Do any of you lash a safety cord or something to your rod so it doesn’t go to the great underwater graveyard? If so, can you describe what and how it is rigged? How do you manage it while you are casting?
Please don’t ask why I want to know…
Jim
When I first started I took my old 5wt which had a rubber plug on the end of the reel seet, removed the plug and hot glued in a piece of parachute cord about 6 feet long. I tied the free end to the the boat. An earlier attempt tieing the line to the reel foot was very unacceptable as it fouled the rod every cast. The leash out the bottom was not too bad.
I have since done away with any leash and am very careful when I 'yak or toob. I do fish floating fly line so I figure if I drop it the line will float up and I can (hopefully) retrieve it that way.
I have lost more rods in parking lots than I have from a 'yak or toob.
Budd
Hi Jim,
I don't like to use a leash on my rod while fishing but I do when I'm
paddling from spot to spot. I had a recessed paddle holder with a
bungee retainer on the side of my Yak that looked as if it would hold
a rod OK. I was mistaken and on one trip when I reached for the rod,
it was not there. Hated that! So now, yes, I use a leash while
traveling, but not while fishing. Warm regards, Jim
Jim, similar experience except not while paddling. I had just netted a nice fat rainbow for that nights dinner. Reached back down for the rod and it was GONE. Neither I nor my wife who was seated watching the whole affair saw or heard it leave the boat. Just amazing.
Fortunately, it was not a high dollar setup.
I think it’s a plot by the equipment manufacturers.
Budd, I figured a lash would be a pain. I like the ideal of coming out the end of the grip. I might look to see if that would work on one of my rods. Might have to customize.
Jim
I would advise you to tether everything that you are not willing to loose. Cabelas sells nice paddling leashes that attach to the real seat with velcro.
I also like Scotty’s Fly Rod Holders. I have had a mishap where I rolled the kayak and the flyrod stayed in the Scotty Holder all the way around!
You can buy small diameter bungee cord (1/8" Diameter) and make your own tethers (Leashes). Plain ole cord works to; although dealing with the extra line, at times, can be challenging.
There are a lot of Kayak Fishing websites that sell specialty gear for yak anglers and that gear would also apply to a lot of canoe anglers as well.
I normally fish with low end equipment so I don’t worry TOO much. 
I secure the extra rods in one way or another but don’t worry about the one I’m fishing with as I’ll get out and wade with the kayak staked out or tied to something or tethered to my beltloop. For that reason I couldn’t (wouldn’t) fasten a leash to my rod.
Ninety percent of the time or more I’d be able to retrieve my rod/reel as I am in water that probably averages 3 feet deep. Crossing a channel or hole would be about the only times it would be too deep to easily retrieve.
I do see where this rod leash would come in handy for fishing deeper lakes/bays.
Gil, I wish we had been on the shallows. 
The lake was about 30 feet deep where we were, and since we were drifting at the time and didn’t know when it went over, we had no clue even where to attempt dredging. Like you, I only take moderately priced gear over water. The main issue for the day was we were limited to one rod between us. Didn’t bring a spare.
But I did have my tackle bag with $$ reels and all my flies in the boat. I will definitely start strapping it to a seat rail in case of capsize.
Jim
Welcome back FL_SKIBUM,
2 inch PVC pipes are plastic tie/strapped under the thwarts along the inside of the canoe sides, about 2 PVC pipe/holders on the port and 2 on the starboard side for transporting rods, no lash or safety cord while using the rods (too much casting restriction).
Why thank you! :oops: 
Something I’ve been in the habit of doing when float fishing in a canoe is to take a length of chord small enough to pass through the eye hole on my fly boxes and tie a knot in the end of the chord, then thread the boxes on. Next I tie the chord to the canoe above the boxes. I take the other end throw a slip loop around the butt of the rod below the reel then tie the end of the chord the the handle of the rod above the reel. When I’m fishing, I can slip the rod off the chord easly enough and tie it back on when going from place to place but my fly boxes always stay tied to the boat. You can also cast with the chord tied to the rod and it doesn’t get in the way too very much, but you do have to mind your line so the two don’t get tangled.
Hope that helps.
Terry
Me too. 
