This list of small items is what we refer to as the gadgetry. While this is not meant trivialize these things, but they are desirable additions to the angler’s kit. See our previous post on buying your fishing gear for a brief backgrounder.
Don’t keep your loose flies anywhere except in a fly box. It is safer and helps to prevent the hooks rusting. Buy a small box, because this will limit the selection of flies you buy and, for a beginner, this is a good thing.
If you feel like it you can make your own fly box, as most do. Buy an empty video box – the plastic kind in which videos are normally kept – and cut section of foam plastic and fit them inside. Then simply fix the flies in order of size on to the plastic foam.
Don’t use your teeth to sever nylon. And don’t use a knife. Use scissors or, if you prefer it, a nail clipper. You can buy fisherman’s scissors these days, with pliers at the tips of blades.
This is a small baton made of wood or horn with a lead core, which is used, as the name suggests, for administering the last rites to the fish when you catch him. Never leave a fish gasping on the river bank or in a boat. Despatch it as quickly and humanely as possible with a couple of sharp blows on the head with the priest.
Get this in a cycle shop. You may be glad of it if your waders spring a leak and you have to do a repair on the spot, on the river bank.
You can buy these little grooved sharpeners now for use if and when your hooks lose their edge.
Strong sunshine dappling on the surface of the water can cause eyestrain and detract from your hunting for signs of rising trout. Buy polaroids, which will cut the surface glare and make your fishing more comfortable. This is very useful for link legering.
This is a long spoon with no wide part at the end like an ordinary spoon. Its purpose is to find out what the trout has been feeding on. You insert the spoon through its mouth and spoon out the contest of its stomach. Then you examine these contents to see the type of insect it has been eating so that you can match them with your artificial flies or nymphs.
Buy a box of small non-lead weights, in can you may be fishing a lake and you want to get your flies right down to the fish.
You may be glad of this one warm summer evening
fishing in the sunset when trying to find your way back to your car in darkness.
Unlike some other outdoor sports, the clothing for angling, as a rule, is inexpensive and simple. *A waterproof coat should be long enough to cover the top of your waders*
Don’t buy a plastic waterproof. Certainly it will keep the rain off, buy it will not keep you dry simply because it develops condensation inside. Buy a coat that is long enough to go over the top of your waders. The modern waxed cotton coats are excellent and there is a wide variety of quality and prices at the tacklist’s shop. You get what you pay for.
A good fishing hat with a wide brim is invaluable
on a fishing day. It shields the eyes from the sun, protects your head from the
rain and –most importantly –it protects you from artificial flies when you and
others are casting.
Some never wear them, even on the coldest days, but what is recommended for the icy weather is a pair of fingerless mittens.
A spare pair of warm socks can be a blessing if you slip and fill your waders.
The Americans call them ‘suspenders’, and they are necessary for holding up your thigh-length waders. Whatever clothing you buy, make sure it is not of bright lurid colouring. Merge with the background and the fish will not be ‘spooked’ off.