St. Croix Rod
Park Falls, Wisconsin
Best Rods on Earth
St. Croix Rod’s tagline – Best Rods on Earth – is a bold statement.
After witnessing the engineering, skill, and care that goes into producing each rod, and doing some research (fishing) of our own, we’ve determined that it might also be a true statement.
I’m convinced St. Croix’s Integrated Poly Curve (IPC) tooling technology, which eliminates all transitional points in the rod blank to provide increased strength and sensitivity, allowed me to detect a light bite and land a beautiful, meaty 14-inch brook trout on Minnesota’s Kadunce River. A local guide told us “they’re typically the size of a Snickers bar.” Two other anglers we came across described them the exact same way.
Of course they’re exaggerating, as fisherman have been known to do, albeit in the opposite direction. I’m told the common size of a brookie in that neck of the woods is 6 to 10 inches. The inch markers on the webbing of my Hoskins net help keep me honest.
Sure, there are other good rods, but St. Croix is producing some of the best, perhaps the very best.
The Voyage Begins
St. Croix was the first stop on our tour, a seven-day road trip spent with five outdoor industry companies in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
We arrived in Park Falls the night before and made camp at Smith Lake County Park. As we were finishing with the tent, we noticed a glow across the lake and assumed a town was in the distance.
As the glow grew brighter, we realized we were witnessing the rising of the full moon. It lit up our eyes as it lit up the lake.
Sunrises get all the shine, but this moonrise was just as spectacular as any sunrise I’ve seen.
It was an unexpected way to start our trek and must have been a good omen.
The next morning, as we were capturing fog rolling and rising above the water, a bald eagle perched above our heads, just long enough for us to take in its takeoff.
