strutnstuff 0 Report post Posted February 20, 2018 Has anyone have suggestions on making a wading staff. I have one now that I use made out of maple. It is quite heavy to lug around & I have a wrist strap attached to it. I set it on the stream bank, so I have both hands free. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikechell 0 Report post Posted February 20, 2018 Buy a collapsible Ski pole. Super light and strong. They're made to withstand the push off while skiing, so they should be more than strong enough for wading. I've got one ($10.00 at a surplus store), and it works great, but I've never had to "save" myself with it, so I don't know if it would hold up to "full weight" pressure. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rocco 0 Report post Posted February 20, 2018 Yard sale old bamboo ski poles. Very light and they float, and are as strong as any. Also have a metal tip that does not slip on rock snot. Cut off the basket and you are home free for a few bucks the pair. Connect them to you with stretchy surgical tubing and they hug you when not in use yet allow ready access and flexible use. A coat of spar varnish every few years keeps them looking good and seals against water damage. I have had decades of use with them w/o a complaint. i Rocco Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chugbug27 0 Report post Posted February 20, 2018 I bought one of these oak setups 20+ years ago at the Ted Fay Fly Shop in Dunsmuir, still use it (though it's a bit tattered) with a rubber ski pole handle and a polyester fabric strap that hangs loose over one shoulder. Stick hangs in back of me down water or at the ground while fishing. Would be easy to make yourself, but my memory of price was that it was reasonable. http://www.snowcrest.net/ronrabun/stfouts.html http://www.snowcrest.net/ronrabun/grpntip.gif http://www.snowcrest.net/ronrabun/clips.gif Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vicente 0 Report post Posted February 20, 2018 I have a collapsible ski pole they are really not stiff enough imo I use if but it's not ideal. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
phg 0 Report post Posted February 20, 2018 Hook & Hackle has their collapsible wading staff on sale for $34.65 (Folstaff knock off.) I highly recommend it! I've been using one for nearly 10 years, and it has saved by butt multiple times. The cloth pouch does wear out, though, so you may have to find a replacement somewhere.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Philly 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 I use an old, I guess, aluminum ski pole. I initially had a bamboo one from my X-country skiing days but this one is stronger and I don't have to varnish it every couple of years. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tjm 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 Never have used a staff wading and am surprised that ski poles are used, they seem like too too short to be of much help? I do use a walking staff that is about 62" tall and can't see how a shorter one could be useful. Do you guys carry these all the time or only on occasion? How often do you rely on them and for what? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
spiralspey 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 I have a friend who replaced his heavy hardwood staff with a really nice staff he made from a bamboo garden stake (less than $5 at a garden center). He made a really nice cord wrapped handle, but there's other handle options. They float, so a little weight in the tip helps. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rocco 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 Mine measure @54" and so do most commercial staffs I have seen That gives me all the length I need to probe waters ahead of me. If that length does not touch bottom reaching down and out, I back out. Any longer and I 'd have to lift my arm too high to use the grip most of the time. I'm 6' tall. Rocco Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
phg 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 As we get older, our sense of balance isn't as good. Also, falls hurt more than they used to. While there are some days I never get my staff out, most of the time I do. I use it as a hiking stick, going to and from the water, I use it to help me climb steep banks, I use it in swift water as a 3rd "leg", tucking the grip into my arm pit so I can lean on it as I cast. Like Rocco, I use it to probe the bottom around me, to see if a hole is too deep, a rock is too slippery or a mud bottom is too soft. In turbulent water I use it to find safe places to put my feet. It also helps me climb up, or down larger rocks, and it certainly helps me get up from a kneeling position. My staff is aluminum with a cork handle. It too floats. If the bottom is sandy, I'll stab it into the sand next to me while I fish, and grab it when I move on. If the bottom is rocky, I just drop the pole behind me and let it float downstream on its tether. Of course, in swift water, I wedge the tip between some rocks, and lean on it. In addition, the staff comes in handy to poke at snakes laying in the trail, or to lift briers out of the way so I don't tear my waders. Of all my fishing accessories, it is the one I rely on the most. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Poopdeck 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 I use a birch branch that is 58" long (I'm 6'3") and has a 550 cord katana wrapped handle. I call it old smokey after smokey Robinson. Very strong, very light, very cheap. Ski poles and commercially bought staffs are just to short for me, have no character and they don't seem to be the best at what I want my staff to do. I use my staff like phg stated but it's main and primary purpose is to keep me from falling. Last time I went without a staff I fell and ripped my knee apart and had an agonizing walk back to the truck. Ever since I always take a staff. I actually have three right now and have some blanks drying in the shed since I've taken to carving on them as well. They are really no bother once you get use to having one. I clip it to my wading belt and let it float behind me. My main staff is about three years old and in good shape. The other two spend more time in the corner of the shop. I'll probably never get around to the blanks in the shed but I can't pass up a good birch branch. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Philly 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 As phg said, my sense of balance isn't what it used to be, so I always have it with me when I'm fishing a stream or lake either from the bank or wading. I also use it as walking stick. Mine's about 48 inches I'm 5' 7" so it just about right. It has a loop on the end that I can put my hand through or use it to clip it to my vest if I feel steady enough or lean on if I don't. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 I made one back years ago out of an old camera monopod that was collapsible and it worked "okay" the few years I used it. Honestly though in this day & age good wading staffs have come down a lot now and are very affordable. I have a nice one I bought at Bass Pro (might have been Cabela's) for $29.99. Something that is a safety piece of equipment is important that's why I personally say just buy an actual staff that can flip out into action in a split second like it should. I know even though I am only 46 I have used mine to get out of a sticky situation more than once. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Piker20 0 Report post Posted February 21, 2018 Some of the poles for walking or skiing wont stand up to the downward force of you + sideways force of water. Depends really on what you're wading in. I use a nice staff made from ash. Bit heavy compared to some but reassuringly so. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites