If you are predominantly a fly angler like me, you’d have realised that it is quite easy to find a good  quality travel fly rod. Fly Rod companies like Sage, Orvis, GLoomis, Winston, Thomas & Thomas, Scott, Temple Fork Outfitters and Redington all make excellent quality travel rods that breaks down from 4 to 8 pcs. Travel Fly Rods don’t just break down into smaller pieces; they have to perform like any traditional 2-3pc fly rod. For this reason, they have to be of excellent quality and usually cost a little more than their 2 or 3pc counterparts. It is not easy to make a rod with 4-6 ferrules that is as light and balanced as a 2 or 3pc rod.

If you use a Spinning or Baitcasting outfit, you’re not so lucky when it comes to travel rods. Most available travel rods are Spinning outfits and are usually of quite low quality. Sage, Orvis, Redington and Temple Fork outfitters do make reasonably good quality travel spinning and baitcasting (Redington only) outfit but only in the 3pc configuration. Over the years, I’ve been searching for good quality 4 and even 5 pcs spinning and baitcasting outfit in vain.

Interestingly, today I bought a copy of the Australian Fishing magazine and saw an advertisement for Innovator series of Nitro Rods. A picture of a 6 pc spinning outfit immediately caught my attention. I immediately looked up the website and did a little more research. Well, I had a pleasant surprise. They look like what I have been looking for all along…. a good quality spinning or baitcasting outfit in 5-6pcs which I can stuff in my hand carry luggage on the plane or in the car.

Innovator rods currently have 3 travel models in their Spinning and Baitcasting line as follows :

1. 007 Traveller 6′6″ 6pc at A$375.95 - This is a 6pc light spinning outfit that breaks down to just 41.5cms (16.5″) and can be easily slipped into a backpack or business briefcase and even under a car seat. It features precision butt over tip ferrule technology, which allows a smooth flawless taper providing a multi piece rod with a 1-piece action.  This rod is ideal for hikers, kayakers and poachers or those anglers who travel often and are finding the current airport difficulties of oversized luggage an unnecessary hassle to the start of a trip. There’s no longer an excuse to be without a rod, wherever you are! 
2. 007 Undertaker - Classic Barra 5′10″ 5pc at A$399.95 - This is a high-quality, high-performance multi-piece travel rod that packs down to just 46cms. It can be easily stowed in luggage and so avoid the hassles of baggage restrictions and security impositions that seem to plague two and one-piece rod owners. The Undertaker features the latest advances in aero-space carbon fibre technology, coupled with Ferrule Integration Technology (FIT) to produce a 4-6kg multi-piece baitcasting rod of exceptional strength, with a flawless one-piece action. The “Undertaker” was designed to handle a wide range of species such as Barramundi, GT’s and other tropical species
3. 007 Distance Spin - Magnum Butt Traveller 7′6″ 5pc at A$399.95 - This is a 5-piece big fish spinning rod in a package just 58.5cms in its carry-case. The “Magnum Butt” will slip unobtrusively into a duffel bag and escape all the baggage restrictions and security hassles that accompany two and one-piece rods. This 4-6kg rod was designed to give the angler peace-of-mind travel with the greatest latitude in handling a variety of fish species. It would be the ideal travel rod to carry for longer trips to more exotic destinations and for bigger fishes than the “Traveller” can handle! Interestingly, this rod also won the “Best of Show” in the Fishing Rods Category at the 2007 Australian Trade Show.

I like the design of these rods so much I’m going to get one of each for my own use. I will report a little more on the performance once I am able to use them a little more… hopefully on fishes that deserve their pedigree!

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