A New Fishing Bag Checklist
Having the right fishing bag will make your fishing trips far more enjoyable. If you haven’t already got yourself a purpose designed fishing bag then you’re probably making do with and old rucksack or even worse an old plastic cantilevered toolbox that you have to carry by hand.
A fishing bag isn’t for all types of angler, match fisherman tend to have seat boxes and as the name suggest… is a seat… and a box… (The box bit is where the tackle is stored!) But this isn’t suitable for all types of fishing. If you’re in to carp fishing or you are a specimen hunter the likelihood is that you’ve already got yourself a fishing chair that is far superior to any seat box, so you’ll want to kit yourself out with a fishing bag to keep all of your tackle and bait in.
If you’re looking for a new bag or want to upgrade your existing one here’s a few points your may want to consider:
Size
Size matters! Heard that before? Well getting the right sized fishing bag really does matter. Getting one too small and you’re going to struggle to get all of your kit in it. If on the other hand you get a bag that’s too big you’ll be inclined to fill it, and that means more weight to carry and difficult in finding what you want in it. Try to avoid getting a massive fishing bag.
Organisation
Not only is the size of your fishing bag important also is the number of compartments that it has. Have just the right number of compartments will allow you to access all of your tackle quickly and easily. One of the best solutions is to have exterior pockets that house separate cases.
One of my favourite pieces of fishing equipment is my Nash tackle bag. It’s got a zip in the lid of it, one pocket on either side of it and a third on the front. Each of these pockets houses a smaller pull out bag – about the size of a mess tin –these bags allow you to keep smaller pieces of tackle such as hooks, weights, floats and feeders in an organised manor.
Handles/Straps
Try to find a bag that has a number of methods to carry it as a minimum you’ll want it to have a shoulder strap but even better is if it has carry handles too. If you find a bag that does have handles, make sure that the shoulder strap is detachable – from experience it’s really easy to trip over a shoulder strap if it’s flapping about.
Materials
Like fishing rod bags your fishing bag will need to be made out of a strong waterproof material. Unless you’re incredibly lucky you’re not going to be able to dodge the rain forever, and when you do get caught out you want to make sure that your fishing kit is well protected. I mentioned previously my Nash fishing bag and I’ll come back to it again – it’s got a thick durable vinyl type base on it which means I can sling it down in the mud and the contents won’t get wet, not only that but when it does get wet and muddy I can easily wipe it down before putting it in the car.
Most of the specialist fishing equipment comes in three colours/patterns – you’ll be faced with either a khaki or black plain fabric or a camouflage pattern. It’s a matter of personal choice really, there have been a few studies in to what fish can see above the water but personally I think that the fish will feel your vibrations before they can see you. Not to mention that from the angle they’re looking at they will be looking at your silhouette against the sky so probable can’t make out colours anyway.
A camouflaged pattern on a bag will mean that it will hide the dirt better – so if that sort of thing bothers you then this may be the best solution for you.
Matching?
If you’ve got a fishing rod bag already the manufacture may well make a matching tackle bag, and although fishing isn’t exactly a fashion parade sometimes it’s nice to have similar equipment, particularly if you are please with your rod holdall.
Bait compartment
You’ll find that some fishing bags have waterproof compartments specifically designed to store bait in. If you don’t have a separate bait bag then make sure that you look for this feature. The waterproof properties of it will ensure that no oils or flavours leach out in to the rest of your bag.
Hopefully this has given you some tips so that you can make an informed decision before buying your bag.
