I turned 52 today and was presented this gift by my wife. It is a handcrafted lure box from Japan. It is a Tetsujirushi box and is absolutely gorgeous!
I am stunned and don’t know what to say, except “THANK YOU.” I keep looking at it and all I can say is “WOW!”
The weather has been against us for most of March. It has rained every week,and usually on a Thursday/Friday, so the river levels have been high every weekend. That’s Spring in Oklahoma for you!
Yes, the river level drops fast, but the water is heavily stained and the fishing is atrocious so we are forced to wait it out. When things stabilize a bit, we will be ready to go and are looking forward to it. We hope to be posting on here more often in the near future.
I just received another set of Mr. Nelsons flies! My photography skills cannot do these justice and I apologize in advance.
This series is his 2021 Branson Award-Winning Fly Collection and I am gobsmacked again. These are GORGEOUS and very well tied. The Classic Wet Flies From Ray Bergmans 1938 book “Trout” are incredible and have vibrant colors that pop out and really capture your attention. The Wet Flies From Mary Orvis Marburys 1892 book “Favorite Flies and Their Histories” are very realistic and life-like. Impressive work to say the least.
As an angler, I am not as proficient in fly fishing as I would like to be, nor am I well versed in the patterns and histories of flies and fly tying…but I can darn sure appreciate a well tied and beautiful fly!
As anglers, we should support and encourage one another, so if interested, then show some love to Mr. Nelson over at classicflytying.biz. You won’t be disappointed.
I can’t get enough of these lures! They swim well and are easy to fish. After my first couple of purchases, my wife decided to get some for herself. Can’t say as I blame her. So we will start with the 4 she ordered!
Personally, I REALLY like the lure that is second from the left. Stunning.
I ordered 2 more myself just to increase the variety in my arsenal.
I think now, we have a good range of colors and shapes. These lures handle and track very well in the water.
We were pretty excited to get these lures. After a week of ice and cold temperatures followed by several days of rain…it was nice to receive fishing related items in the mailbox, but it will be awhile before the rivers and lakes settle a bit. Hopefully we will be able to wet a line sometime this weekend. Catch you on the next one!
I was over on Instagram scrolling through my feed which pertains to all sorts of fishing. I follow mainly Japanese anglers but there a several from all over the world that I follow as well. There are also several lure makers who show their wares and I was impressed by one in particular…Veles Handcrafted Lures based in Serbia. I sent a message asking if he sold on Etsy since I’d seen his site but there was nothing for sale. He replied that he indeed did sell on that platform and would be uploading items very soon. Fast forward a few days and I bought two lures as soon as they were available. To keep this short and stop rambling, I will just post the pics.
I am very impressed with the quality of these lures. Attention to detail is amazing. His prices are reasonble with lures running from $20-$25 apiece. From the amount of work that goes into each one, I would say that is more than fair. If interested, his store can be found on Etsy under “veleshandcraftedlure” and on Instagram at #veles_handcrafted_lures. Catch you all on the next one.
2022 was a fun year for us in regards to fishing. We visited some new places and were able to try some new gear. Ever since we delved into the Japanese fishing gear market, it has been an interesting ride. So without taking up any more time, lets get into it.
2022 Daiwa Exist LT 2000S-H
The Daiwa Exist turned out to be a great reel for me. ZERO issues with it ever since I bought it. Pricey, but it performs. I reached for this reel more often than any of the others when fishing rivers and streams.
Daiwa Presso LT 1000S-P
The Daiwa Presso LT is another great reel. No longer made in Japan but offshored to China, this reel came out swinging. It is smoother and has less startup inertia than my Presso 1025 LTD. I seriously enjoyed fishing with this reel. I would pick this over the Shimano Stradic 1000, the Vanford 1000 and the Abu MGX Theta 1000. There are better reels out there, these were just some of what I have.
TenRyu Rayz Integral RZI50L-4
My favorite Pack Rod was the TenRyu Rayz Integral RZI50L-4. Very well built, extremely compact and easy to carry. It fished very well and the action was great. This rod lived in my Yeti Panga for most of 2022. It was always with me everytime I went out and saw a lot of use.
