The Outdoor Gear We Recommend
We may have a little bit of a hoarding problem. Good gear need not be expensive, but it has to improve the experience in some way. Whether it’s the right rod, a certain bait, or the world’s best rainsuit, we’ll give unfiltered opinions on what we use and why we use it.
No tackle shop on earth provides more specialized gear for bass than Tackle Warehouse. If you want it, they've got it in stock — whether it's a proven winner or the newest items on the market — and their service is exceptional.
She Told Me to Walk This Way
Despite the fact that my personal best 21 pound peacock came swimming a jig, my most memorable strikes (including my second best, a 20) came on the big prop baits that made the Rio Negro fisheries famous. Those aren’t the only topwaters that will work, though. Especially when I’ve been chasing Amazonian species other than peacocks, I’ve found that a walk-the-dog topwater can be equally effective and sometimes better.
High-End Travel Rods to Covet and Buy
Now that I’ve caught the bug and gotten over my fears that multi-piece rods would feel subpar, I’ve started to explore additional options. If you look to foreign markets like Japan and Europe and Australia, there are many more models than you can find here – including some at bespoke prices – but for purposes of this piece I’m going to limit it to items that are fairly easy to acquire within the U.S.
Airline Travel With Multiple Pack Rods
If you’re hopping on a commercial air flight, the ideal situation is to bring your rods with you inside the big bird. That decreases the chance that they’ll be lost in transit and also allows you to position them safely. If you have a single rod and a thin-diameter tube, most airlines will let you carry it on without a second look, but as your package gets, well, “girthier,” you might not have it so easy.
Would You Eat a Peacock?
Are peacock bass cannibalistic? I don’t know, but even if they’re not certainly there are other species in Amazonian waters (as well as those elsewhere, like South Florida) that eat young peas. Indeed, they’ve served as the inspiration for some killer paint jobs that are more exciting than standard old blue/chartreuse and Tennessee Shad.
Travel Rod Diaries -- The Big Stick
I know that the one-piece purists among you will shudder, because I used to be one of you, but I’ve started to come around and I’ve amassed a selection of travel rods, but most of them are pretty generic in terms of action: 6- to 7-foot medium action spinning rods, and 6’6” to 7’6” medium-heavy baitcasters. This is the first one that has a specific purpose, in this case throwing big baits. It might not handle true giants like the Mother Chaser, but it’ll handle anything up to about 4 ounces exceptionally.
