Coastal wade-fishing essentials stock one of the writer’s Plano 3400 Stowaway boxes.
February 25, 2025
By Brenton Roberts
For me these days, opportunities at sunup-to-sundown fishing trips have lessened. Life, kids; you know the deal. But sometimes the itch just needs to be scratched! Smaller windows of opportunity, like early morning pond-hopping, or a sunset wade are more plausible.
Maybe you can relate?
Emptying the boat of all our lures and trying to lug around that big tackle box is just plain inconvenient. Ninety-nine percent of the time, most of us use only three or four baits anyway.
When packing light is the MO, it’s helpful to break down the necessities and think strategically on how to carry them.
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On short jaunts where we’re using only a handful of lures, it’s best to go with staple baits. Personally, I try to cover the water column with my selection: a topwater, a suspending twitch bait, a soft-plastic shrimp or swimbait and a jig to bounce of the bottom. I will swap out the shrimp for a worm if bass fishing. Add a small spool of leader and I’m good. If the spool doesn’t fit, I’ll often just take an arm’s-length piece of leader, wrap it up and put in the box.
All of this I leave in the box, ready for when the spontaneous trips pop up. The beauty and point of these boxes are to keep your hands free. You’ll be walking, so setting something down to cast, then pick it back up when you move defeats the purpose.
The YETI Sidekick, a belt-carry option for compact tackle boxes and other gear. Here are some options worth looking into:
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Plano 3400 Waterproof Stowaway Box About as compact as you can get, the 3400 Stowaway is 7 inches long and 4.5 inches wide. Just big enough for a handful of your select baits. The waterproof feature makes this box. Throw it in the back of your waistband, leaving your hands free to cast.
Yeti SideKick Dry 3L Gear Case Another waterproof option, the YETI Sidekick is offered in 1-, 3-, and 6-liter sizes. I prefer the 3-liter. With the Plano 3400 or another small box inside, the 3-liter is still plenty big to hold a phone, keys and wallet. The Sidekick is a thick, canvas-like material, fairly resistant to hook points. Jigheads have been fine for me, but I don’t want to risk it with a treble hook. Add the SideClick Strap and you have a perfect tackle belt that’ll work on any bank or flat you find yourself on.
Frogg Toggs Tidal Sling Waterproof Utility Box The Tidal Sling Utility Box is a cross-body sling that attaches to a traditional, hard-plastic tackle box. This is a very popular style among anglers wading the Texas coast, but it’ll be right at home along a South Florida canal bank or mangrove shoreline. Given the storage layout, you can arrange lures to leave enough room for a cellphone and keys. Remember, it’s all about essentials and keeping it simple.
This article was featured in the February 2025 issue of Florida Sportsman magazine. Click to subscribe .