TenRyu Rayz Spectra RZS51LL
Another excellent choice for stream fishing. I really started to develop an appreciation for TenRyu rods this year. Fit and finish is impeccable and they are a joy to fish with. I absolutely love these rods. Accuracy was spot on, plenty of backbone for fish in current and sensitivity was stellar. 9 times out of 10, I’d reach for this rod.
Apia Grandage Lite 61
Runner up for most used rod this year. Unbelievably light and sensitive. Paired with the Daiwa Presso LT 1000 reel, this outfit felt like a magic wand. It is delicate and needs to be babied, but it is worth it. Reasonably priced at around $135, but it delivers the goods. Casting distance is outstanding. Definitely not designed for smallmouth or trout but it did an excellent job and handled everything I threw at it.
Yeti Panga 28L backpack
You are probably sick of seeing this backpack in all of our photos. On its third year and it still keeps going strong. Waterproof and submersible, as well as being built like a tank (much thicker material than Simms or Patagonias offerings). Yes it is expensive at $300 but it is worth every penny. I would instantly buy another one if something happened to this one. It is a workhouse and holds all of our gear and then some. We haven’t found anything better that suits our style of fishing. If I’m wet wading and need to get across a deep pool, I swing this around to my front and lay on it. Then I just swim across and keep going without any worries. Cameras and cell phone as well as everything else inside has stayed 100% dry EVERY TIME.
Simms Flyweight Access boots
Alhough I got off to a rough start with these boots, I ended up working around or through the issues and these boots worked out well. Traction was very good and they have held up pretty well. Not as comfortable as a heavier built boot for all day wading, but they get the job done better in certain situations due to being lighter and grippier. Coupled with the Simms Guide Socks, they just work. As stated before, I’d buy another pair.
I ended up using this Varivas line for most of 2022 on various reels. We are still trying out lines from different manufacturers so this will probably change in the future.
We tend to gravitate towards throwing jigs when fishing rivers and streams. These were the 5 different jig heads we threw most often. We tend to experiment quite a bit with the different shapes and weights and it is nice to have a selection of different weights.
For 2022 we opted to stay with the EuroTackle Finesse B-vibes in black and green pumpkin in both 2 inch and 3 inch versions. There may be something better out there but these have produced well and more consistently than anything we have tried. I would estimate that we used these about 90% of the time this year.
Miscellaneous gear for 2022.
That wraps up the “Most Used Gear in 2022” segment. I look back fondly on 2022 since we both managed some “Personal Bests” and we are both looking forward to what 2023 brings. Stay tuned for more!
The wife and I had been looking for a more compact stove. We didn’t want a backpacking stove per se, just something smaller than what we had been using. We came across a YouTube video about this type of stove so we decided to try it.
Standard Butane canister next to stove case.
We like the concept as well as the size. It puts out 8000 BTU’s which is sufficient for our needs. This stove is designed to run on butane but we have an adapter that lets us use propane if necessary. Why butane? Because it’s much cheaper…I purchased 8 cans for $8.99! And butane works just fine during the warmer months. With the appropriate adapters, we can run any of our stoves off of propane, butane or isobutane. It’s nice to have options.
This should work well for us. Space is at a premium in our Subarus so every little effort to downsize without losing functionality is helpful. Hopefully we will be able to put it to use soon when the weather cools down a bit.
I have about 25 full days using these boots and have grown to like them more and more. In the beginning I had issues with sand, micro-gravel and pebbles entering the boots, but I have remedied that problem.
By running the gravel guard as far down onto the boot as I possibly can, I have managed to keep all of the detritus out of my boots. As the name suggests, they are very lightweight and allow me to wade-fish all day without worry or discomfort.
The traction provided by the Vibram sole is pretty good. It definitely boosts your confidence when crossing sketchy barriers and these have been better than any other wading boot I have used except for felt soled versions. If you are fishing around Didymo covered rocks then felt soles and studs would be the way to go. But for walking trails, going up and down hills and over downed trees, wading small rivers and what not, these boots are great.
