Magazinefinal

ISSUE 01 - SUMMER 2018
FLY FISHING
MAGAZINE
MENDONLINE PUBLICATION BY 54 NORTH OUTDOORS
DIY
TIPS FOR PLANNING A TRIP
BY YOURSELF
MOBILE
BASECAMP
TURNING YOUR CAR INTO
THE ULTIMATE FISH
MOBILE
2018
IN PICTURES

Spring Steelhead
Photo: Jeremie Roy
Cover
Copper Spey Break
Photo: Michael Leong

WHATS INSIDE
5
DIY FISHING
Planning a Long Distance Fly Fishing
Trip from Scratch
.
.
.
11
2018 SO FAR
Photographs from Early to Mid 2018
.
.
.
13
GOING MOBILE
Turning your Daily Commuter into an
Off-Grid Fly Fishing Powerhouse

UP
NORTH…
OUR FISH ARE MEAN
WWW.54NORTHOUTDOORS.COM

A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
Thank you for reading the first issue of Mend from
myself and 54 North Outdoors. For years, I have
thoroughly enjoyed writing and media creation.
Therefore, I decided to condense it into a free
magazine for you all. The purpose of The Mend is to
share and inform you all through editorials, tips, and
helpful tricks. As a student in fisheries biology, I also
aim to make you more conscience of the impacts we
anglers and outdoors-people make and how we may
influence the future of our waters and fisheries.
Along with studies, I have experience as a fishing
guide and hope that I will be able to teach all levels
of fisherman something they may have not known
before. Once again, thank you for reading this
publication and look forward to the future of Mend.
- Michael Leong
MEND
PRESENTED BY : 54 NORTH OUTDOORS
EDITOR : MICHAEL LEONG
PHOTOS : MICHAEL LEONG, JEREMIE ROY, KATHRYN MCLELLAN, CAMERON
FLINTON.
WEBSITE : WWW.54NORTHOUTDOORS.COM/MAGAZINE
CONTACT : 54NORTHOUTDOORS@GMAIL.COM

DIY
Planning your next fishing
adventure from scratch
Written by: Michael Leong
Photo: Michael Leong

D.I.Y (Do It Yourself) isn’t only for home-shows any more.
For years fisherman around the world have been planning
their own trips to fish around the globe. However, a
common theme among the elite of fly-fishing, especially
in the fly fishing films, is paying thousands of dollars for
the opportunity to fish in untapped wilderness regions for
trophy fish. For a fair bit of us, these trips are not
reasonable. Working 9-5 jobs,school, and not having the
funds were reasons that kept me from exploring this
expensive option. Utilizing long-weekends, vacation time,
and lags between the end of term and summer work, I
personally have planned and completed trips running
from a weekend in length, all the way to two weeks. By
following these suggestions, getting out in your local area
has never been easier and a DIY vacation will soon
replace the want to book a big expensive guided trip.

Above: DIY Trips can get you into beautiful terrain, while not breaking the bank.
PICKING YOUR TRIP
Depending on your quarry, a DIY trip
may send you only a few hours from
home, but also may send you up to
a dozen. Living in central BC, I am
fortunate to be able to have all
corners of the province within 10-12
hours in any direction. So pick your
target, and begin scouring the
internet for tips, reports, and other
sources to find areas that have what
you are looking for. A big bummer
for some is spending the time to
head to an area only to find out that
they are either early for catching
certain species, or the area is even
still frozen or inaccessible. Gather
as much information that you can
and don’t be afraid to ask around. I
also use this time to secure or plan
out my accommodations.
Depending on where you are during
your trip and how much you want to
spend is important in what goes
into your accommodations. Going
remote? Then I’ll pack my tents. If it
is winter then cheap hotels or
AirBnB’s are worth their weight in
gold to have the opportunity to be
dry and warm. Booking early is
always never a bad idea if you are
planning to stay in high traffic areas.
For instance, I booked a campsite in
the Okanagan a few months in
advance and was glad I did as all
the sites were full when I showed
up. Once you have all of the
logistics set up, then you are ready
to begin the most fun part of the trip
but is also one of the most
expensive. Creating your packlist
and buying what is needed.

