Some Stocking Stuffers For Fishermen

Christmas is the ideal time to start a youngster fishing or give a veteran angler some special piece of equipment.

Don’t buy a child the cheapest gear around just because it’s for a child. Youngsters need the help better quality equipment provides.

Try a good-quality, medium-duty spin-casting outfit. This would run in the $25 to $50 range. A spin-casting reel is shaped like a fat bullet and mounts on top of the rod. It is controlled with the thumb and is easier for a beginner to learn than either a baitcasting or spinning reel.

Add a spool of 10- or 12-pound line, a few plastic bobbers in assorted sizes, a box of assorted split-shot sinkers and some hooks, ranging from 2-0 to 8, and the child is ready for anything.

All that’s left is to pick up some nightcrawlers and a license on the way to the lake.

A tacklebox always makes a good gift. They range from $10 to $40. A good rule of thumb is the more experienced the angler, the larger the box.

However, fly fishers will be delighted with a small fly box filled with patterns effective on his or her favorite fishing water. Clerks at fly shops can help make the selections.

It’s not the best idea for someone who knows little about fishing to give an experienced angler a rod or reel unless you’ve been getting a lot of hints.

Baits make excellent stocking stuffers. Expect to pay $2 to $5 for a quality crankbait, spinnerbait or spinner. They routinely escape into the depths and need to be replaced.

Some gadgets that make great gifts:

An angler’s pliers or one of the new multiple tools that combine a pliers, knife and whatever all-in-one tool. They run from $10 to $50.

Fish scales. The new digital ones start at $25 and go to $100 or more.

A lure retriever can save an angler a lot of cash. Retrievers slide down the line in a strong cord. They catch a lure’s hooks and can pull it free of the snag. It doesn’t take many retrieved $3 to $5 lures to repay the $5 to $20 cost of a retriever.

A marine magnet that can be dropped over the side to recover keys, a reel or anything steel that finds its way overboard.

A good quality sunscreen, one that’s waterproof and protects against both UVA and UVB rays. It should be rated at least SPF 15.

Among the newest gadgets for outdoor enthusiasts are hand-held GPS receivers. They are navigating systems that make it almost impossible to get lost. They start at $200 and go up.

Another safety gadget is an emergency strobe. MPI Outdoors offers a $23 unit that will flash for up to 60 hours on one D cell alkaline battery.

Stranded boaters can be saved by the Charge Pak from S&J Products. It uses 16 D cells, sells for $50 and can charge a boat’s battery through the cigarette lighter or direct connection.

There’s also the Master Blaster from Skyblazer, a mouth-blown horn that produces an exceptionally deep, 120-decibel sound that will knife through fog or darkness. It floats and costs $20.