Over my years of canoing, I kinda hate to own up to the baths I have taken with my canoes, caused I’m afraid, by not paying attention and some slight mis-calculations on my part! And in doing so, have learned sorta the hard way to have my gear aboard tethered to the canoe gunnels and/or thwarts (I like to use parachute cord); and making sure fly boxes and gear bags are not left open but rather closed so I won’t have to see “things” floating away! LOL
When crossing deep or unfamilar waters I don’t like taking along my best fly rod and reel. Have some good casting, cheaper equipment (that have caught their share of fish), that I won’t have a conniption fit over if they are lost. One deep water crossing I do is Fontana Lake in western North Carolina and here I take such a rod & reel. On the other hand, there are some rivers that I float down where the depth seldom is over 4’ and here I’ll upgrade the equipment. Usually when crossing the lake, for example, I’ll just have the fly rod & reel on the bottom of the canoe, running underneath the canoe thwarts and seats and I don’t think they would get lost in a tip over.
Dale
I saw this idea on annother board and it works great, old cell phone car chargers as a paddle leash. Take the charger and snip off both ends and whip a loop on them using 30# superbraid line (make sure you use a glove and really cinch down on them, the plastic is slippery) and tie off like you would a fly line. Then put a BRASS double clip on one end and one of those velcro cable ties on the other. I velcro one end to the butt of my rod below the seat and clip the other end to a bungee or deckline.
Cost if you have old chargers from switching phones and some braid line: $3.50
Time: 20 min
I made 2 and use one on my paddle when im in the Pacific…Probably should make one more before I need it.
Pics avail on req.
Although not a tether or leash, I read in an old Field & Stream mag.
In the projects section of using PVC conduit lashed under the thwarts along the gunwales of a canoe.
For use as sheath’s to store your rods in…Worked very well on my old town discovery 16, Allowed the bro in-law and I to each keep three rods rigged and ready at all times…Three 1 to 11/4 inch tubes along the starboard for me and three on the port side for him…he took the bow seat… and I the stern…there in was the prob…as the steering of a tandem is Supposed to happen at the stern…
Anyway… It was a sweet setup…still kicking myself for selling that boat!!!
This is a simple rodleash that doesn’t seem too intrusive.
I have that paddle leash advertised on the website. It’s simple and works for me. Don’t have the rodleash, but I may try it.
I use a simple piece of velcro to strap in the rods while toodlin about (strapped to teh bottom of the seats, agains the sidewalls) - but casting … I like the notion of a tether - and use one - just haven’t found a comfortable one … yet
darrell,
I find the rod leash invaluable. I lost a nice rod out of a boat when I was 15 and ever since then have had a rod leash when in a boat(31 now). I was letting my flyline trail behind the canoe while I picked a new fly and a fish bit! It pulled the rod from under my arm and dragged the rod to the bottom. :oops: Hard lesson to learn for my first nice flyrod(Sage), after that had to use Shakespear fiberglass KMart rig till I saved up enough money for a new rod. Not that it was a bad rod(fiberglass) but cast like a Mack truck. After that I bought a rod leash, and it has never happened again. Maybe this is one of those lesson we all have to learn. A summer of mowing lawns to buy another rod taught me well. I have had several rod leashs and also had trouble with it messing up the proformance of my reel. A way I overcame this was to cut down the width of the velcro strap to about 1/4 inch and wrap it around the reel seat. The other end I attach to my boat, so if I fall in the rod leash won’t tangle me up. This has worked for a while. There is one thing the Army has taught me is the value what we call a “dummy cord” for sensitive equipment.
Sarge.
The rod I lost- that prompted this thread. I found it today. The lake had drawn down a LOT, and we wandered out on the flats, and there it was!
The only immediately noticeable damage is the cork on the grip. Looks a little shrunken, and one glue seam parted.
Other than that, a bit encrusted but should clean up to fish another day.
Jim
I was out paddling today and met another kayaker/fisherman who had something quite interesting rigged. On each of his rods ( NOT flyrods) between the reel seat and the first guide he had wrapped some foam- looked to be about 1 inch total diameter and about 8 inches long. Apparently did not get in the way of the line at all, but obvoiusly was enough to float the rod/reel combo. It was tapered at each end. Couldn’t tell just how it was attached.
I suspect the same idea would work on a fly rod- there’s a good bit of room between the seat and stripping guide.