However, the increased traction from the softer Vibram sole does come at the cost of durability and longevity. I knew that going into the purchase so I accept the wear and tear.
Beginnings of wear.Lugs worn off.
I used these boots as my portaging footwear up in the Boundary Waters. Wet landings, sand, mud, bogs, beaver dams, rocks etc and they performed flawlessly. For me, I can honestly say these were the best option I have ever used up there to date.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I would gladly buy another pair of these for the type of fishing I do. If durability and longevity were your primary concern, then there are better options out there. Thanks for reading.
I thought I would share a few of the stoves that we use.
First up is the cook system I carry with me when I am fishing. Everything fits inside a TOAKS Titanium 750ml Mug. The kit includes a 100 gram isobutane canister, a Jet Boil canister stand, a Fire Maple 300T stove, a mini-Bic lighter, some coffee singles and a Snow Peak silicone “Hot Lips” guard. Anytime I feel like having coffee or tea, I pull this out and fix a cup on the stream bank.
The stove we carried on our Boundary Waters trip was the Kovea Spider KB-1109 which is a remote canister stove with a pre-heat tube which allows you to invert the canister for use in cold temperatures. It has a relatively small burner head which we noticed was a negative when using a 2L GSI kettle. It took a long time to boil water for meals or coffee and used more fuel than anticpated during the trip.
Upon my return from the trip I began trying to come up with a solution to our issue. Eventually I decided on a multi-prong approach which incorporated a Bulin 1.6L kettle with a built-in heat exchanger, a stove with a larger burner head, a windscreen and an adapter.
I do not like using windscreens with stoves that mount directly on top of a fuel canister…I’ve seen the results firsthand when a canister overheats and detonates. We have several stoves of this type so I began looking at options and adapters.
What I discovered on Amazon was an adapter system made by Camping Moon that did exactly what I had in mind. It basically converts your upright canister stove into a remote canister stove.
We have a few different upright canister stoves from when we used to backpack. I plan on playing around with them to see which one will work best for us. So far I have been impressed with the Z23 adapter. It is CNC machined and very well made. Being able to run two stoves or a stove and a lantern is a neat feature. It adds some weight to the system but I think it is worth it. We are also looking at reducing the size of our camp kitchen gear as well. Size and weight will be our main focus so stay tuned for that blog post coming in the near future.
We have been using Gomexus reel stands for about 2 years now. It is a cheap and effective way to protect your spinning reels. Since we fish rivers and streams a lot, and there are rocks everywhere, these tend to keep the reels off of the rocks when we set our rods down.
We generally use the Gomexus R1 42mm fixed stand but when they released the Gomexus R6 48mm foldable stand, we wanted to try those.
R6 Foldable on LEFT, R1 Fixed on RIGHT.
Since we store our reels in padded cases or neoprene covers, the foldable design has been really nice.
R6 Foldable standR6 Foldable Stand screwed down and locked
At first I was hesitant about using any reel stand. I thought it was a gimmick and that they would be unwieldy of even unbalance the rod and reel. But the more I used them the more I liked them.
To me, it’s a cheap way to keep your reels from being scratched and beat up on rocks or gravel. The Gomexus R1 costs $10 USD. If I’m using a $150 reel, then $10 isn’t much to add a level of protection. The Gomexus R6 costs $12 USD and it’s worth it for the foldable feature.
Gomexus R1 fixed on a 2019 Shimano Stradic FL 1000S. No more worries about scratched reels or damaged bails.
I have no affiliation with Gomexus, or anybody else for that matter. I’m just showing a few of their products that we use. They also make knobs and reel handles for both baitcast and spinning reels. Most of their items are produced in a range of colors as well. If you’re interested, check them out.
In the previous blog post, I mentioned an issue I had with these boots. How sand and microgravel were getting into these boots in such a way that I would have to take them off to empty them out. Both footbeds would be quite covered and/or the detritus would pile up under my forefoot, heel and toes.
Previous setup.
