Even surf rods are available in breakdown travel models. This 9’2” model is from Toadfish.

For those of you who are road warriors—and for those who can’t stand being without a fishing rod within reach on family vacations—the modern generation of travel rods is a blessing.

They’re also great for just keeping in the truck, all the time, in case you come across a creek or river or pond that seems to need fishing when you have a minute to spare from work. If you’re an e-biker, you can stick one in a saddlebag and head for that backcountry pond. If you’re a turkey hunter, one can fit into the vest so you can hit that hidden bass pond after the morning hunt.

The difference between a travel rod and a standard rod is that the travel version breaks down, usually short enough to fit inside a carry on bag—22” for most airlines, 24” for Southwest. (If you can fit it diagonally, a 22” x 14” will fit rod segments about 26” long—remember the Pythagorean Theorem?)

Travel rods come in two designs—segmented with ferrules and collapsible, that is the smaller forward sections collapse or telescope into the larger butt sections. 

While the collapsible models are the easiest to use and don’t create the potential issue of flying apart on a cast, the action on these rods is generally soft and sometimes sloppy—most are made for moderate price rather than prime action.

Rods that are segmented come in all quality levels, from those basically designed to catch bluegills and stocker trout from ponds to serious high-end tackle suitable for taking on big bass, walleyes or coastal species. There are now even really good surf casting models.

The Daiwa Ardito series comes in a wide variety of lengths and actions, and is medium-priced.

The big difference in the quality levels is in the ferrules—quality ferrules don’t create hard spots in the rod which give it a quirky action, and they also don’t come apart on the cast. 

The “Tip Over” design is most common, with the tip sections fitting over the butt sections. The tip section is the female, the butt section the male. The upper section sometimes gets a thread wrap reinforcement, while the butt section is sometimes reinforced graphite or glass. 

More expensive rods sometimes have “spigot ferrules”, in which a piece of graphite or glass is inserted inside the lower sections and allowed to project out between 1 and 2 inches, and the tip section fits over this. This is more commonly found on high end rods because of the added care required to build it, but it gives a good action and is very dependable.

Both types can give years of service so long as you keep them clean and don’t overstress the rod.

Most well-known builders have travel rods, though they don’t advertise them much.

Daiwa is sort of travel-rod central, with everything from $400 Steez multi-section models to $59 Procyon telescopic models and even a $29 UL pack model. I have an Ardito UL action 6’ model (about $250) that I’ve used all over the country for years; www.daiwa.com.

Fenwick makes terrific rods at all levels, and their Eagle series trout and panfish rods go for just $109. At the other end of the scale—Waaay at the other end—is the World Class series at $569; www.fenwickfishing.com. 

Shimano’s Zodias series are upscale models in spinning and baitcasting, at about $250, and the economy model is the Convergence, with an all cork handle spinning model at just $80; https://fish.shimano.com.

St. Croix’s Triumph series in UL, L, ML and M actions and 5’6” or 6’6” lengths, is a medium-priced ($155-165), high-quality rod that matches the cork handles to the intended duty, with one-handers for trout and panfish, two-handers for inshore salt and for bass/walleye/catfish. St. Croix also makes a 10’ surf travel rod in this series; www.stcroixrods.com.

Toadfish: This is a relatively new tackle company but they make some good stuff including a 9’2 med-heavy graphite surf rod that I fished on a recent Florida trip—just the ticket for big redfish, 15-20 pounds, and black drum in the surf. They also make a nice 4000 size spinning reel; www.toadfish.com. 

Zebco’s Ugly Stick Travel Combo is a very tough rod and reel at a very economical $89.95.

Zebco’s Ugly Stick, as always, offers rugbeater rods at bargain prices—these are the rods for you if you break everything you own. They can stand everything short of being slammed in a car door, and they’re very affordable—the new GX-2 combo, including a 7-foot carbon/fiberglass rod, Shakespeare spinning reel and cloth case is just $89.95, and shorter models are $69.95; www.uglystik.com

— Frank Sargeant