pattern the fish are in, I have something that can at least pass. I always already have a good idea of what the fish are doing, because I live really close the lake I fish 90% of the time. But in the heat of the summer or if I'm going on a long trip I put a milk crate full of plano boxes in the back of my yak. Quote
Super User Darren. Posted April 17, 2015 Super User Posted April 17, 2015 Let's be honest. You will find a "perfect" setup that will, after some time, become "less than perfect" and in need of tweaking. My world has gone from worm bags to bags of worms in zip locks, to worms in 360 size boxes and back again ... to now, all the gear I can carry in a single Plano guide series box. Any extra stuff goes in 360 boxes and stored behind me in the milk crate. Seriously. Fishing life on a kayak is an adventure in finding the best and simplest, or most awesome way to carry bait, rods, etc. Quote
Super User Felix77 Posted April 17, 2015 Super User Posted April 17, 2015 I gave up trying to pair down. I never know what I am going to feel like when I get to the water. Instead I got a book bag like tackle bag and make sure I am comfy. Quote
Super User bigbill Posted April 17, 2015 Super User Posted April 17, 2015 I tried scaling down before and I left stuff home that I needed. Quote
Super User Fishes in trees Posted April 17, 2015 Super User Posted April 17, 2015 If you want to not bring everything you own to the boat when you fish, the simple answer is to buy more stuff than will fit in your boat. Just own more stuff. Personally, I think that this minimalist stuff is over rated. Bring what you need - don't force yourself to "make do" when the correct tool is available. You are always going to have to make choices about what tackle stays home and what tackle makes the traveling team. Quote
primetime Posted April 17, 2015 Posted April 17, 2015 Your thought process is flawed....You should be trying to figure out how to fit all those lures into less boxes by jamming them full, trust me, you can always fit a lot more than you would think, and it still closes...Cutting back on tackle is logical & practical, but I find it more of a challenge to figure out how to cram even more in less boxes......I would suggest selling the lures you never use, if it is in your box and has never seen the water, sell it, and then buy extra's of the colors and lures you use the most....You never know when your favorite lure gets discontinued, so stock up, cram, and a scratch is ok even on nice lures, the fish don't seem to mind, wrapping the trebles with rubber bands, tape etc...helps you jam a box like a pro.... Quote
Super User Chris at Tech Posted April 17, 2015 Super User Posted April 17, 2015 I'd suggest two areas to look at in an effort to reduce. First is focused on the colors of the baits you bring. Don't buy and bring every color known to man. Have a color for clear, off color and murky water. Second, consider seasonal patterns as well. Don't bring your deep diving crankbaits when the fish are getting ready to spawn. Quote
Super User SirSnookalot Posted April 18, 2015 Super User Posted April 18, 2015 Just take less. People seem to program themselves to believe that need every thing under the sun with them, most of it doesn't get used. Learn to fish with a few lures for each outing, make one a better fisherman in the long run. Casting to where the fish are is a lot more important than the actual lure being used. 1 Quote
Silas Posted April 18, 2015 Posted April 18, 2015 Every Spring I buy NEW GEAR! rod, reels, lines , lots of baits and a new soft bag for new stuff. Then I can play and adjust and learn all season. This season I got ALL JDM stuff: 2 new Megabass rods and one reel. Lots of baits I've never tried before. Most stuff from Japanese Tackle ships. In my case the docs say I'm only going to be here for a little while more so I'm getting everything I want. What the hell!! Quote
jcoffman55 Posted April 29, 2015 Posted April 29, 2015 Keep the soft plastics in the original bags and put them in one of those speed bag things. Those are great. Then carry three boxes, terminal, and divide up top water/ crank/ jig- whatever between the remaining two boxes. Done! I carry three rods too in my Yak, two spinning and one casting. Usually. 1 Quote
Super User Cgolf Posted April 29, 2015 Super User Posted April 29, 2015 Many a good man has traveled down Mysterious & Ominous this path, some made it half way, some went a little further; but No One has been able to go All The Way. I may have made it all the way for my shore fishing setup. If I remember I will post pics. I only carry 2 double 3500 boxes. 1 with soft plastics, some prerigged and a few spares and the other for crankbaits and flies. The boat is an entirely different beast, pretty ugly there, so I am 50/50. To be fair on the boat I will chase Musky and troll for walleye too so that does cause some of the issue. Quote
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