In the picture above, I had been using the Simms Guide Guard 3.5mm Neoprene Socks with these boots. With the Flyweight Access boots being a lower cut, I feel that the Guide Guard Sock does not extend far enough down or the elastic is not strong enough to provide a good seal to prevent sand and microgravel from entering the boot.
Experimental setup.
I decided to try the Simms 2.5mm Neoprene Wading Sock coupled with the Simms Gravel Guards that velcro around the boot. This allowed me to set them much lower and also to roll the top of the sock down over the top of the gravel guard. Not perfect, but functional. I still want to play around with this setup to see if I can improve upon it.
The end result of the experiment was a major reduction in the ingress of sand/microgravel.
Some might think that I’m “splitting hairs here” but I do not like wading with a boot where the footbed is filled with sand or microgravel. It is uncomfortable as well as damaging to your neoprene wading socks.
Sand and Microgravel
The photo above shows what I pulled out of both boots after the 5 hour wading experiment. I can live with that and am happy with the outcome. I can fish all day without stopping to empty my boots out.
Nice Velox!
And of course, while I was fiddling with my gear and trying to sort things out…she caught the biggest fish! She’s on a roll for 2022!
While we were over in Fayetteville last weekend, we stopped into Pack Rat Outdoor Store. While wandering around the store we came upon a Dometic display containing 12VDC refrigerators, chairs, blankets and a water jug. We kind of liked the design philosophy of the water jug. On the ride home we talked in depth about the jug.
We ended up ordering one and it arrived today. Our reasoning behind this purchase was that our 6 gallon water jug that we currently use is a bit too heavy for us to carry any distance. It also takes up a lot of room in the vehicle due to its shape.
The Dometic is listed at 11 liters or approximately 3 gallons of capacity. It seems really well built and functional.
Top of container.Nalgene sized opening with a good seal.Main opening. It’s big enough to get your hand inside so you can clean the inside of the container.Air vent on Left, quick disconnect fitting on Right.
This particular model has a quick disconnect fitting that is designed to work in conjunction with their new battery operated faucet system. What I saw was a quick disconnect fitting that works with our Katadyn Hiker Pro water filter pump. We can plug straight in and refill the jug from an available water source.
Built-in handle on the bottom to help pour the contents if necessary.It does come with a pour spout too.
The handles are made of nylon webbing and are removable, not sure why I would remove them but everyones needs are different. This unit is compact enough that it will easily fit behind the driver or passenger seat of the vehicle. I tested it and can confirm that it does not leak at any angle. We have high hopes for this addition to our gear and look forward to using it soon.
We probably won’t buy the faucet system but we really like the design of this jug. Dometic seems to be serious about producing thoughtful, useful gear. Thanks for reading.
I have needed a way to carry a full size spare tire on my Subaru for quite awhile and decided on this particular carrier.
I chose this model due to the fact that it was constructed of Chrome Alloy steel tubing so in theory should be very durable. I wish I could carry a full size spare inside the vehicle but our after-market rims and tires will not fit the factory made space. I have been lugging the spare tire around inside the rear hatch which drastically reduced my cargo capacity.
I like that it swings out of the way of the rear hatch so loading and unloading the vehicle will not be impeded. It has 4 settings: 90 degrees, 120 degrees, 180 degrees and free swing. There are accessories available such as a fold down table or RotoPax holders for spare fuel jugs or water jugs. As you can see from the pictures, it has a Class 3 tow hitch built in so I can still tow a trailer.
What makes this hitch unique is that it is angled so it doesn’t drastically reduce my departure angle going up hills. As I’ve said before: sometimes it’s the little things that make a product stand out.
Installation took me about 45 minutes. The unit weighs 70 pounds and is rock solid. Zero wobble or bouncing. It even comes with a beefy license plate holder that is pre-wired with a light. I still need to permanently wire the license plate light and make the wiring look neater, but it’s my daily driver so I needed a quick solution to keep from getting pulled over.
This should make a great addition to our fishing vehicle due to where we go and some of the roads we drive on. Having a full-size spare gives me peace of mind. And it’s nice to have my full cargo area back.
Velox Seeker 