A FISH CAUGHT
ON A DIY TRIP, TO
ME, IS FAR MORE
MEMORABLE
THAN ANY
SIMILAR FISH
THAT A GUIDED
OUTFIT MAY GET
YOU.
Above: Jeremie Roy and Dean Taylor get their gear
prepped before a spring steelhead float.
Left: The author holding a chunky bull trout caught on a
week-long trip in BC.
Below: This Skeena River coho salmon shows that DIY
trips don’t always have to be to remote areas.

PACKLIST
With your area and time of year
picked out this is when you will get to
pack everything you will take on the
trip. This is one of my favourite part of
DIY trips because this often involved
the creation of packing lists and
shopping lists. To do this, you could
use excel, word, or other computer
programs, but I find it best to get a
small journal or write in a pre-existing
fishing journal that you may have.
Write everything that you want to take
and it doesn’t hurt to do a mock-pack
and see how much stuff you will be
taking. Here, you can really decide if
you need what you are taking. On
nearly all my packing lists I have
about 5-10 items that I want to take,
but realistically are space-wasters.
Also take this time to pack your
vehicle and come up with a system
for packing. Being off grid and
cleaning up camp every morning, can
be a nightmare to unpack if you just
throw everything back into your
vehicle.
Above: Easily accessed spots can be empty if you time
your trip for the weekdays.
FOOD
Food is one of the things that you
will want to leave until a few days
before you leave. Up until this
time, creating a meal plan is
crucial if you are planning to not
eat at restaurants or if you are
packing light. By planning your
meals and leaving a bit of wiggleroom
for weather dependant meals
(Chili vs Light-Salads), you will
spend less time thinking about
what to eat and more time
enjoying your trip. My usual meal
plan involves packing each day in
a large ziplock bag and then
separating breakfast, lunch and
dinner into separate bags to throw
into my backpack when I head out
on the water. Here are some ideas
on how I choose what to eat.
Breakfast
High Fibre Instant Oatmeal
Lunch
Bagels, Cheese, Trailmix.
Dinner
Pasta, Ichiban, Candy Bar
Once you have all of this stuff
together the rest is up to you. Print
off some maps and mark off access
points and areas where you think
fish will be. Nothing ruins a fishing
day like driving around looking for
access and not being able to find
the river or accessing the river to
only find dead water that doesn’t
hold fish for miles. Even if you plan
your trip and it results in no fish
being caught, just remember, that
often the fish are only a bonus,
planning a trip to a new body of
water can be some of the most
valuable ways to spend your time.

COMING
SOON
The Fifty Four
Podcast
WWW.54NORTHOUTDOORS.COM/PODCAST

Left: First Lake Trout through the ice for Cam Flinton.
Above: Dean Taylor missed a few but finally hooked
into a clean Bull Trout.
2018…SO FAR
In Photographs
Above: Small Char to the net.
Right: This 30+ inch Bull Trout evaded the fish
finder and smoked the jig out of nowhere.

Above: Eagle posting up above a nice run on the Cheakamus River in Squamish, BC.
Above: Early ice allowed for aggressive Bulls to be caught well into November.
Above: Taking the easy route to access some late winter Steelhead water.
Below: Jeremie Roy with a clean Pennask strain Rainbow.

GOING
MOBILE
TURNING YOUR VEHICLE INTO
THE ULTIMATE
FISHING RIG
Talk to an outdoorsman, and guaranteed they
will at some point have slept in their vehicle
when they are out fishing, hunting, or hiking.
Tenting can be fun and enjoyable, but eventually
the novelty can run short during long trips and
during adverse weather conditions. Since I
began driving for myself, I’ve driven a Toyota
Tacoma, Ford F-150 and now a Ford Escape.
Each of these vehicles had their pros and cons
and now I believe I have create a well-suited
setup for my outdoor escapades. While no setup
is ever perfect, with some ingenuity you can
easily build something that you can call home
for long periods of time on the road. If you are
completely lost, here are a few tips to get your
started…

