Float Tube Fly Fishing

[zonker]

Most of my tube fishing is done with fly gear. I fish large and small lakes in Central and Western Oregon for trout. While I enjoy the many modifications done by the avid tubers on this site, I find that many of them are not as applicable to flyfishing. Rod holders sticking up or out, tool holders, and the many PVC additions only serve to give more opportunities to tangle the fly line. I had made a PVC angled rod holder for fly rods but have recently quit using it. Lately I've focused on scaling things back to fit the naturally smaller and lighter characteristics of flinging flies.

I carry only two rods - one with a floating line and one with an intermediate sinker (most of the lakes I fish are relatively shallow.) Lashing the extra rod to the tube (pre-strung but broken down) in a position that doesn't cause it to stick up or out is the best option I have found for the necessary streamlining that makes for smooth casting.

As for gear, everything is smaller for the flyfisher. Thus I carry all of my various tools (forceps, clippers, stomach pumps, thermometer, leaders and tippets, etc) in a small chest pack. All of my fly boxes and spare spools go into one of the pockets in the tube. I add a floating, soft bag net in the behind the seat stow of my FC4, along with a small tube anchor and I'm fairly well set. Sometimes I use the fish finder, sometimes not.

At the end of last summer I bought a BW Sports Chest Vest 1 to try with my flyrod tubing. It is a small, light, around the neck and around the middle pack that holds all of my necessary tools along with two medium sized Scientific Anglers fly boxes and, if I want to step out and fish along the shore, also a third large sized box. This has proven to be a real solution for me as it got rid of my overstuffed vest and allows me to fish comfortably in the tube. Since the fly boxes are easy to reach in the tube pockets, it doesn't make too much bulk on my chest. This helps when I'm caught in an Oregon downpour and need to close the front of my breathable rain jacket.

Occasionally I like to step out of the tube and fish certain areas from the shore. The BW Sports Chest Vest 1 doubles as an over the shoulder tackle bag for such occasions with only a few adjustments in the straps. Below are a couple of pictures of the Chest Vest in its two configurations. These pictures come from the website of the company so the guy in them is probably a professional clothing model.










I'd be interested to hear of the observations of other fly fishermen on this site and how you arrange/manage your tubes and gear.

zonker
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Good topic. I know from personal experience that you don't want vertical rods on your craft when waving the fairy wand. Even if you are good with line control, there is always that little puff of breeze that pushes your line over and wraps around the upright obstacles. Been there done that.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I like the chest vest. I have been taking out a smaller version for several years. I keep my sandwich, walkie talkie and some of the smaller "necessities" in it for quick access. I also wear a humongous vest, with a lot of miscellaneous items (hooks, floats, stringers, fishing license, etc. in the small pockets. When taking bait out in my small insulated containers (Thermos jars) I often carry two...one on each side...in the large bottom side pockets.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The large pockets on each side of my Fat cat hold tackle boxes, sonar battery, sunscreen and insect repellent, head net, marker buoys, etc. In colder weather there may be a pair or two of fishing gloves.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I typically carry five rods...three or four spinning and one or two baitcast. On some trips, I do include a 9 1/2' for five weight fly rod. When I take the fly rod, I use a special insert in one of my rod tubes to hold the flyrod when not in use. When in use, I try to practice safe positioning to avoid getting my other rods tangled during the casting process. With a tube, I find that I can usually get close enough to the action that I don't need to do much distance casting.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I don't use anchors. I should sometimes, but I don't .[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I have both a landing net and a fish basket hanging off the sides of my tube, and a tool rack with lip grippers, long nose pliers and a sharp knife. I also keep a PFD tucked behind my seat for quick access.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Probably left out a hundred things, but that is the gist of it.[/#0000ff]
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[Fishhound]

Hey Zonker,

Not all of us here are exclusively hardware geeks - most of my tube fishing has been with a fly rod.

