Canal Shoulder Bag

[Saltheart]

I typed this up under the Ditch Bag post but I guess he means if you are ditching a boat that is sinking. Anyway , not wasting all that typing

Bare Jigs, I like ball big hooks , no less than 7/0 8/0 if you can Mustad 34184 or 5.(the long shank ones , I forget if they are 34184 or 5 and I'm not going in the cellar to look. I carry 2 to 4 OZ some preffer 3 to 5 and even 6 oz.

Tied up bucktails (smilin Bills) , 3 and 5 OZ.

All kinds of tails. My favorites are 8 inch Curl tails, 7 inch Fin S Fish, Shad bodies , like 5 and 8 inch, big rubber eels and/or sluggo's (Got Striper's makes the best for the canal , also he makes fish about 7 inches with split tails. The rubber he uses is tougher ) Bring a lot and different styles and colors. You never know what will work today.

If you can get them , skin jigs and skins. I like 3 and 4 OZ.

Big spool of leader wire. I like 50 LB ande Pink. I sometimes use 60 LB Ande green.

Any assortment of surface plugs like swimmers, pencils and regular poppers.

2 lights I like the LLbean little one for hanging outside the bag and a waterproof focasable like a minimag inside the bag.

Scissors. I have a swiss army knife and a seperate pair. These are for braided line.

An assortment of large hooks and swivels in case you want to do eels.

I never chunk but if you do you need hooks , fishfinders , etc for that. remember many drift chunks at the canal , not just bottom fish them. A head lamp.

Mosquito repellant. I like the one that looks like a deodorant stick.

Tape measure. I also hook a boga grip style scale to my bag.

Good cutting pliers. I like nickel plated needle nose cutting pliers. I also carry a very heavy cutting pliers like a linesman uses , just in case I catch my own flesh with a hook and have to cut the hook.

A spare reel. Going for 100 to 150 yards every cast , sometimes you just screw up. Also you can sometimes lose a lot of line on one bottom snag at the canal so spare reel or go home.

A camera is nice. I used to carry one in the bag. I don't anymore but try to have one in the car.

Don't forget , you have to carry it. Its full of lead , get a good sturdy bag but not too big. Any more than say 20 or so pounds (jigs are heavy) full of stuff and you will start to regret it.

I'm sure I missed lots of stuff so others can fill in.

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[1dozenraw]

Now that's the kind of post I signed up for. Thanks.

[numbskull]

A gun. To end the misery and shame when you can't stand being humbled anymore. Or just forego the mosquito repellant and end it even quicker.

[WESTPORTMAFIA]

Please don't bring fishfinder rigs unless your only gonna use them for 15 minutes or less.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[Stewie]

Make sure there is a yellow darter in that bag.

[JohnnySaxatilis]

a mackerel colored something

[East Tide]

One of the biggest mistakes I made when I started fishing the Canal was not having pre-tied leaders and eel rigs. If you have are into decent sized fish they usually can scrape up a leader pretty good and changing when they are nicked up is the difference between trophies or good fish stories. Not that 5 minutes is that big a deal, but 9 times out of 10 when the fish are passing through it's fast and furious and mistakes are easy to make when you're rushing to tie new leaders, ect...

I also carry a small file to sharpen hooks when I rig up. Couple strokes makes a big difference.

[lurch]

take the pretied leaders connect them together (if using fast links) and wrap them around an empty sppol of leader material. Then pull out as needed to get back into the action quickly.

Also bring a crank flashlight as a backup and never have to worry about batteries.

The bag I use is a Klein canvas utility bag to hold all of the jigs I need....works great and has been bullet-proof. Going on 5+ years using as a jig bag and 10 years before that it was hanging off of my bucket truck holding pole bolts....very durable bag.

[Chubby-Chaser]

SP Minnow
Sebile ghost stick shad
North Bar Bottle darter (MAK)
Yellow pencil popper
Left hook pencil (pogy)
SM Loaded Cordell (blue and silver)
Assorted tins
Weighted Treble (snagging bait)
Sharpie for the legends autograph
$17 for the access road special

4OZ WHITE TSUNAMI SHAD

[Notaro]

