Starting with your equipment, I can sum this up by saying buy in bulk. As a tournament fisherman I literally have money on the “line” every time I get a bite, so I change my fishing line often. To save money on this weekly task I buy my line by the spool and wind the reels myself rather than paying a tackle shop to do this.
Whether I'm fishing for crappies, bass, or walleyes I use a lot of soft plastic baits. There are a couple of ways to save money when purchasing your plastics. Find a tackle shop that offers a large variety of soft plastics in bulk bins that you can mix and match in any quantity. I buy a few baits of each color and when I find a bait in a particular color that seems to catch more fish then I'll buy a larger quantity of that one.
A friend of mine has a super way to save money. He has recruited some of his family members to look for tackle at garage sales and gets some really great deals on some brand name tackle and equipment.
When you do need to buy new, tackle and equipment is not the place to save money by buying the cheapest brand. Food, on the other hand is. I can eat steak at home but while I’m fishing its ham sandwiches. Convenience stores are very convenient, but they are not the most cost effective place to buy supplies for a fishing trip. I am guilty of not packing very well when I'm headed out on a trip. This is where my wife Becki picks up the slack. She is great at making sandwiches and packing enough other snacks to cover me for the duration of the trip.
The fewer visits to the convenience stores the more money is saved. Becki has a great tip for packing sandwiches that I didn't know until we met. Wrap the sandwich in a paper towel before you put it in a zip lock bag, this keeps the bread from getting soggy.
I also avoid the gas stations by keeping my vehicle and boat tuned up and the tires properly inflated. This is an easily overlooked task but one of the best money savers. I spend a lot of time in my truck traveling to and from tournaments and a ton of time in my boat at these events. The savings can really add up.
I also go fishing on my vacation and like to save as much money here as well. If you have the ability to take your vacation after school has started in late summer or early fall then you can save a bunch of money. Most resorts reduce their rates after school starts, which is the end of their regular season. I’ve had some of my best fishing trips up north in late August through September and many times the cabin rental was half price because it was off-season.
If you don’t have the option or just don’t want to wait to take your vacation you may still be able to save some money by adding more people. Many resorts have one larger cabin that will hold double the amount of people without doubling the price. Find some friends that want to take their vacation at the same time and split the cost of the cabin. I have done this several times and it always ends up being a great time.
Make sure you capture the moment by taking pictures, spending a little more money initially on a digital camera will end up saving in the long run. A digital camera lets you go picture crazy and then allows you to pick through them before you pay to have them made into prints. You aren't paying for a bunch of photos that you don’t like.
There are lots of little things you can do on a fishing trip to save some money without sacrificing the quality of the trip. Lots of little thing may add up to big savings. June 5th – 6th and 7th are the free fishing days this year for Iowa residents who don't have a fishing license so now there is no reason not to go. Until next time keep your lure wet!