I've had my tube for about 3 years now. I've had my pontoon boat for about 5 years. Before that, I had another pontoon boat, and before that, for many years, I had a couple of river rafts and a 16 foot aluminum boat(not too unlike your own). All of my watercraft have been for different fishing applications. I had my pontoon boat before I got a float tube - kind of backwards compared to most folks.

My tube was originally and exclusively for fly fishing on small lakes for most of the time I've had it. The gear I customarily take along would be about half of what you have indicated that you bring. I only take 1 fly rod and a small fanny pack(as small as the one in your photo) that holds all of my flies(2 small boxes), tools, flotant, leader and tippet material, and micro weights (to sink nymphs) for the body of water I am fishing at that specific time. The only tools I bring are a pair of forceps, a line clipper, a pocket knife, small wire cutters, and debarbing pliers which all fit handily in the small pack that I wear around my waist and sit in my lap while on the tube. When I'm sitting down, I like it lower rather than up on my chest. If I forsee any kind of shore fishing on that lake, I might also bring my fishing vest and it only has a few other items in it that I usually don't need on my tube. The pockets on my tube only hold my lunch, a small fold up wind breaker, a bug net, spare sun glasses, a bottle of water, a small pair of binoculars and a PFD and small landing net are stuffed in the bow. It wasn't until recently that I adapted it to fishing with hardware for warm water species and added the rod/tool holders and sonar modifications. TubeDude is to blame for the new application. You can check out a photo of it on this board as it appears in the newly modified configuration.
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[zonker]

Thanks for the responses guys.

Since I do several different kinds of fishing throughout the year it is important to me to get fairly well organized so I don’t end up either carrying too much equipment or leaving important things at home – especially since certain gear is shared back and forth between methods. I also fly fish in streams where it is necessary to carry extra things that aren’t appropriate for lakes and visa versa. For that matter I also fish kokanee from the regular boat and salmon/steelhead from the bank. Each specialized type of fishing takes a little different mix of containers, tackle, and vehicles.

For the trout applications I have found that a regular vest is best for tramping streams. The smaller chest vest works best for lakes. I carry a duplicate set of tools in each so I don’t need to keep moving stuff back and forth, running the risk of leaving something out. With this method the only thing I need to switch back and forth are the appropriate fly boxes. A long handled net for lakes is left clipped to my tube and a shorter handled net is left clipped to my full sized vest for streams.

Actually, a system of lists has served me quite well over the last few years. I carry a paper list in a zip lock baggie for each type of fishing. One list is in my stream vest, one in my lake chest vest, one in my kokanee tackle box (for the boat), one in my steelhead fanny pack for bank walking fishing regular gear and one in my second steelhead fanny pack for steelhead fly fishing. Backup copies of these lists are kept on my desktop PC and my handheld PDA. I add to each list anything I discover I’ve forgotten so that I don’t forget it next time. These lists have proven invaluable for quick and thorough preparation and packing. Such packing, with a reliable list, is a cool and calm endeavor rather than a feverish mind exercise where I’m worried that I will forget something. (I’ve driven 175 miles one way to fish the Deschutes River, for instance, and forgotten my wading boots. I’ve arrived at my favorite lake, miles from home, and discovered I’d forgotten flippers.) I use a slick little list program on the computer for keeping all these lists in proper order and instantly accessible.

Oh for the days when I kept everything I owned in a single tackle bag! Then again, maybe not. I often lugged things I didn't need and didn't have things that I needed.

zonker
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[zonker]

Fishhound,

I just checked out your ride in the pics section. Nicely equipped!

Tubedude is responsible for inspiring more things hanging from float tubes than any man alive today. If he ever gets his book in print he'll be famous. Float tube and gear sales will go up nationwide.

zonker
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I don't plan to publish until I can get a controlling interest in a major PVC manufacturing company.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Thanks for the kindly comments...I think.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]But, you gotta know that our own Fishhound is pretty creative in his own right and can claim originality on much of his design.[/#0000ff]
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