VEHICLE CHOICE
If you have a vehicle, you are
pretty much good to go.
However, some vehicles will
work better than others. Of the
4 main types of vehicles (car,
truck, SUV, Compact SUV), I
have tried only 2. Firstly, is the
classic truck. For me, it was a
2003 Toyota Tacoma. Pros of
trucks, they can go nearly
anywhere within reason. Can
tow larger amounts of weight,
and tend to have a fair bit of
aftermarket add ons you can
purchase. However, my biggest
cons to using a truck for a
sleep-in fishing rig is; poor gas
mileage (getting better) and the
fact that if you built your home
in the bed of the truck, you
have to go outside the vehicle
to drive away and potentially
face the danger outside of the
vehicle. For these two reasons, I
found comfort in a 2014 Ford
Escape. Pros; great on gas, can
sleep inside, quiet, and not too
pricey. Unfortunately, the new
Ford Escapes currently lack in
aftermarket parts, and in
ground clearance (huge pet
peeve). If I could do it again, I
would have met in the middle
and went with a mid-size SUV.
For reference, here is a list of
some of my top picks for
vehicle choice based on type.
TRUCK
1.Toyota Tacoma
2.Ford F150
3.Nissan Frontier
4.GMC Sierra 1500
5.Chevy Silverado 1500
6.Dodge Ram 1500
COMPACT SUV/SUV
1. Toyota 4Runner
2.Subaru Forester
3.Jeep Wrangler
4.Toyota RAV4
5.Ford Escape (Pre-2013)
6.Ford Escape
(Post-2012)
Cars
1. Subaru Crosstrek
2. Subaru Outback
3. Subaru Impreza
Hatchback
While these are all up for debate,
I based these lists of the vehicles
ability to perform and work as a
live-in fishing basecamp.

Sleeping
As you will spend a fair bit of
time in the vehicle, you will
want to be as comfy as
p o s s i b l e . L u c k i l y , f o a m
mattresses can be cut to
shape to fit the back of
nearly every vehicle, with a
sheet and comforter or
sleeping bag added, you will
be sleeping comfy and safe. I
would also recommend an air
mattress to save on space
when packing away. Either
way, this is by far the most important part of a good nights sleep. If
you are uncomfortable, you will hate car camping.
Gear Management
What I love about the SUV/CUV
is that they all come with the
handy trunk blind to cover what
is in the back of the vehicle.
What I found best is that these
have 2 perfect functions. First,
you can utilize some bungee
cords to lay out your rods,
collapsed in half, perfectly up
and out of the way. Second, after
adding some thin board on top,
Bags and other gear can be
stowed above and taken off of
the mattress to allow for more
room below.
LEFT: Rods secure and out of the
way.

Along with internal storage, often I will be carrying a fair bit of
camping equipment with me that is needed outside of the vehicle,
whether this is a tent or cooking supplies, I find the best way to
carry this stuff is in totes on roof baskets, or hitch racks. Out of all
the totes and boxes I have gone through, I found that the Plano XXL
Sportsman Trunks work the best. They hold an immense amount of
gear, are lockable, durable, and only cost around $40.
Above: A roof basket and dual totes will hold enough gear for a long time.
Electrical
Okay, you’re comfy and ready to retire after a long day of fishing.
You caught some nice fish but exhausted your camera batteries
and need to charge them for that new IF4 entry. Or maybe, you
need some light or want to watch a movie during a rainstorm.
While you could use the car battery, you could kill it. This is where a
power board comes in. My power board fits the the setback behind
my drivers seat and contains 3 important things; deep cycle
battery, power inverter, and a power bar. With this setup (120 Amp
hour battery) I can almost everything I need for days. Charging
phones, batteries, lighting, this can do it all. I have played with the
idea of even hooking up a mini TV and my N64 to game on slow
nights. Also if you are near a city, you can recharge the battery as
needed with a battery charger. This has by far, made my nights
much more enjoyable, by being able to bring entertainment to my
setup. I chose a 400W Inverter, which is plenty for basic charging
and use of entertainment devices.

After it was all said and done, here is my final breakdown on
costs. Substitutions can be made, but if you were to buy new, this
is a rough estimate of the cost of everything not including the
vehicle and things already owned by most:
Mattress - $50
Wood Costs - $10
Totes - $80
Roof Basket - $140
Hitch Rack - $100
Deep Cycle Battery - $150
Inverter - $70
Power Bar - 5$
So the final cost comes out to around $500-600 to buy new.
However, depending on your vehicle the cost can change
dramatically. In the end, I would recommend buying what you
know you will need, and testing it out. You can make tweaks to
truly make your rig personal to you and help you explore and find
new places to fish, hunt, hike, or travel.

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NORTH OUTDOORS