Packable fishing rod on the cheap?

[syoungs]

Looking to pick up a couple packable trout rods, without spending a  bunch of money. Maybe 30-70$ per rod.
Just want them for random pack trips, and to leave under the seat of the truck for some opportunistic fishing.

Anyone have any recommendations for something that works well? In my head a 5 piece rod is better then a telescoping rod, but that's just a lightly educated guess

[fowl smacker]

Looking to pick up a couple packable trout rods, without spending a  bunch of money. Maybe 30-70$ per rod.
Just want them for random pack trips, and to leave under the seat of the truck for some opportunistic fishing.

Anyone have any recommendations for something that works well? In my head a 5 piece rod is better then a telescoping rod, but that's just a lightly educated guess

I've got an ugly stick gx2 that I always keep in my truck, just in case.  Good rod.

[syoungs]

Looking to pick up a couple packable trout rods, without spending a  bunch of money. Maybe 30-70$ per rod.
Just want them for random pack trips, and to leave under the seat of the truck for some opportunistic fishing.

Anyone have any recommendations for something that works well? In my head a 5 piece rod is better then a telescoping rod, but that's just a lightly educated guess

I've got an ugly stick gx2 that I always keep in my truck, just in case.  Good rod.

Do you have the 5' or one of the 2 6' versions?
I was looking into that one, thinking I'd go with the 5' as it's a little lighter action.

[Boss .300 winmag]

Amazon has some $40-$80 range.

[fowl smacker]

Looking to pick up a couple packable trout rods, without spending a  bunch of money. Maybe 30-70$ per rod.
Just want them for random pack trips, and to leave under the seat of the truck for some opportunistic fishing.

Anyone have any recommendations for something that works well? In my head a 5 piece rod is better then a telescoping rod, but that's just a lightly educated guess

I've got an ugly stick gx2 that I always keep in my truck, just in case.  Good rod.

Do you have the 5' or one of the 2 6' versions?
I was looking into that one, thinking I'd go with the 5' as it's a little lighter action.

I believe mine is actually 6'. 

[Stein]

There are a ton on Amazon, you aren't going to pass them down for generations but they do what I need them to do on backpacking trips.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B087CWWW36?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

[jamesfromseattle]

A 4 or 5 piece rod is only marginally worse than a regular rod (many high end fly rods are 4 piece.)

I have a couple cheap 6 foot 4 piece spinning rods that have been around long enough that the brand appears to be long gone so I don’t have a brand recommendation—but there’s a ton in your price range. My beater rod goes just about everywhere with a little box of buzz bombs and jigs. Always in my car, boat, or travel bag.

I’m going to make the controversial claim that you use a cheap fiberglass 6 foot rod and whatever the cheapest spinning reel you can find spooled with 20 pound braid, and catch any sport fish in Washington relatively effectively. I’ve caught everything from perch on up to oversized lingcod and a few really nice kings. Once when I dropped a downrigger rod over the side and didn’t have a spare, I fished the travel rod for the rest of the day off the rigger. Ideal? No. Effective? At least moderately so. It’s always around, so it gets used a lot. And rods that get used a lot tend to catch a lot of fish for that reason alone.

The cheap telescoping rods are more convenient (since they pack down smaller) and work fine for trout and other small stuff. Mine have always broken after a few uses and I’m sure they’d explode if you hooked into something big. Usually an eye falls off or they get jammed. They’re fine for what they are.

If you can tolerate something slightly bigger than the telescoping rods, I would recommend a 4 or 5 piece rod rather than the telescoping rods.

[jamesfromseattle]

A 4 or 5 piece rod is only marginally worse than a regular rod (many high end fly rods are 4 piece.)

I have a couple cheap 6 foot 4 piece spinning rods that have been around long enough that the brand appears to be long gone so I don’t have a brand recommendation—but there’s a ton in your price range. My beater rod goes just about everywhere with a little box of buzz bombs and jigs. Always in my car, boat, or travel bag.

I’m going to make the controversial claim that you use a cheap fiberglass 6 foot rod and whatever the cheapest spinning reel you can find spooled with 20 pound braid, and catch any sport fish in Washington relatively effectively. I’ve caught everything from perch on up to oversized lingcod and a few really nice kings. Once when I dropped a downrigger rod over the side and didn’t have a spare, I fished the travel rod for the rest of the day off the rigger. Ideal? No. Effective? At least moderately so. It’s always around, so it gets used a lot. And rods that get used a lot tend to catch a lot of fish for that reason alone.

