I KNOW ANGLERS who will readily lug around six, seven, and even eight pounds of gear. Some of them are capable of extracting enough gear from their vests to make a magician jealous: eight to ten fly boxes, spare line spools, an extra reel (or two), an all-in-one tool, thermometer, tippet spools, maps, insect repellant, bunny rabbit, kitchen sink. Even I am willing to concede that there are times where you must be prepared for any and everything, like bonefishing a remote location, for example — where the only Gotchas available are the ones in your flybox.

But each time I head to the water, I try my very best to max out at 2.2 pounds of gear (that's 1,000 grams — or just over 35 ounces, if you prefer). My 1,000 grams are produced by a couple of hundred flies and every accessory that I need to fish. It's also the most weight that I am willing to support around my neck for an entire day. So why not just ditch the vest and go minimalist?, I thought to myself one day, and did just that. The extensive choice of compact, carry-all chest-packs, sling-packs and waist-packs currently available made the transition easy. My fully-loaded, 24-pocket vest days are now few and far between.

The benefit of less weight hanging around your neck or shoulder? Greater comfort, and because this gear is smaller and designed to fit more securely, there's less chance of snagging. Also, the gear's all right there, generally in one or two compartments that are easily repositioned around your waist or chest — so no more awkward reaching into eight different pockets when you fail to locate that split-shot.

Each of the five products discussed below offer a great fishing experience and their differences all come down to personal preference. Are you a chest-pack person or a sling-pack person? All-in-one compartment, or a few separate pockets for organizing? Rigid exterior or soft? The packs are listed in order of storage capacity, starting with the smallest.

Fishpond's Arroyo Chestpack features a wide, comfortably padded neck strap that also secures around the midsection. The pack is horizontally oriented and features a small-sized central compartment that has a handful of divisions/interior pockets to keep everything in place. Its most distinctive feature is an integrated fly box accessed via a zip-down fly bench (with replaceable foam), so technically you don't even need a separate fly box, although there is room for one in the central compartment. If you're thinking of a radical shift, then the Arroyo Chestpack is the way to go. Its 150-cubic-inch capacity requires you to pare down to the absolute essentials: one medium flybox, nippers, two or three tippet spools, and a pocket knife or all-in-one tool. Unless you absolutely need a ton of flies, the integrated fly compartment will do just fine — it can hold about 60 medium-sized patterns. Highly recommended if you're giving serious thought to going minimalist — or just fishing a familiar, local stream. Can be worn as a chest, waist or sling pack. Also has attachment points for tools and hemostat. $59

I tested two Simms packs, each with a different design philosophy. The Headwaters Chest Pack contains more internal pockets and storage options, and the Dry Creek Chest/Hip Pack is more of an all-in-one compartment chest pack. The first thought that came to mind when donning each of the Simms products was "bombproof." The look is minimalist and non-embellished and all of the raw materials used in construction are super-heavy-duty, including rubberized canvas exteriors, heavy-duty waterproof zippers and welded seams. If abuse is an issue, Simms provides the gear that can take it.

The Simms Headwaters Chest Pack is vertically oriented and features an easy pull-adjustment system with the finest padded neck strap around. Other nifty features include a retractor docking station and several sub-pockets to keep everything organized — including one padded pocket for sunglasses (nice touch), an elasticized holder for floatant, plus leader and tool pockets. The pack's distinguishing feature is a fully padded, molded front pocket that folds out to a bench compartment that can hold one medium size flybox. A "Cuban-strap system" allows for easy conversion from hip to chest pack. Total storage capacity: 300 cubic inches. $69.95

The Dry Creek Chest/Hip pack features 384 cubic inches of space (enough for two large fly boxes), two retractor docking stations and a zippered front pocket. Unpadded straps form a wide, comfortable X pattern over the back, although the pack can be worn around the neck as well. With welded seams and completely rubberized canvas exterior, this unit is by far the most waterproof of the lot and is quite flexible in terms of inside storage space: it can be used as an all-in-one compartment — for those who don't mind (or who prefer) doing a little fishing for contents, or you can take advantage of a few inside pockets to separate leaders, tools and smaller items. Highly recommended for saltwater wading. $79.95

Patagonia's Hip Chest Pack offers functional simplicity for anglers who are in the process of paring down. Designed to be worn on the hip or at the chest, this pack is made from 47% recycled poly, has two equal-sized central compartments, and offers 427 cubic inches of space. If you're not overly concerned about a little extra weight (especially around the neck) this pack encourages a full load: featuring two external mesh compartments, large central compartments with eight inside pockets, a side magnetic loop and retractor attachment bar, there's not much this pack won't handle. Fortunately, the designers had the good sense to include a top-notch, wide stretch neck-strap. $70

 

If you're partial to over-the-shoulder, light-weight sling packs, the Orvis Safe Passage Sling Pack is worth some investigation. It looks like a compact bag but is deceptively large in terms of storage capacity, featuring one large, central zippered compartment (one panel division) with an additional, secured flybox compartment. This model's distinguishing feature is an additional (and detachable) flybox compartment for when two boxes just aren't enough. The Safe Passage Sling pack is feather-light when empty, but provides a whopping 750 cubic inch capacity. A great choice for anglers who are in the process of paring down but still trying to figure out which items are absolute essentials. Also includes an integrated, fully padded shoulder strap. $49