New Products for On-The-Go Anglers
We’ve fallen into a weird “donut hole” in time when it comes to the introduction of new products for traveling anglers. There were plenty of goodies brought to light at the Bassmaster Classic, and we’ll see many more from ICAST in July. There may be another surge closer to the Christmas shopping season. That does not mean, however, that the designers and manufacturers can take intermittent breaks of several weeks or months – especially in these times of ongoing supply chain shortages, they have to bring gear to market whenever they can.
Many of you are no doubt planning tackle orders in the near future, possibly to coincide with likely sales at Tackle Warehouse. If, unlike me, you do not click the website’s “New Items” tab daily (or in some cases multiple times a day), I’ve done the hard work for you. Here are some of the newish products that I’ve seen that might be of particular use whether you’re headed to Mexico or Brazil or anywhere that requires preparation and travel-friendly gear:
Nomad has been a major player in the saltwater market for a long time, and now they’ve made the transition to freshwater – with bass-oriented lures that will no doubt stand up to the attacks of harsh predators like peacock bass and payara. Tackle Warehouse has added several, but the one that intrigues me the most is the tail-weighted walking Dartwing. It’s made to be abused, with heavy-duty BKK trebles, and should excel on both bass and “exotics.”
The ½ ounce Chrome/Blue Warpig has become our staple for El Salto and Picachos. For reasons unknown, it just seems to outproduce comparable lipless lures down there. Sometimes you need something smaller or lighter, however, to deal with super-skinny water or to match the hatch on tiny baitfish. That’s when this new baby should get the call.
Carrying and spooling line on the road, particularly doing it solo, is often a pain in the ass, and while this box may not be ideal for plane flights, it’s a perfect waterproof storage container and tool to throw in the back of your tow vehicle or in a storage compartment of your boat. It’ll keep you organized and encourage you to respool more often.
I got one of these pairings in a media giveaway package and it was one of those “Why didn’t I think of that?” moments – a filler spool of Green or Hi-Vis Yellow Spiderwire braid along with a 25 yard spool of Trilene 100% fluorocarbon for leaders. The smaller spool even snaps into the larger one. That way you’ll always have both when you need them.
Shimano’s reputation is impeccable, they have tons of (overseas) experience in the travel rod market, and these two 7’ sticks are bargain-priced.
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While Tackle Warehouse has only added the one “true” (i.e., three-, four- or five-piece) travel rod listed above lately, anglers who need something collapsible to pack in a tube or to carry in their compact car (or shove in a closet in between uses) will be glad to see that they’re now selling several more two-piece selections from the Abu-Garcia and Shimano lineups. These include:
At 6’6” to 7’6” they may not pack down super-small, but you’ll be surprised at how often that shorter length can make your life easier or help you get your tackle to hidden places.
Now get buying so you can get traveling!
