Red's Fly Shop

Sage DXL Typhoon Fly Fishing Backpack



One of the best backpacks ever made.  Sage hired fisherman to critique and design every aspect of this pack and the result is a piece of gear that will follow you to the river, trail, up the mountain, to the beach, the airport, or wherever!  The Sage DXL Typhoon Backpack is the best pack money can buy.  It is the most comfortable fly fishing backpack we sell.  When you are carrying 20-40 pounds around the river all day with a big lunch, heavy camera, jackets, fly boxes, etc in any other pack.... this is the pack that you will wish you had!


Red's Customer Wade Fishing the Yakima River Canyon near our fly shop with the Sage DXL Typhoon Backpack!   A same day field test since our fly shop is about 100' from the river.

Details on the Sage Typhoon DXL Fly Fishing Backpack

• 15" x 9" x 22" / 1709 cu. in.
• Welded construction
• Fully adjustable wader/boot storage system
• Rod storage pocket
• Custom contoured and padded shoulder straps
• Sliding, low-profile sternum strap
• Mesh water bottle pockets

Fly Fishing Packs Versus Fly Fishing Vests - Buyer's Guide



Decisions... decisions.  Hip packs, chest packs, vests, vest packs, and full on back packs.  Each have their advantages and disadvantages and every angler will no doubt determine what works best for them.  Hopefully this guide will help you narrow down your selection.  Chances are if you fish a lot you will wind up with a couple and use what works best for that particular fishing trip! 

The most popular is a waist pack, hip pack, or lumbar pack.  They are all the same thing living by different names.  Our best seller is the Simms Dry Creek Hip Pack, it is waterproof and very versatile.  Another option that has slightly more technical features including magnetic pocket closure (sounds fancy but is super convenient) is the Sage Typhoon Large Waist Pack.  It is larger and offers some more convenient pockets.  It is double the price, but anglers that try it... buy it.  You will use it a lot.  Waist packs are convenient because they simply buckle around your waist, one size fits all, and it is very convenient.  They hold enough gear for about a half day's worth of fishing and most hold a bottle of water on the side.  The downsides of a hip pack are that they don't carry much.  You can't bring a lunch of any substance, store extra clothing, bring a decent sized camera, or a significant amount of water.  They are a great "half day" pack and are very popular for short trips relatively close to your boat or vehicle.  However, they are a best seller and most anglers like to use a hip pack most of the time.  If you are planning to fish saltwater or get a pack for bonefish trips, definitely get the Simms Dry Creek Flats Pack.  It is made to handle saltwater. 

Traditional fly fishing vests or "vest-packs" are the most versatile.  They are lightweight and will haul a ton of gear if you want them to.  The newest models are very technical so there are always lots of pockets and gadgets on the chest which keeps your accessories like nippers, tippet, etc. very easy to access and use.  Our best seller is the Fishpond Flint Hills Fly Fishing Vest.  It has lots of versatility and is the best fly fishing vest under $100 that we know about.  You can stuff the pack cargo bay full of lunch, jackets, cameras, or anything you need for an entire day.  Some vests even have adjustable straps like a backpack for a custom fit.  The Fishpond Flint Hills Fly Fishing Vest has adjustable straps.  Our next best selling fly fishing vest is the Simms Freestone Mesh fly Fishing Vest.  Both are good choices, see the features and decide which is right for you.

There are few "hybrid" type vestpacks that fit somewhere in between.  The most popular is the Fishpond Gore Ranch Tech Pack.  This pack offers the technical features of a pack, but the traditional fit of a fly fishing vest.  The downside is that if you are doing a short trip this vest-pack is heavier than the Fishpond Flint Hills Fly Fishing Vest. 

Fly Fishing backpacks are perfect for anglers that want to make long treks and might leave their car at dawn and not return until dusk.  Supplies like first aid kits, a big lunch, plenty to drink, rain jackets, and a big camera get a free ride in these.  A lot of fly fishing backpacks also have a compatible chest pack that straps onto the front.  Both the Simms Dry Creek Day Pack and the Simms Dry Creek Roll Top Backpack offer this feature.  These are the best selling fly fishing backpacks on the market.  They are very similar with the main difference being that the Simms Dry Creek Day Pack has a zipper closure and the Simms Dry Creek Roll Top Backpack uses a "roll and buckle" closure.  The chest pack option keeps your tippet, nippers, flies, and terminal tackle on your chest and ready for action.  The Fishpond Double Haul Backpack is also a great choice.  It has a few more technical features that the Simms products and is hydration bladder compatible.  It comes standard with backpack and chestpack for about $70 less than the Simms packages.  Perhaps the ultimate backpack in the genre is the Sage Typhoon DXL Fly Fishing Backpack.  The only thing it doesn't have is the convertible chest pack, but most people say that this fits most like a true mountaineering backpack for anglers that are going to have some gear on their back all day.    When you buy your backpack/chestpack in a combo package each item can be used independently and are a versatile combo and a great all around system for treks both long and short.

Shopping Made Easy - The Proof Lies in the Evidence

Selecting the right fly fishing products online can be difficult.  Being able to try something on, pull the zippers, explore the pockets, etc. is priceless.  Our philosophy at Red's is that we want to make the buying process easy.  For us, this means advising you when we see customer trends that lean overwhelmingly toward specific products.  We don't sell or advertise everything on the market, if you see it on our website it is a good product.  Buy with confidence, if you are in the market for a fly fishing backpack then this is likely the right one for you.