I am wondering what has worked best for fish stringers up in the BWCA. There's the rope kind with the metal shaft on one end and loop on the other and there's the metal clip kind.

Are there better options for keeping fish up there? Thanks all.

The clip kind are a little more secure. However, sometimes you'll need two clips for a bigger fish, which you should let go anyway. You don't have to untie it each time you add a fish. That said, the rope ones are cheap and light and adding fish to the stringer is a good problem to have.

I use a rope one with plastic clips. Best of both worlds. Lightweight and stands up to the teeth on walleye and pike. I used an all nylon rope one once and those fish WILL wear right through it.
The plastic clips are also a little bigger than the old metal clips. Just pop it through their bottom lip.
https://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Claw-STSLT-Silent-Stringer/dp/B003ZZ89PK/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=plastic+fish+stringer&qid=1590525398&sr=8-3

I’ve used the metal clips and have had fish pop them open-especially northerns. I prefer the one with yellow rope and green plastic clips-though those aren’t perfect either.

I have used just about every stringer on the market over the 50 years I’ve been fishing. The one I love is no longer made, from Canada. It has a 20 foot long cotton rope. I like a long rope so if we catch fish at night we can sink them in deep water to protect them until morning. Then it has about 10 brass clips with big swivels on each clip. When in the boat you just flip one fish over and keep the rest of the clips in the canoe. The reason for having each clip have a swivel is so each fish can flip upright to stay alive longer. If fish are upside down on a stringer on shore they tend to die faster. The biggest fish controls a stringer without swivels, and other fish on the stringer are upside down and die. In a few years I just add a new cotton rope.
Side note...
My buddy Pikehunter a member here left the same stringer on a tree branch on Splash lake a couple of years ago. If anyone picked it up maybe I could get it to him.

SV - is this it ?

A simple rope kind with the metal point. Works great and takes up no roomalso can be used to tie your canoe up next to shore for a short break when not to windy the canoe will get beat up on the rocks. I hate those metal clip types.

Cc26: "SV - is this it ? "

Here is the one I was talking about. Yours would also work as I described.

Pinetree: "A simple rope kind with the metal point. Works great and takes up no roomalso can be used to tie your canoe up next to shore for a short break when not to windy the canoe will get beat up on the rocks. I hate those metal clip types."

Yes to that. There's nothing worse than putting a fish on a stringer only to have it escape by opening one of those clips. A simple 6' rope stringer with the pointed metal on one end and the ring on the other end works perfectly.

Lindy makes a really nice clip style one with locking clips, key ring style fasteners, and barrel swivels.

MuskyMike: "Lindy makes a really nice clip style one with locking clips, key ring style fasteners, and barrel swivels.


"

There’s two in that pic. The upper one is the Lindy model.

egknuti: "I’ve used the metal clips and have had fish pop them open, especially northerns. I prefer the one with yellow rope and green plastic clips, although those aren’t perfect either. "

+1

I've had some thick lakers pop them open. I like the long yellow nylon style. If you're eating the fish that day, use whatever works to keep lakers alive for a future fry. One on 20'+ of rope. Two or three lakers will twist 30' into 10'. One fish per line is the best for camp fries. ;)

Old school nylon stringers work best for us. Not a fan of noisy metal clip stringers.

tcoeguy: "I am wondering what has worked best for fish stringers up in the BWCA. There's the rope kind with the metal shaft on one end and loop on the other and there's the metal clip kind.

Are there better options for keeping fish up there? Thanks all."

I swear - I made a hybrid of the two. I cut the rope in half, then cut the metal clip in half so there's only 5 clips - and attached the two. That way the rope isn't scratching the canoe and it's rare to keep more fish than that anyway.

This is the link that FishEH posted above.

I used to use the metal clip stringer and still have it somewhere. I converted over to a nylon stringer because of weight issues (although it's minimal) and compactness (the nylon stringer rolls up tight in the tackle bag).

I like this one. I double up on the clips if the fish is a bigger one. At one point they sold them in Ely at that Lucky 7 gas station. It is smaller than the yellow and green stringer I think.

Sampo Swivels Nylon Fish Stringer #310-10' Length w/ 8 Fish Clips
More information:

Link

snakecharmer: " Old school nylon stringers work best for us. Not a fan of noisy metal clip stringers.

"

Hey! That's my exact "Lucky Blue" stringer, right down to the bit of nylon fraying from years of BW use. In fact, when I scrolled past this post, I had to study it hard to see that this wasn't an exact pic I had taken. :-) Can't find it; this will have to do:






I use a Sampo nylon clip stringer when wader fishing, but Blue pulls out of the canoe kit bag so much easier. The old Sampo design used a lot lighter cord than the new green monster, also.

Savage Voyageur: "

Cc26: "SV - is this it ? "

Here is the one I was talking about. Yours would also work as I described. "

This one seems to be about the same as yours.

I have an old stringer that I found at a campsite years ago. It's just 1/16" aircraft cable in a nylon jacket with a loop on one end. Lightweight and strong.

Before that I would just make a bowline knot in a hack of paracord and slip the fish on.

I use a Sampo nylon clip stringer when wader fishing, but Blue pulls out of the canoe kit bag so much easier. The old Sampo design used a lot lighter cord than the new green monster, also.


The Sampo nylon clip stringer is the best made imho.

Sampo Nylon Clip Stringer

I bring 2 every trip, have for the past 15 years. Used them both this weekend.

"

I had no idea my question would get so many answers. Thanks all. So many choices. I guess there is no "right" answer. But good info. Now I just have to worry about catching the fish to put on the stinger :)

tcoeguy: "I had no idea my question would get so many answers. Thanks all. So many choices. I guess there is no "right" answer. But good info. Now I just have to worry about catching the fish to put on the stinger :) "

Luckily that usually isn't a problem in the BWCA or Quetico!

Mesh laundry bag with draw cord. Fish will live through night and all day, until time to eat.

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The one fishEH mentions aboveabove

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CampSR: "The one fishEH mentions aboveabove is our go-to, we have the lindy models but essentially the same. They work great, have not lost any fish other than when a snapper came up and ate our lunch before we could :)

I have always just used the cheap rope with split ring on one end and metal point on the other.

I watched a youtube video from upper lip outdoor where they were planning to use a fish basket as a livewell. Not something I have tried yet but it seems like a good idea.

Just here eliminating quotes...

schweady: "

Just here eliminating quotes..."
For what purpose?

buzz17: "For what purpose?"

You might notice the post by IndyCanoe: different color and in italics. This happens when quoting a previous post and inadvertently deleting one or more of the HTML close-quotes commands. Looks like CampSR's post did just that, above. Posting a series of additional close-quotes commands gets us back to the normal typeface. (No worries, I'm not editing anyone's content... but I can now see how my choice of words could be misinterpreted as that...)

Haha! I've done it too. Thanks for clarifying!