“Hobo” means – essentially – a migratory worker . Hobo is a vagabond, which means, in latin “a person who move around fulltime”


The origin of the term “hobo” is unknown, anyway we know that hobos were (and are) not tramps, or bums: hobos are persons full of energy, curious, looking around for new jobs and experiences


As a final note, in the USA the “hobos” developed a sort of new language (1930/40 - Great Depression)


Jack London was also someway a hobo

So Jack Kerouack

I consider myself also a “hobo”, with proud :-)

A properly “hobo” didn’t need for sophisticate items to catch food (or do a shelter ecc.): he use what is available at the time.

This explain the “hobo fishing kit”: it’s – in summary - a self made fishing kit, using soda cans, woods, bamboo, bottles, and other materials as fishing rod. The rest is usually (not always) more normal, a simple fishing line.






Here R. Mears fishing whit a hobo fishing kit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvRR5MTBBQI


And here we are with my “hobo fishing kit”
[img]http://img840.imageshack.us/img840/1310/img4009gv.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img577.imageshack.us/img577/6350/img4010t.jpg[/img]

I used a piece of old bamboo (I took it on Greece, 2 years ago), 30 cm long, internal diameter 2 cm, closed with a cork. The fishing rope (20 metres) is assured to the bamboo with pieces of bike’s air chamber
[img]http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/4413/img4011l.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/3701/img4013jn.jpg[/img]
I also added a lanyard to the my fishing rod.

On the internal side, a float fishing + 1 meter of fishing rope with leads and hook
[img]http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/9660/img4012z.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/5671/img4014r.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img851.imageshack.us/img851/7246/img4015w.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/144/img4016o.jpg[/img]

It’s very light, some 100 grams.
Now I need just to jump on a train
[img]http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/9073/8a05817r.jpg[/img]
and a lake :-)

Ciao,
Alfredo

PS I wish a Great 2012 to all of you!

Nice pics, history lesson, and ideas Thanks

I use one of those plastic "baby soda bottle" tubes like you're using the bamboo.

Have a Happy New Year everyone

Nice Informative Post Alfredo, VERY ingenious idea. Thanks for putting this up.

Very good post and thanks for the history lesson. I think I might need to make me one or two of these kits for the bag and truck.

A length of 3/4" or 1" PVC pipe and end caps would work nicely to contain the kit too! Nice post! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

Nice post. I need a good hobo fishing kit. I have one of the store bought rigs. I have trapped and hunted on camping excursions, but need to start fishing too.

Just for those who might not know. The little boy sitting next to Chaplin grew up to be Uncle Fester on the Addams Family TV series. His parents squandered his fortune. He sued, and won. This was the genesis of the laws protecting child actors fortunes from dimwit parents.