It's the Little Things
Storage on the water might be one of the most important aspects of wade fishing but, as it isn’t as glamorous as some other gear, it often goes unappreciated. When I was young, inexperienced and, maybe most importantly, broke, I couldn’t afford any purpose-built fishing packs. I made do with whatever I had so sometimes I used a knap sack, my school backpack or even just carried around an old Amazon Prime box which just so happened to be the right size for a fly box, reel and a few other odds and ends. Yeah, I looked a mess. In reality though, you should never let someone tell you that you can’t accomplish something because you don’t have the “right” gear. If you have the creativity and the mental fortitude to persist, you can accomplish amazing things with just the most basic necessities of equipment. While I will strive to never look down on someone for the gear they use, I have no shame in recommending products that can make angling both more enjoyable and more successful. After all, the simple addition of a quality pack made a world of difference in my own personal fishing experiences.
These days I primarily use two different packs for my on-the-water needs:
the Paxis Twin Lakes Madrona for my guiding and longer day trips
the Orvis Waterproof Sling Pack for personal fishing trips where not as much gear is required
First off, you’ll be forgiven if you haven’t heard of Paxis before. My first experience with Paxis came through the annual Fly Fishing Shows. They occupied a booth by the casting pools here in Atlanta and I just couldn’t help but gawk at their bags every time I walked by to test out a rod. These bags are unique in the industry, I’ve never seen anything particularly like them. Picture two compartments in the back pack. The upper bag is light and structured just like hundreds of other bags. There is plenty of room for larger fly boxes, leaders, tippet, a jacket, lunch and just about anything else you’re real likely to need. The bottom compartment though, is where things get interesting. This bottom compartment is separate from the upper bag and swings around your side on a lightweight metal arm. The mechanism is surprisingly simple and intuitive to use with there just being a simple claw that you pull on to unlock the lower compartment and swing it around to your front. This section of the bag is good for a couple of medium sized fly boxes, nippers, plyers, leader and tippet. Really, 95% of what I need in a day of guiding I can keep in the bottom compartment. That’s the true advantage to this bag. I have extremely easy access to most of my gear while also having a large reserve of space for any of the miscellany that I might need as well. The biggest demerits of this bag are all pretty straightforward and expected:
This bag is not waterproof. While wading in water deeper than your waist, the lower compartment can quickly take in water. Be careful storing non-waterproof items in this compartment.
I think Paxis has missed an opportunity to add extra storage pouches along the waist straps. This is a feature you will commonly find on backpacker’s packs and it would translate to these bags seemlessly.
The quality of the bag begs for better clips along the waist. These buckles should be upgraded as they are so important to taking weight off of the wearer’s back.
All in all, this Paxis bag is a game changing device for me. I love how it functions and can’t wait to see what further upgrades Paxis comes up with in the future. This is a great bag and I love using it.
On the other hand, the Orvis sling has long been my go-to bag. I have used this pack for three years and have traveled with it extensively. These days, it’s the bag I take with me on trips that last less than 8 hours or so. It’s a good size for carrying several fly boxes, miscellaneous tackle, etc., but due to its non-rigid form I typically won’t pack much food in it. Maybe I’ll toss in a sandwich or a water bottle but in general this bag doesn’t need to be one you take with you on a long hike. This bag is very good at keeping water out. Its body seems to be perfectly hydrophobic while its zippers remain pretty effective even under heavy use. This bag is actually so good at keeping water out, I have used it as a flotation device on multiple occasions. One time I was fishing the Flint river here in Georgia for native Shoal bass. I had fished maybe a half mile upstream and was ready to be done for the day. It was a hot summer afternoon and I was wet wading in hiking sandals, a bathing suit and all of my gear was stored inside this pack. I zipped everything up tight, swung the bag up around to my chest and picked my feet up off the moss covered bottom. I proceeded to float the half mile downstream comfortably without compromising my makeshift float! This bag’s compromises I think are pretty much unavoidable due to its mission:
Internal access to the bag is relatively difficult. With tough zippers and relatively small pockets inside, you need to keep this bag pretty well organized so you can find your stuff easily.
I can’t quite tighten the straps of the bag tight enough to fit my frame. While hiking longer distances, I want the pack to be glued to me as tightly as possible. Not a huge issue but another reason that it isn’t a great day pack for me.
Because the bag doesn’t have any rigid structure, crushable foodstuffs are likely to be flattened after a short time.
I have abused my Orvis sling pack on countless occasions and rarely found it wanting. It’s a purpose-made bag that appropriately ticks the boxes that it was designed to. Whether keeping your gear dry on a wet day or providing you with an unorthodox PFD, this is a great bag for many anglers.