The cheap telescoping rods are more convenient (since they pack down smaller) and work fine for trout and other small stuff. Mine have always broken after a few uses and I’m sure they’d explode if you hooked into something big. Usually an eye falls off or they get jammed. They’re fine for what they are.

If you can tolerate something slightly bigger than the telescoping rods, I would recommend a 4 or 5 piece rod rather than the telescoping rods.

I’m going to except halibut from the above claim. And I’ll say tuna don’t count because they’re in international waters anyways.

[CamoDup]

I bought an Eagle Claw Trail Master from Cabelas last summer before my Alaska caribou trip. I used the rod quite a bit to catch Grayling. Awesome little rod. I want to say I paid $60 at Cabelas but amazon has it for $79

https://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Claw-TMML70SF6-Trailmaster-Spin-Fly/dp/B003L45X68/ref=asc_df_B003L45X68?mcid=e63b0f95bac13f7da119376a4c25d5e2&hvocijid=4065059224649073777-B003L45X68-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=730434177080&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4065059224649073777&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9033663&hvtargid=pla-2281435177658&psc=1

[birdshooter1189]

I used to use telescoping rods for backpacking. I've since become spoiled by nice lightweight graphite rods.  I can't stand the old bulky, heavy telescoping rods I used to use. I bought a couple (4) on amazon a few years back to take on a trip to hawaii.....Not worth it, waste of money in my opinion.

My advice is to find a decent 2 piece rod you like and just pack that.  My current primary rod is a light action 9' graphite.  I'll gladly strap that to my backpack.  Even though it's a bit of a hassle sometimes on overgrown trails or crawling under fallen logs....Once I get to the location I'm fishing, it's so much nicer to fish with a quality rod that I'm willing to put a little extra effort into protecting my longer (4.5' sections) rod on the trip in.

[jeffro]

 

I bought an Eagle Claw Trail Master from Cabelas last summer before my Alaska caribou trip. I used the rod quite a bit to catch Grayling. Awesome little rod. I want to say I paid $60 at Cabelas but amazon has it for $79

https://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Claw-TMML70SF6-Trailmaster-Spin-Fly/dp/B003L45X68/ref=asc_df_B003L45X68?mcid=e63b0f95bac13f7da119376a4c25d5e2&hvocijid=4065059224649073777-B003L45X68-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=730434177080&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4065059224649073777&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9033663&hvtargid=pla-2281435177658&psc=1

This is what I what I use!
Great rods

[Linkshander]

Graphite: Diawa spinmatic. Amazon
Glass: The OLD eagle claw trailmasters with the metal ferrules. EBAY/garage sales.

[birdshooter1189]

FYI, the bulky ones I was complaining about and would NOT recommend are similar to this:

https://www.amazon.com/PLUSINNO-Fishing-Telescopic-Saltwater-Freshwater/dp/B07FVL7NK2/ref=sr_1_4?crid=3R1JTLVLZG4OW&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.plVNHB9XTIWAgh_A19LUAwTR5Mhreu58oC2UzSSzywrcva2hmYEkB0-FfNPv3dNnnrJLXfD1Z65PRq2LEKGctsYujkyqBmj_OtMYoEpM_W6Spobvs79VjObpeB1aeXL2D2GS2O3cx6Wtd7CyHjMEuFySorg-EPrbV3K5bXsZkeflr48ia3bOIyP7gFMRG3Hj5162rSHT30tkpYrlObOCJgtklfjHOLTQCBWXE14R0e1_v-b1L2D_nhUilZaWBfprsfFIj6104IuBDa8qbEQaHdmSCjvLEC0F250czJDCALj3TWSdDDO3nuxOiDP6b90NQfCXhC4sDO9RjzfXzDt6QAtylOdlWapSP3mYrYIrwYk.Z_wUpkwGkiOIO2Okiq2GZn7bGZINpM5jqIgGRswkD4E&dib_tag=se&keywords=telescoping%2Bfishing%2Brod&qid=1741629577&s=sporting-goods&sprefix=telescoping%2Bfishing%2Bro%2Csporting%2C343&sr=1-4&th=1

[Stein]

Another option would be a tenkara rod, my brother introduced me to them and I've been thinking about picking one up for small water and backpack lakes.  You can't get any lighter or more packable than that.

[blackpowderhunter]

daiwa spinmatic ultralight pack rods
thats what i have to pack up to lakes