About this Review: This review is my honest opinion of the rod which I purchased with my own money in October 2021.

My Take

The Temple Fork Outfitters’ Trout and Panfish rod is a great choice for beginner to intermediate anglers who target trout on small rivers, creeks, and streams.

About This Rod

• Model: 2021 Temple Fork Outfitters Trout And Panfish Rod
• Rod Length: 7’
• Rod Power: Ultralight
• Rod Action: Extra Fast
• Rod Pieces: 1-piece
• Rod Materiam: Graphite

About Me

• Preferred Fishing Style: Bass fishing with frogs and wakebaits
• Experience: 20+ years

Test Conditions

• When I bought this: October 2021
• Reel Paired With Rod: Lew’s Carbon Fire
• Line Paired With Rod: Pline Fluoroclear 4lb test
• Days tested: 40
• Waters I’ve Used It On: Small streams, creeks, and rivers
• Species Targeted With Rod: Trout

How It Performs

What I Was Looking For

I was looking for a trout rod that can easily cast lightweight micro jigs, and that was sensitive enough for feeling light bites from small trout.

Why I Chose This Gear

I had been curious to try out a TFO product and this felt like a great place to start. I liked the extra fast tip for casting and setting the hook using lightweight jigs on this model. I had also been looking at a Dobyn’s Sierra Trout and Panfish series ultralight rod, but the price was a bit more than I wanted to pay. Ultimately it was the soft, extra fast action tip that led me to purchase this rod.

What I Love About It

• Action: The softness of the tip makes it easy to cast lightweight micro jigs. The extra fast action of the tip is great for easy hooksets, and, especially when you’re fishing catch and release, the fast tip makes it easier to hook fish in the lip instead of the gullet. This allows anglers to quickly remove the hook and to get fish safely back in the water.
• Sensitivity: The rod is very sensitive. It allowed me to feel faint bites from small fish and it allowed me to easily feel that the blades on my spinners were engaged properly.
• Ideal Casting Distance: This rod is capable of casting lightweight micro jigs due it’s soft tip that loads up easily.

Issues I’ve Encountered

• Power: While the rod is capable of making long casts, it doesn’t have the power to set the hook from a distance. This rod performs best in small streams and rivers where accuracy matters more than distance.
• Grip: While I personally love the grip, it has a significantly smaller diameter than most that I’ve used. It took some getting used to, though I can see how some anglers might not find it as comfortable.

Favorite Moment With This Gear

This rod allowed me to land my first tiger trout. I was fishing some shallow riffles in a small trout stream with a Kastmaster style spoon. The fast action tip allowed me to keep the spoon off of the bottom, and even with the fast moving water I was able to feel the faint bite of a small tiger trout, set the hook, and land the fish.

Value For The Money Vs Other Options

This rod is more sensitive and lightweight than others that I have tried in its price range. I also appreciate the aesthetics of the rod, whereas similarly priced trout rods tend to look generic.

Final Verdict

Ultimately, I love this rod for targeting trout in small streams and rivers. It’s a great rod for beginners and intermediate level anglers who are interested in taking the sport seriously. I personally find it to be an attractive rod. It performs well across a variety of techniques. It’s easy to make accurate casts, set hooks, and safely return fish to the water when using this rod. This is an affordable rod that is suited for many applications, and will help trout and panfish anglers to land more fish.