We wrote about the birth of the modern chest pack movement nearly eight years ago and our predictions of a major shift out of traditional vests into new, high-tech alternative carriers came to pass. This was good news for the adventure angler who is much better served by more compact gear.

It’s not that we don’t like fishing vests, they reflect a wonderful tradition. But the fact remains that vests are a little like hall closets, or that drawer in the kitchen, or (dare we say) ladies’ purses – they simply continue to collect things until they can hold no more. We always end up feeling like we’re wearing heavy, lumpy inner tubes.

So, in the interest of not carrying an entire fly shop around as body armor we are promoting the opposite extreme, the ultimate and very cool example that less is indeed more – lanyards. Seriously, what else do you really need most of the time? Stick a box of flies in your pocket, grab your “fishin’ neckalace” and hit the water. Lanyards are about personalized simplicity and Morning Star Lanyards (www.mslanyards.com) understands that. We strung their basic model with a few beads and fish pendants we’ve collected from our travels (above) and gave them away as gifts to our angling pals. They instantly became coveted pieces of gear!

Lanyards are like a favorite piece of clothing for some a-fish-ionados and they literally define the angler they adorn in their style and the unique items they carry. If you have, or know of someone who has a great lanyard send us a photo to info@wildonthefly.com. We’re staging a little impromptu Lanyard Photo Contest and we’ll display the best shots here sometime in the near future. The very best lanyard will win $100 gift certificate from our friends at the Grizzly Hackle Fly Shop in Missoula Montana.