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Fly
Fishing Packs Versus Fly Fishing Vests - Buyer's Guide
Simms, fishpond, hip packs, waist
packs, vests, and backpacks!
Decisions... decisions.
Hip packs, chest packs, vests, vest packs, and full on back packs. Each
have their advantages and disadvantages and every angler will no doubt
determine what works best for them. Hopefully this guide will help you
narrow down your selection. Chances are if you fish a lot you will wind
up with a couple and use what works best for that particular fishing
trip!
The most popular is a waist pack, hip pack, or lumbar pack. They are
all the same thing living by different names. Our best seller is the
Simms Dry Creek Hip Pack,
it is waterproof and very versatile. Another option that has slightly
more technical features including magnetic pocket closure (sounds fancy
but is super convenient) is the
Sage Typhoon Large Waist Pack.
It is larger and offers some more convenient pockets. It is double the
price, but anglers that try it... buy it. You will use it a lot. Waist
packs are convenient because they simply buckle around your waist, one
size fits all, and it is very convenient. They hold enough gear for
about a half day's worth of fishing and most hold a bottle of water on
the side. The downsides of a hip pack are that they don't carry much.
You can't bring a lunch of any substance, store extra clothing, bring a
decent sized camera, or a significant amount of water. They are a great
"half day" pack and are very popular for short trips relatively close to
your boat or vehicle. However, they are a best seller and most anglers
like to use a hip pack most of the time. If you are planning to fish
saltwater or get a pack for bonefish trips, definitely get the
Simms Dry Creek Flats Pack. It
is made to handle saltwater.
Traditional fly fishing vests or "vest-packs" are the most versatile.
They are lightweight and will haul a ton of gear if you want them to.
The newest models are very technical so there are always lots of pockets
and gadgets on the chest which keeps your accessories like nippers,
tippet, etc. very easy to access and use. Our best seller is the
Fishpond Flint Hills Fly Fishing Vest.
It has lots of versatility and is the best fly fishing vest under $100
that we know about. You can stuff the pack cargo bay full of lunch,
jackets, cameras, or anything you need for an entire day. Some vests
even have adjustable straps like a backpack for a custom fit. The
Fishpond Flint Hills Fly Fishing Vest
has adjustable straps. Our next best selling fly fishing
vest is the
Simms Freestone Mesh fly Fishing Vest.
Both are good choices, see the features and decide which is right for
you.
There are few "hybrid" type vestpacks that fit somewhere in between.
The most popular is the
Fishpond Gore Ranch Tech Pack.
This pack offers the technical features of a pack, but the traditional
fit of a fly fishing vest. The downside is that if you are doing a
short trip this vest-pack is heavier than the
Fishpond Flint Hills Fly Fishing Vest.
Fly Fishing backpacks are perfect for anglers that want to make long
treks and might leave their car at dawn and not return until dusk.
Supplies like first aid kits, a big lunch, plenty to drink, rain
jackets, and a big camera get a free ride in these. A lot of fly
fishing backpacks also have a compatible chest pack that straps onto the
front. Both the
Simms Dry Creek Day Pack
and the
Simms Dry Creek Roll Top Backpack
offer this feature. These are the best selling fly fishing
backpacks on the market. They are very similar with the main difference
being that the
Simms Dry Creek Day Pack
has a zipper closure and the
Simms Dry Creek Roll Top Backpack
uses a "roll and buckle" closure. The chest pack option keeps your
tippet, nippers, flies, and terminal tackle on your chest and ready for
action. The
Fishpond Double Haul Backpack
is also a great choice. It has a few more technical features
that the Simms products and is hydration bladder compatible. It comes
standard with backpack and
chestpack for about $70 less than the Simms packages. When you buy
your backpack/chestpack in a combo package each item can be used
independently. It is a versatile combo and a great all around
system for treks both long and short.
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