How to make a DIY Ultralight Bottle opener

Here is a DIY bottle opener that's great for backpacking, camping, or just everyday use. There's no sense in adding more weight to your pack with a bottle opener, especially if your trying to cut weight to pack more celebratory spirits on an outing. There is always the option of using a lighter to open your bottles, but save your fingers and hands some pain, this opener only weighs in at 4.4 grams. For this easy DIY project you will need

• A plastic keychain bottle opener 
  
• Craft foam (I used 6mm)
• Superglue
• Small saw, dremel, or something to cut the opener with
• Razor blade
• Sandpaper

I first removed the keychain label and keyring. I then covered the top of the bottle opener in super glue and placed the craft foam on top. Once the glue had dried, I used the razor blade to trim the foam on the top of the opener. I then used the saw on my multi-tool to trim off the back of the opener, leaving material only where I needed it. I Used the razor blade and sandpaper to round off the rough edges I cut as well as to create a more attractive foam pad for my thumb on the top. Cheers.

Fly Fishing For South Puget Sound Chum Salmon

I went out today in search of some returning chum salmon. 8 weight in hand, I made my way down a local creek towards the Puget Sound. I could see fish making their way upstream as the tide began to suck the waters of the creek, lower and lower. I planted myself in a nice deep pool that had a fast slot with an undercut bank. A few casts through that slot and I was roped into my first chum of the fall. After a brief but explosive fight, I landed a beautiful chrome hen covered in sea lice. I imagine she had made her way from the saltwater that day resulting in her astonishing, pre-spawn health. I fished my way towards the mouth of the creek, chasing large groups of chum the entire way down. Around 3:00 the crowds started showing up and causing a free for all, which sent fish in every direction in a frenzied panic. Not the best way to approach fish you want to catch in my opinion... The side by side style fishing is common with fisherman in my area and its all to familiar to have three people swarm your fishing spot as soon as they see you land a fish. Another common catch and release  technique I have seen in locals waters is the football style punt to release chum, which I cant watch without making an ethics comment. I see this so much I often call it "The Minter Punt" from my old stomping grounds, where almost everyone I saw kicked their fish into the water. Other than the crowd of people, the day was great. Between battles of man and fish, great fall weather, some amazing wildlife and bird moments, it was an incredible day back on the water in search of this seasons chum. Overall I caught two chrome, ocean fresh chum that were sprinkled with sea lice to show their fresh authenticity. I probably lost about six throughout the day but they were still great fights while they lasted. Each fish hit a pink comet style fly that I will hopefully do a tutorial on in the future. I will take the fight from two salt fresh fish over six colored up and spawned out chum any day. They may be one of the most overlooked species of fish in the state, but I will always have a special place in my heart for chum salmon and chasing them with a fly rod.

How to Make a Tenkara Line Holder For Ultralight Tenkara Fishing

After I purchased my tenkara rod, I was thinking of ways I could easily manage my homemade tenkara fishing line. I was sick of just furiously wrapping my tenkara rod with the line and the line seemed to tangle any other way I stored it. I found an old bicycle pump holder that mounted onto the frame of a bike. The pump holder also had a velcro strap with it for strapping the pump down. This strap was perfect for holding the line altogether in the end. I tested the piece on my tenkara rod and it fit perfectly without any loose wiggle room. I then wrapped my homemade tenkara line around the top of the old air pump holder and finished the wraps off with the velcro strap. This little piece of equipment is perfect for when I'm changing fishing locations or packing my tenkara rod away in my backpack. Mine came in at 19.5 grams with my homemade line as well. Much lighter than a fly reel! If you can get your hands on a bike pump that mounts to your bike, you just may have a new tenkara line holder.

How to Make a Pot Scraper and Grabber for Ultralight Backpacking

Here's a simple pot scraper to throw into your ultralight backpacking cook set that doubles as a pot grabber for hot pots and pans. I found a simple pack of sponges at the dollar store that had a rough cleaning pad loosely adhered to a flimsy sponge. The cleaning pad itself seemed tough enough, and after many trials with this little pad, I'm impressed with how its held up. Once you have found yourself a sponge with a rough cleaning pad, remove the pad and use the rest of the sponge for your dishes at home. No use wasting it. Take the pad and use scissors to cut it into a large square with rounded corners. I cut a small notch in mine for my thumb to nicely overlap the rest of the pad when I'm removing my pot from my stove. At only 2.1 grams, it buffers the heat just like I need it to and doubles as a rough cleaning pad for easy cleanup after meals. Make sure you cut your pad to fit your personal cook set and enjoy!

How to Make a Wood Fly Box that is Cheap, Easy and Ultralight!

I was recently in a local craft store with my girlfriend when I stumbled upon some small wood boxes in the painting project aisle. I went to the kids aisle and found some 6mm craft foam to fit inside as inserts and that was it! All of the necessary materials for a cheap and easy DIY wood fly box for around $5.00. That's pretty good compared to some of the new fly boxes costing up to 80 bucks in stores.When I got home I measured the inside of the box and cut the 6mm foam to fit. I used one piece of foam for the top and two pieces for the bottom to accommodate larger hooks and streamers. A few drops of super glue were enough to hold each piece of foam in place. This took under five minutes to do altogether which means you  could crank out a few if you wanted. There were also a few different sizes of boxes but I found the smaller boxes to be the most sturdy since the wood the boxes are made from isn't incredibly strong. I think a simple stain might add some nice color and the corners could be sanded round but I'm satisfied with the box so far.

