Traditional vest vs. Chest pack?

[GaryO]

What say you? I'm just starting out and it is plenty hot here most of the spring/summer.

[Grubb]

I don't use either one, I use a fanny pack that I can slide around to any part of my waist or I can put it up over my shoulders for deeper water, but I rarely stand still and fish in water above my waist. Mine has 5 different sections in it,$7.00... I like it cause its easy just to crab it and go, is very light weight, and, like your thinking, the heat. It also acts as a belt for my waders too...

[Normand]

i cant see my feet now when i look down so a chest pack is out of the question

i use a simms g3 vest

or ill carry just 1 fly box and my homemade neck lanyard

[CaseyP]

spend the money on a lanyard with basic tools and a quick dry shirt with swell pockets. put your few flies in small boxes (you're just starting, right?) in the pockets. as the next few years bring you a plethora of gadgets gifted by well-meaning friends and family, you can join the legions of anglers who spend hours working on the question of how to carry it all. or you can decide the question is moot, 'cause you're happy with what you have.

meanwhile, you'll be fishing while the rest of us are searching all those pockets!

[jeffnles1]

You've already received a lot of opinions and I'm going to add one more.
http://www.fishpondusa.com/sagebrush.cfm

I live in Kentucky and it gets hot in the summer. I like a vest but the traditional ones are no fun when it's 90 degrees outside. I tried out a couple chest packs and they never made it out of the store. I tried a couple fanny packs and it always seems that whatever I want when I want it is not easy to find or the pack has moved to the side or to the back or shifted or the darn belt is too tight.

I settled on the Fishpond sagebrush mesh vest and haven't looked back.

I would advise you to check one out just to see if would work for you. What works for one person may not work for someone else (thus the multitude of various vests/packs/gadgets out there).

Jeff

[Jayatwork]

I've always been a vest guy but a chest pack seemed like a neat idea. So I tried one. It had some nice features but It seemed to be in the way a lot.

Now I'm trying out a Filson Strap vest. So far I like it.

[kglissmeyer]

Hey, to each their own. I used a nice vest for years, but when several different chest-pack models started showing up on the scene I thought I'd try one out. After trial and error with several different brands I settled on the William Joseph version, which is now replaced by their magnetic series.
I've love my WJ, bought it on sale (Madison River Fishing Company-MRFC) and wouldn't trade it for anything.
As far as seeing your feet, I can't feel my feet let alone see them, but I wade with a staff and watch the water ahead of me and haven't found there to be a problem of not seeing my feet when using a chest pack.
My vest gave me a serious neck and back ache when I wore it because I kept everything in it. Now I know I have limited space and make sure I choose wisely what I carry in it for the water I'm fishing.
I also wade deep in my favorite spring creek so it's imperative that I have something that I can adjust to ride quite high so things stay dry. The WJ fits the bill on all counts.
Good luck.

Kelly

[Chuck441]

An advantage of a chest pack that is rarely mentioned is the easy access to the back. Now, I know you desert-type fishers can't relate, but we upper-midwesterners almost always have to consider the afternoon rains. I used to either imitate a pretzel to get to the rear of my vest, or had to remove it midstream. With most- not all- packs, they can be rotated around without removing them. Grab the rain jacket, or a cold drink, and you're back in business pretty quickly. BTW- I, too, haven't seen my feet in a while! If I have a pack on, I just swing it aside with one hand, and go about my merry way.

Chuck

[Clay]

An advantage of a chest pack that is rarely mentioned is the easy access to the back. Now, I know you desert-type fishers can't relate, but we upper-midwesterners almost always have to consider the afternoon rains. I used to either imitate a pretzel to get to the rear of my vest, or had to remove it midstream. With most- not all- packs, they can be rotated around without removing them. Grab the rain jacket, or a cold drink, and you're back in business pretty quickly. BTW- I, too, haven't seen my feet in a while! If I have a pack on, I just swing it aside with one hand, and go about my merry way.

Chuck

I fish out of a William Joseph Coastal II. In the front I keep two fly boxes, tippet, leaders, camera, file, stream thermometer, indicators (if I use them) floatant and Xinks (opposite of floatant) and a few other small items. In the back I have a colapsable stripping basket, hydration bladder, rain jacket, scale, sun tan lotion, stringer (I've never used it, but one of these days I might run into a pile of gills that I want to keep).

Went I want to get to the back, I undo the sides and just flip it around so that the back is now in the front and the front is in the back. When I am done, I flip it back. I don't get in the back that often while mid stream.

Rick

I like a pack, right now if I was considering a new one, the WJ Escape would probably be at the top of my list - especially at this price point.
http://www.mrfc.com/MadisonRiverShop...x?CategoryID=4

I have thought about fanny packs and yes, if you never wade over your waist they would be fine, but then I wade over my waist often in the streams that I fish. Not to stand their and fish, but to cross a section of water and I wouldn't want everything in my fanny to get wet. I guess that I could take it off and flip it over my shoulder but like Chuck mentioned, I don't fish without my rain jacket these days.

[BobC]

I'm with Grubb. Think about what you really need and use on your typical trips, and then get a nice fanny pack. You will like how much more comfortable you are on the water, and if you get a nice vented fishing shirt all the better for comfort and sun protection.