Unpacking How to Pack for Destination Fishing

Preparing for my trip to Austria I made some good choices that served me and made some mistakes too. I hope that you will learn from my experience and avoid the pains but enjoy the benefits of packing smart. Destination fishing often requires you to pack bags and travel by airline. My trip to Austria was almost a disaster. There wasn't much time to wait around the airport to figure out what happened to my lost luggage and frankly the Munich airport really stunk at having a process for this. So we filed a claim and then drove   from Munich to Mittersill (Austria). When  we got to the hotel the first thing I did after checking in was to lay out what resources I actually did have. What you see in the photo below is most of what I had left with me as carry on baggage. It was by grace alone that I carried almost all of my rods and some of my tackle with me. What follow are my new thoughts and approach to traveling whether fishing or not to be sure that I don't have to relive the experience of dread again. I hope you like my thoughts and add your other ideas in the comment section.

My belongings included:
Five tenkara rods
Line spool with flies and tippet
Fly box (the extra one not the best one)
Extra fishing lines
Water bottle
Wool hat
Rain coat
Fishing shirt
Fanny pack
Book and Mala
Notebook and 2 pens
Deck of Cards
Tenugui (that blue cloth)
Small backpack
Cloth rod case (personal carry on item)

Not shown in photo:
A polypropylene long sleeve shirt, an extra t-shirt, My long sleeve fishing shirt, a pair of underwear, pair of socks and the clothes I was wearing.

Lessons Learned or...
..."If I Could Do It All Over Again."

Only Pack What You Will Need...Seriously...
I start here because this may be the best thing you can remember when traveling. Too often we take too many "just in case" items. Things like more clothes than we need, extra shoes, etc. We might even be overloading our toiletries bag almost every time we travel. You should lay out everything and then decide what is really needed. Challenge yourself to look at clothes and count the days you will be there. Some clothing can be worn more than once or even washed on site. There is a big temptation to pack more fishing gear than you will need too. I only used 3 out of 5 rods that made it through with me.
Lay out your stuff When we lay out our gear we get a little better understanding of how much we are actually taking and we can perhaps make better decisions about those items we don't need.  The main purpose for this exercise is to help us reduce our packing to the essentials and to figure out the size of baggage we will actually need.  Which brings me to the next point...

Limit yourself to a carry on and one personal item.
Avoid starting with a large suitcase. A large suitcase automatically needs to be checked. AND it is begging to be filled beyond what you will need. Unless you are staying for longer than a week or so, there is no reason you need more than what the airline actually allows you to carry on board with you, usually a carry on suitcase and a personal item. That personal item can be a rod tube with a few rods and your fishing tackle.  I can hear you making excuses now for having stuff. I am happy to hear your protests in the comment section. The reality is that the standard carry on luggage is actually quite adequate to carry what you need for a fishing trip. Boots and waders will of course be the big items. Rods are better protected when carried by hand. At most you will want perhaps a warm coat if you are going somewhere cold but that can be squeaked by as "not really an extra item if you are wearing it onto the plane." Other options follow and being creative with your packing helps too.

What can you buy or rent at your final destination?
Looking at what I had upon arrival at the hotel I realized that could have saved some room in my small backpack, which had much more extra room that I should have used.  Things like prescription drugs, toothbrush and travel toothpaste, and a hairbrush are probably all you really need. Toiletries are easy to find "on location".  I had shampoo, a few other over the counter medications. Did I really need them? Not really. I could have purchase those items on the local economy. I eventually had to purchase a couple pairs of pants, underwear, t-shirts and socks. I considered after the fact that I could have purchased even more t-shirts if I needed them. I want to also share that the first few days of our trip I rented a pair of hip boots for fishing. Renting gear is not always ideal and may not always be an economical solution for you but remember it is there as a fall back. I eventually purchased new waders and boots with the understanding that the airline has to reimburse me for items I needed but that were in my lost luggage. Still waiting on that refund though. There is a whole process for making claims on these items. Save your receipts.

Limit the tech you bring.
Do you really need a laptop? How about that e-reader?  If so, bring it along but many times we throw such items into our load. Personally, a laptop is just asking to be a distraction.  I like to bring just a single book and a notebook for writing in. You save both weight and space with this old school approach. You almost absolutely need your phone though. So let that be your one piece of tech. Be sure to include a phone charger of course. What about photographic equipment? That is a whole other article I suppose, but the rules remain in place that you are better off carrying just what you need and to carry those items rather than checking them through. This does perhaps cut into your overall space in the baggage but if that is your focus of the trip you will want to have that gear on arrival of your destination.