There's a quick, easy, cheap and light DIY wooden fly box for your next fly fishing trip.

Ultralight Tenkara Fly Fishing

I recently became hooked on the idea of getting a Tenkara rod after I had been searching the internet for ultralight fly fishing gear options. I really liked the minimalist idea of presenting fly patterns on a fixed line with no moving parts, low tangle rates, with lightweight collapsing rods. I found a 14 piece rod at a reasonable price on the Internet and within two weeks it arrived at my house in a little brown box. Free shipping even! I had ordered a 9 foot rod but upon opening and extending each section, I found that the rod was much...much longer than 9 feet. This was something I was originally not stoked about. I had ordered a nine foot rod to more easily fish some of the brushy, small creeks in my local area or any small waters I may encounter on an outing. 14 feet would be a little more of a pain to handle squeezed in between creeks heavily lined with salmonberry, alder, etc... The rod came in at 16 inches collapsed and 7.57 oz altogether, making it great for backpacking and everyday storage in my backpack to fish wherever I may be. I finally got a chance to fish with my new tenkara rod and I really like it so far. The concept is so simple and the setup is so fast that it was perfect to stash in my backpack while exploring beaver ponds, but I could set the entire rod up and be ready to fish in about a minute. This is something I really enjoyed because I personally hate stringing up my 5 piece fly rod in between use on trips. The fourteen foot length turned out to be perfect for the waters I have fished so far. It gave me a long reach to make casts up to 30 feet after I attached my home made tapered tenkara line to the end. I will be doing a full tutorial on DIY tenkara line in the future but to put it simply, I created a furled leader with a sort of shooting head with different sizes of monofilament that tapers for great casting turnover. The line I created for my tenkara rod is 17 feet long with furled loops on each end to make attaching the line and leaders to the line quick and easy. I can then attach as much tippet material on the end of the furled line as I need. The length of the rod made it great for a little spring creek in Eastern Washington that was lined with 5 foot high vegetation. I easily threw flies at hungry brook trout and the fight on a tenkara fly rod is a great deal of fun. I still don't know what you should do if you hook a huge fish that wants to run, besides kick off your shoes and jump in after it, rod in teeth. I am going to be ordering a few more rods in different sizes to see what else this style of fly fishing has to offer.

How to Make a DIY Ultralight Fly Box for fly fishing

Here is a simple tutorial on how to make an ultralight fly box for ultralight fly fishing. I carry this little guy with me whenever I know I am going to come in contact with any waters where I can fly fish while out and about, especially when hiking into destination fly fishing locations.  I really like using this box when I am Tenkara fishing also. I recently brought this box with me to a set of mountain lakes in the Olympics and I was very glad I made it the night before! I ended up catching enough Eastern Brook trout to have a delicious fish feast that left my entire group stuffed and satisfied. The box easily fit into my pocket as I fished my way around both lakes which made exploring much more efficient. Its congeniality small, while still holding up with enough room to cram more fly patterns then you will hopefully ever use on one outing. I always plan which fly patterns I'm going to bring with me before I leave for a trip, but there are some patterns that never fail in these local waters and I always have them stocked. 

What you will need

• Small altoids tin (big if you prefer) 
• Closed cell Foam
• Scissors or a razor blade
• super glue

First you will need to clean the altoids tin. I imagine most fish aren't huge altoids fans anyways. Once its nice and clean, use a piece or a few pieces of foam to create the style box you prefer. Some prefer slot foam which just means slicing vertical rows into the foam for the hooks to slide snuggly into and others like just a blank canvas of foam in the box for personal organization. I personally chose a step design which many foam box manufacturers use. I find that I can really take advantage of all of the expose foam in the steps to cram more flies into if I'm on a multi day trip or think I will need a few extra of a particular pattern. Once you've decided on the box style, cut the foam to fit tightly into the box to optimize foam surface area and curability.  Make sure you include enough foam to securely hold each hook while still being able to close the lid once its filled with flies. I recommend testing the fit with a large fly like a streamer or large nymph before deciding to glue the foam to the bottom of the tin just to make sure everything will fit. Once the glue has dried your ready to start choosing your go to flies to stock, I always have some bead-head pheasant tail nymphs, Hare's ear nymphs, softhackle variations, san juan worms in tan and red, zug bugs, prince nymphs, a single egg pattern (for when I'm feeling desperate), black and olive wooley buggers, simi-seal leeches, Chironomids, and a variety of dry flies like parachute adams and elk hair caddis. I usually stock a few traditional Tenkara fly patterns as well if I will be using a Tenkara rod.Those are some of my main go to flies for the waters I often hike to but I always add more patterns depending on the prey items of the fish I will be fly fishing for. Enjoy!