2 oz hurly bill eel
3 oz ball jig with curly tail
1/2 darter jig with curly tail
2-3 oz canal bullet jigs
an assortment of sluggos in red/black, black, and white.
2-4 oz ronz jigheads and plastics in white, black, and smokey
mikecc's canal special in green mackerel, bunker, and white
mikecc's white polaris
4 small black bombers
1 yozuri minnow
1.5 oz pt jude sandeel, 2 oz butterfish, 2 oz kast master with bucktail, 3 oz kast master with an orange tube, 2 oz mackerel tin, 2 oz crippeld herring, 3.5 oz nautilis, 2.5 oz po-jee with a spinner, 1.5 po-jee with bucktail, 2 oz sea scallop, 2 oz black knight mullet
2 oz yozuri blue/white pencil
AH 3 oz yellow pencil
a couple of black 3 oz bucktails
A spool of pre-tied leaders
bug spray
2 ft of rope for keeping a big bass
tape measurement
sharpening file
mini headlight
buck knife
fish attractant filled up in a bug spray can

[Saltheart]

Don't get caught with a fish in the water on a stringer Joe. Thats been illegal for S B in MA for a few years now!

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by Saltheart

Don't get caught with a fish in the water on a stringer Joe. Thats been illegal for S B in MA for a few years now!

Actually, you can use a stringer if the fish is dead. Cut the throat to bleed it, and you can keep it fresh in the water. The law prohibits keeping a live bass on a stringer:

"It shall be unlawful to keep striped bass alive in the water by attaching a line or chain to the fish or placing the fish in a live well or holding car."

[tysdad115]

I usually watch what Tyler uses and throw that. Generally a bigfish 3oz pencil or a prey. Its all he uses and catches on.

[Notaro]

Originally Posted by Mike P

Actually, you can use a stringer if the fish is dead. Cut the throat to bleed it, and you can keep it fresh in the water. The law prohibits keeping a live bass on a stringer:

"It shall be unlawful to keep striped bass alive in the water by attaching a line or chain to the fish or placing the fish in a live well or holding car."

Nah, I don't keep a fish on a stringer in the water. I just use it if I need to walk back to my car from the spot.

[Canalratt1]

Best thing I ever did was dump the shoulder bag and get a decent backpack. Holds alot more stuff and easier to lug around. Oh don't forget finger nail polish remover!

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by Canalratt1

Best thing I ever did was dump the shoulder bag and get a decent backpack. Holds alot more stuff and easier to lug around. Oh don't forget finger nail polish remover!

Super glue doesn't make my fingers stick together.

A fanny back--a decent sized one from LL Bean or EMS--is even better. I can fit enough jigs/rigged plastic in there, along with a spool of leader material, a small Plano box with swivels and clips, and a hook file. I also cut way down on the amount of lead I lug around.

[Swimmer]

Three bagsne large Bronko, one medium size numbskull(my pride and joy), one small aquaskinz, and an aquaskinz fanny pack around waist(no jokes here please, I'm working on it), and generally one or two Plano boxes.

There si room for more in the baskets.

[Saltheart]

Originally Posted by Swimmer

Three bagsne large Bronko, one medium size numbskull(my pride and joy), one small aquaskinz, and an aquaskinz fanny pack around waist(no jokes here please, I'm working on it), and generally one or two Plano boxes.

You need a wheelbarrow!

[Saltheart]

Its obvious that the stuff you carry with you goes way up as your driving distance to the canal increases! I live 50 minutes from the Bourne Bridge. If I have to go home for something, I'm not returning that night.

[Swimmer]

Originally Posted by Saltheart

Its obvious that the stuff you carry with you goes way up as your driving distance to the canal increases! I live 50 minutes from the Bourne Bridge. If I have to go home for something, I'm not returning that night.

Thats true about the drive. 40 to 50 minutes for me. I have always been like this though. Before I had a 4 x 4 I would walk down the beach with three rods, a bag over the shoulder, and two 5 gallons buckets. Plus i would be dragging the wife along, talk about handicapped.

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by Saltheart

Its obvious that the stuff you carry with you goes way up as your driving distance to the canal increases! I live 50 minutes from the Bourne Bridge. If I have to go home for something, I'm not returning that night.

Actually, my vehicle is like a tackle shop on wheels between April and November.

It's just that after years of carrying 4-5 of every weight and color, I've trimmed what I actually carry on me way down. And a lot of it comes with going to lighter braid, which lets me use lighter jigs, which don't hang up as often, which means I don't lose as many, which means I don't have to carry 4-5 of the same variety. One or two usually is enough.

[Notaro]

How many bare jigs should a person carry with him or her at the ditch? Also, how many of you guys carry plugs in the bag? I want to downsize a bit so I can use my bike and not have a problem if the air decreases on a 7 miles path.