I grew up wading rivers, spinfishing. Like my Dad, I carried my gear in a shoulder bag. Fishing on foot, either wading or from shore, I've always preferred being mobile. Never cared for tackle boxes and having to pick them up and move them as I fished my way along.
When I began predominantly flyfishing, I tried a vest...really didn't care for it at all.
Hip/fanny packs worked pretty well..found some that carried enough gear, could be moved around the waist from front to back when it need to be out of the way. These were my choice for years. It was nice to carry these items on the waist instead of on the shoulders. One issue I had was they seemed to often loosen up on their own while fishing, and often sag, and even occasionally falling to the ground! I didn't like having to keeping fidgeting with them to get them to stay in place and tight enough. And when wading streams, I would occasionally need to remove and carry the fanny pack in my hand when crossing areas of deeper water.
So, I eventually tried some other options. I tried chest packs, but didn't like that it made it difficult to see where I was putting my feet.
I finally tried sling packs. I've tried a couple, found an Orvis one several years ago that was on clearance for around $30. It had tons of room and was pretty comfortable to carry and access. I liked that I could traverse deeper water without worrying about it getting wet, compared with the fanny/hip packs. In the large compartment, I can carry two very large fly boxes AND two bottles of water, with room left over. In the smaller compartment, I can carry my tippet spools, indicators, tape measure, extra pliers, scissors, digital scale, thermometer, cell phone, cigars, snacks, etc. I keep my forceps in a purpose built location on the strap.
So...I'm a big fan of the sling packs now, as long as they are large enough to hold what I want. I'm glad I was able to try these without spending big $$...because they can certainly get expensive. But if you find one you like, it should last you for many seasons.
Everybody has their own preferences and visions of the "perfect" pack/vest that suit the kinds of fishing they do. Keep trying different types until you find the one that suits you.
David Merical
St. Louis, MO