Kennesaw, GA It’s a known fact that most anglers could be featured on an episode of Hoarders. While there’s nothing wrong with being comprehensively prepared, if you can’t find the proper tool for the job – or it’s not fully functional when you grab it – then you’re not ready to do battle with the fish of a lifetime. Storage solutions may be a deeply personal matter, but there’s a right and a wrong way to keep your tackle dry, accessible and ready for action.
Whether you’re on shore, fishing out of your boat or constantly going in and out of others’ vessels, you’ll need the proper bags and boxes. You may not need fishing-specific choices, and indeed there are plenty of options in your local big-box store or hardware store, but if you find one made for fishing, that’s usually preferable. Remember, you’ll want to stay mobile, so a backpack or sling bag like SPRO’s Dry Bag will come in handy, and water resistance or water repellent materials are worth their weight in gold.
For smaller items, get a selection of SPRO’s waterproof tackle trays, which are available in 3500, 3700 and 3700 deep sizes, with customizable dividers that allow you to segregate your lures and terminal tackle. Keep your SPRO frogs in one, your McSticks in another, and your replacement trebles in another, or put together a “go box” that allows you to take a representative selection in someone else’s boat. You can even put it under the seat of your car, in your briefcase or a piece of luggage, so you’re always ready to fish.
SPRO also offers mesh pouches that can be used to gather up soft plastics and other gear still in their packages. They, too, come in three sizes and have easy zip tops that combine security with easy accessibility. You can even customize the label, so you know what’s inside – whether that means tungsten weights, big worms, packaged spinnerbaits or something else altogether. Get a selection of them, and you can easily organize the soft plastics in your boat by size, style or color. When a bag gets deflated, it’s time to restock. No more hunting through every compartment searching for the last of its kind – it’s right at your fingertips.
Over time you’ll find that you may need to make subtle tweaks to your system – but efficiency and security should remain the hallmarks of whatever changes you make. There’s nothing worse than not being able to find something, except possibly being able to find something, and it’s rusted from long periods of water penetration. Eventually, finding your gear (and finding it in perfect shape) will become second nature, which means more casts and more fish in the boat every time out, without spending money to replace things unnecessarily.