Seek, Catch, Release, Protect
I knew what I wanted but couldn’t find anything close to what I was looking for. There was an idea for it floating around in my head. I knew I wanted it to hold my jigheads and plastic baits, it must have a solid and secure closure yet be easy to access, it must drain out the water when I wade/swim and it must be able to be carried on my fishing belt.
I own a JUKI DDL-8700 sewing machine that I use to make backpacking quilts and to do gear repairs when needed.
The other day I was searching through Digitaka’s site and ran across a reel that piqued my interest. It was the Daiwa 2020 Gekkabijin X LT 1000S-P spinning reel. The price was 12,780 yen which equates to $121.67 usd which isn’t bad since this reel is Magsealed. It shows that it was manufactured in Vietnam. It has 5+1 ball bearings and holds 200m of PE# 0.3 braid, or 100m of 2.5lb nylon, and the weight is 195g or approximately 6.9 oz. I have been wanting to try a reel with Magseal to see what all the hype is about.
NOTE: For anyone not familiar with some of the reel designations, the “S” in 1000S-P means it is a shallow spool.
I have heard great reports about Varivas line and opted to try some while I was at the Digitaka site. IT’S PRICEY! For a 75m spool of the Infinity Area Super Trout PE x8 rated at 5.6lb it cost me 4,320 yen or $41.13 usd. That hurt! Probably why almost all of the 1000 size reels I see for the JDM market are shallow spools…but who knows, maybe they just don’t need to make long casts. We will see how it works out. I’ve got my fingers crossed…
I use a MagPul DAKA zippered pouch to hold my licenses and permits as well as other ancillary items. I chose yellow for visibility when I’m using a slingpack (Patagonia Stormsurge Sling or Yeti Panga 28L). It just keeps things together and reduces the clutter. The DAKA is not 100% waterproof but it’s durable and does the job.
As stated before, I spend a lot of time researching gear choices. I think things through with a focus on price, durability, utility and function. I prefer a modular approach so I can switch out easily. Anything to maximize my fishing time and keep clutter to a minimum…
Anytime I find myself on my local rivers or streams fishing, you will find these items on my person.
Again, with lots of trial and error, I’ve settled on these 4 colors almost exclusively when fishing for Velox. For those new to the blog, Velox is short for Micropterus dolomieu velox- the Neosho-strain Smallmouth Bass.
I remember the first few times we fished the stream for these fish and we threw EVERYTHING we had. Most of which were our tried and true colors…pumpkinseed, motor oil, buffalo, electric chicken etc etc. But NO, they only wanted blue. They would ignore anything with chartreuse which I thought was bizarre. But who am I to argue! Give them what they want. And they wanted BLUE!
Being a consummate fisherman…it’s our destiny to experiment and experiment we will. I have a host of new lures to try in 2021…and yes…they’re BLUE.
After a few years of trial and error I settled on the Gamakatsu Round 211 jig head in 1/8th oz. I find that the hooks are super-sharp and the short shank makes hookups more consistent for stream fishing smallmouth bass.
With this weight, I can fish the deeper pools or tail-out areas. Riffles can be fished with a faster retrieve as well as the rod tip being held higher. Just be careful not to high-stick the rod when fighting a fish.
I have zero scientific evidence to prove my theory other than my fishing journal which shows on July 13th we caught 10 Velox using a generic jig head as opposed to July 27th where we caught 82 using the Round 211. It might have been a banner day where all the planets were aligned…but the Journal says otherwise! As with fishing in general….Your mileage may vary!
Velox Seeker 