Plan your clothing and plan to layer as needed
Maybe you want to take a nice set of clothing on your trip. Pack clothes that coordinate and layer. Avoid clothes that can't be mixed and matched. Unless you are on a destination wedding most of your clothes won't need to be pressed dress clothing. This is a fishing trip blog after all, but who knows? Consider how many actual pairs of shoes you need and if there isn't an option for just one extra pair, do you really need it? Pants are easily worn multiple times much more than a shirt even. T-shirts are usually the absorbers of sweat and need to be changed out more than the shirts you wear over them. I did well for the week with three pairs of pants, two were denim and the third pair was a casual khaki slack. Layering allows us to be prepared for cooler temperatures and remove layers for warmer ones. Keep this in mind. Take a single warm sweater and a rain coat rather than a full jacket if you think it will be enough.

Really...Clothes are washable.
I touched on this above momentarily. You can clean clothing on location if you need to. Some hotels have laundry facilities, or you may want to just give your clothes a bathroom sink washing. Getting by on fewer items means that you realize that you can wash items as you go too. I was forced to for a few days on my trip. I was washing a pair of underwear and socks each morning and hanging them up to dry for the next day's use.  While this is not the preferred approach for many, I was happy to have my head about me and realize that I wasn't helpless.  It made me realize that I had too many t-shirts in my lost baggage in the first place.

The postal system works fairly well
If you are traveling domestically in the USA, consider how easy sending a flat rate, USPS box can be. You can actually fit quite a bit in one of their large boxes and still pay less than you would for some airline baggage fees. If you know someone at the location you can send it there and if you are staying at a hotel you can send it there and let the hotel know to hold the box for your arrival. This may not be a great option though for international destinations. This is also a good way to get the stuff you acquire on your trip back home rather than carrying it with you. 

In a Pinch... here is a slightly sneaky way to
check a second carry on at the gate or on the plane.

I suggest this as a "in a pinch" approach only and can't guarantee it will work every time. To do this you will have to play "dumb traveler" a little and pretend that you are a little clueless. Carry a second carry on as your "Personal item."
Have you ever been flying somewhere and heard a flight attendant at a gate or even on the plane offer a passenger to "check" a piece of luggage? This is actually done regularly for people with children's car seats and strollers or when a flight is very full and the overhead baggage space is taxed. The little known thing about this is that these items are often just put in a special hold and removed at the next gate. I would caution you though that your bag may in some cases be checked into the main hold with the rest of the baggage and will need to be picked up at the usual baggage carousel. If you have a connecting flight this likely won't work if you have short layover. Depending on the airline though, you may be able to get your "gate checked" bag immediately as you exit the plane in the jet bridge between the plane and the terminal.

According to Travel + Leisure magazine, "United Airlines Customers whose bags are gate checked are checked at the gate free of charge and can be picked up at the customer's final destination or at the jet bridge depending on the flight,"  Check with your Airline for their handling procedure for gate checked items.

Check a bag only as a last resort
Now that you have read this far you may have noticed that I am suggesting that you don't need to check baggage most times unless you are staying for an extended time or have large amounts of needed equipment. There are times of course that we just can't carry everything we need. Those are the times that we have to think about what we are checking in and how we will feel if the bag gets lost. Airlines all have different track records for lost baggage and I found that my airline had a pretty crappy system for getting my luggage to me. Knowing this and also knowing the airline's responsibility legally for reimbursing you on your trip for "necessary" items is important. I had to purchase waders, boots, a net and some clothing.  I am still in the process of getting my reimbursal for those items. (Wish me luck). Most baggage does make it through. Just be sure that your bags are well marked and that you haven't packed anything away that you absolutely MUST HAVE! Carry on the important stuff. 

Travel with a minimalist mind-set and be an adventurer
Ultimately, I am suggesting that nearly everyone over packs. This over packing can actually be part of our stress. It is based in "what did I forget?" thinking. There is a great satisfaction to be found in being resourceful and remembering that travel is itself an adventure. Its supposed to be fun.  Remind yourself that you don't need to take everything and the kitchen sink. The point of traveling isn't hauling everything along with you. You know what is essential and you know what is extra stuff "just in case." When we choose mindfully to pack "only what we need" we find that we often times have more space than we thought we would and can decide to put in one more t-shirt, jacket, sweater, or even snacks or gifts. Or.. Leave that space and know you have room to bring back gifts or mementos of your travel. I am opposed to the backpacker idea of "better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it." This makes sense for backpacking but it doesn't apply to general travel.

I wish you the best adventures.

Bon Voyage!

Hey you!
I love to hear your thoughts, additions and ideas. Please use the comment section below to share your thoughts, ideas and questions.

I bought these casual wool shoes by Keen at an outlet store ( I want another pair) and they were what I had for the whole trip. A good pair of shoes is almost the most important part of traveling.