Vest vs Pack

[thebassman]

I wouldn't say I would never go back to a vest. The New Umpqua Swiftwater Vest looks pretty awesome. I have used a Fishpond Waterdance Guide Pack and San Juan chest pack and loved both. The waterdance was perfect for all day while the San Juan was a great grab and go.

I now have the Fishpond Yampa Guide Pack and a Vedavoo Custom Chest pack as my go to packs. I am toying with the idea of picking up a Simms Headwaters Sling/Guide Sling. I liked those way better than the Orvis sling.

I typically don't wade very deep....ever, so the hip pack works great.

 

[crs2006]

DCG
The Pack is by J-Tech and the external pouches are by Maxpedition.

This is the pack

I hang a net off the left side with a magnetic holder, and the camera off the right with a gear keeper retractor.

The beauty of it is that it is highly versatile, and I have access to every single thing in it without ever having to remove it. The weight is distributed nicely on the hips and the shoulder.

This is my "standard kit" more or less.

 

[Phish_On]

Check out Vedavoo.com Maybe we have something to fill the void.

 

[Brownie101]

Just found this thread, and I currently have a vest. I can't decide whether to get a sling pack, http://www.orvis.com/store/product.aspx?pf_id=3H6P
Or a waist pack. Could anyone tell me some pros and cons of both? I usually fish smaller wild trout streams. I currently am leaning towards the sling pack, but I'm still not really sure.
Thanks

 

[paragon]

I love my Simms Headwaters Large Sling. Plenty of room for days when you want to take everything. I usually pack a couple liters of water, lunch, cigars, rain gear, 6 or 7 fly boxes including a big streamer box, leader wallet, tools etc. It also has a ton of options for attaching tools and whatnot to the outside including a spare rod tube. The net attachment is nice and high. So your net is easy to reattach and stays out of the way. It is a bit overkill for tiny streams, but I don't like to switch my gear out. It fits really close to the body and can compress down a bit. So it's not a hassle even when it's mostly empty. Good luck on your purchase.

 

[pcray1231]

This is my "standard kit" more or less.

Jebus!

Comparing yours to mine:

flies go in chest BOX
Leaders go in chest box
tippet spools in wader pocket
floatant goes on chest box
thingamabobbers go in chest box
1 pair of nippers attached to chest box strap with zinger
1 pair of forceps clips to the chest box strap
Much smaller, waterproof camera with wrist strap attached to wader strap and tucked under.

Lose the:

Net.
fly boxes
First aid kit
Trauma kit
knife
redundant sets of hemos and cutting tools
various wallets
hanky?
lighter
TP (afterall, what are leaves for?)
extra strap
waders repair kit
glasses case
key ring sharpener thingy
extra sets of fly and line dressing
toothbrush, really?

No packs. Just a small, light box strapped to my chest. Disclaimer: I do carry a fanny on full day trips away from the car. Typically a sammich and drink go there.

 

[Brownie101]

Thanks paragon, I think I'll get the sling pack.

 

[geebee]

i'd never go into the woods without a knife and compass.

my knife is a firestarter too.

 

[Cold]

Started off with a vest. Worked well enough, but I realized that I wasn't using 80% of what I was carrying 80% of the time. Most obviously when brookie fishing.

Got a combination chest & backpack from Gander on clearance to try, and while it's great for cold weather steelhead fishing, it's too cumbersome (for me) for anything else. Also learned that I absolutely hate having anything in front of me where a chest pack rides while I'm fishing.

Next, I picked up a Fishpond pack, a small one meant to be used as a chest pack, which I converted to be worn as a simple sling. Works great for minimalist fishing for brookies or warmwater, where you generally aren't changing your rigging much (for brookies, it's all dry fly, for warmwater, all heavy tippet streamers). This is/was a great setup, but it was annoying to have to completely change over my loadout depending on what I decided to fish that particular day, and if I forgot to swap one item, it left me seriously screwed...for example, only having a spool of 6X tippet and learning this out on my kayak fishing for largemouth...or only having 2X after hiking a mile through the woods to a brookie stream.

At this point, I decided to try a sling. Picked up an Orvis model that was a bit smaller than I'd have liked, but it was very comfortable. Of course a month or two later, they came out with the larger Guide pack.

I really like this sling for most of my needs, though it is annoying when I'd like to bring along a water bottle, light jacket, or lunch and there's simply no room. To address this, I'll likely be adding a Guide sling to the collection this season.

 

[Swattie87]

I too have run through many of the different pack options…vest, chest, backpack, sling…My consistent favorite from a comfort perspective is just a standard backpack with a waist belt, and the shoulder straps cinched to ride nice and high. I don’t carry a ton of stuff in it, and don’t need near the amount of space, it’s just the most comfortable to me. The main downside of course is having to take it off to access it.

Recently I purchased a Tactical Sling Pack thingy made by Condor…not specifically designed for fishing, but well suited as a fishing pack. I think they’re designed and marketed as EDC/bugout type deals. I picked up a few of the accessory pouches that attach to it…for a Nalgene and my camera and phone, and all told I’m into it for about $70…or about the same as any other mid range fishing specific sling pack. I like the functionality, but it’s not as comfortable as a standard backpack.

http://www.condoroutdoor.com/Condor-156.aspx

Depending on where you’re fishing (and where I do most of my Trout fishing) I do think it’s a good idea to carry a small knife, lighter, small flashlight, compass, and rudimentary fire kit (Altoid tin size) just in case you have to spend a night. I came close to having to do so once and since then I’ve carried these items on more remote streams. I don’t advocate carrying more weight than is necessary, but I think it’s reasonable to carry these items if you’re out in the woods. If you’re on a stream right next to a paved road, admittedly not necessary probably.

 

[Brownie101]

Does the orvis guide sling have that much more room than the normal? Trying to decide which I want.

 

[Cold]

To me, yes. Of course the tradeoff is that fully-loaded, it'll likely be more cumbersome.

With the regular pack, I have room in the main compartment for either 3 trout-sized fly boxes, or two bugger barn sized boxes (or two small trout boxes and a bugger barn). If I load it that full though, nothing else is fitting in there. With the Guide size, I could do the two barns and still have room for lunch and a water bottle, or a lightweight windbreaker jacket.

 

[crs2006]

Yeah no doubt its a lot but there is a method to my madness I promise

Im usually fishing warmwater, or situations where it is a vast change in target species from one hour to the next (think Bass to Carp, Bass to pike/musky, dries for browns to smallies etc), and carrying gear for a couple people. Possibly in warmwater more than anything the willingness to cast into ridiculous cover is important. I use and I lose (and give away) a ton of big flies (6-10 inches) so I carry the boat boxes. Theres maybe a dozen patterns in each box. My "strictly trout" setup is substantially lighter.

I smoke cheap cigars when I fish, so the lighter stays.

The toothbrush is for synthetic flies (I tie and use these a TON). After they get whacked a few times they are a mess. a toothbrush straightens them right out.

I take that knife everywhere so I dont even really think about it.

The med kit. I never carried one until I had a buddy fall, and the bone in his hand ripped through his skin. bled like crazy and some serious pain. We were a solid mile from the car and had ZERO medical supplies. Im lucky ive never been injured, but most of my friends have. Kind of made me realize that for the little weight, it is good to have. TP. I spent enough time crapping in holes in the woods while in the military to know that a bit of TP goes a long way for morale lol