The Gaelforce Destination Spey Rod is the six piece travel rod in the Gaelforce two handed lineup, and it is the original one. Every model breaks down into six sections, so the tube for a 15ft 1in salmon rod is 88cm and the tube for the 11ft 3in switch is 65cm, which is the difference between a rod that goes inside your checked bag and a rod that becomes a separate conversation at the airline counter. Gaelforce did not treat the six piece build as a compromise to be apologized for: the range was designed around it, with the taper and the ferrule fit worked out together so that the extra joints do not cost you the action. That is the pitch, and the per model spec sheet backs it up.
Two things this rod is not. It is not the Gaelforce Equalizer, which shares components and finish but is a four piece built on its own taper. And it is not the G+ Destination Graphene, which is this same rod rebuilt with graphene in the blank, in a wider model range and with a different tube. The standard Destination is built from carbon fiber and resin with no graphene, and it costs several hundred dollars less per model as a result. We stock it in nine models, from an 11ft 3in switch through a 15ft 1in 10/11wt, which covers sea trout and intimate headwater salmon streams at the light end and the largest Norwegian and Russian salmon rivers at the top.
Blank
Carbon Fiber and Resin Construction - Gaelforce builds the Destination blank from what it calls the finest new graphite materials, using its advancements in carbon fiber and resin systems. There is no graphene in this blank, and that is the honest dividing line between this rod and the G+ Destination Graphene sitting above it. The cost of skipping the graphene is weight, and Gaelforce publishes the number: on the 12ft 9in 8/9wt, the model both ranges share, the standard Destination weighs 252g against 240g for the graphene version. Across the models built in both ranges the gap runs between 5g and 21g. That is what you are buying back with the G+ premium, and on the shorter and midrange Destination models it is a small enough number that plenty of anglers will not feel it.
Deep Progressive Action with a Strong Tip - The blank flexes deep into the butt section and recovers quickly, which is the combination Gaelforce built the range around. The strong tip is the part that does the unglamorous work: it lifts a long line off the water without deflecting sideways, so the anchor sets where you aimed it rather than where the tip wandered. Behind that, the deep progressive bend gives you feedback through the change of direction, whether you are making a sustained anchor cast or a traditional single spey or snake roll. Gaelforce rates every model progressive with a strong tip, and rates recovery fast on all of them except the 12ft 9in and 13ft 9in 7/8wt models, which are rated medium and are the more relaxed rods in the range.
Precision Ferrules - A six piece rod has five joints, and every one of them is a place to lose energy or to have a section creep loose over a day of casting. Gaelforce calls out precision ferrule design and fit specifically so that the joints do not continuously work loose, which on a two handed rod that gets rotated through hundreds of casts a day is a maintenance problem, not a theoretical one.
Finish - Matte green for stealth with rich silver whippings. Each section carries alignment dots, which on a six piece rod is a practical feature rather than a decorative one: five joints have to line up, and a twisted ferrule loads the blank unevenly and puts the guides off axis.
Guides
Stripping Guides - Fuji stripping guides. On a two handed rod the stripper takes the whole weight of the shooting line under load on every cast, so a hard, low friction insert earns its keep here more than anywhere else on the blank. It shows up as distance you did not have to work for, and as a guide that does not groove and start cutting line coating after a season of grit.
Snake Guides - Hard chrome snake guides run the length of the rod. Hard chrome is the corrosion resistant, low mass standard on salmon rods for good reason: it survives wet Atlantic weather and tidal beats, and it keeps weight off the tip sections, where added weight costs the most.
Reel Seat
The rod uses a superior grade ALPS Tri-Lock down locking reel seat. Down locking puts the reel further back toward the butt, which shifts the balance point rearward and reduces the felt swing weight of a long rod in the hands, and it is the conventional arrangement on salmon rods for exactly that reason. The Tri-Lock mechanism uses a triple lock arrangement rather than a single knurled nut, which is what keeps a heavy salmon reel clamped through a full day of casting a 15ft rod, where a simpler seat works itself loose. Ahead of and behind the seat are Gaelforce's AAAA grade slim cork handles. AAAA is the top cork selection with the fewest fills, and the slim profile matters on a two hander because both hands are wrapped around cork for thousands of casts a day.
Rod Tube
The rod ships in a Cordura rod tube with a quality cloth bag. This is one of the real differences from the G+ Destination Graphene, which ships in an aluminum tube finished in Gaelforce Green with a laser engraved cap; the standard Destination gets the fabric covered tube instead, which packs lighter and softer inside a duffel. Tube length runs from 65cm on the 11ft 3in switch to 88cm on the 15ft 1in, with the midrange rods between 75cm and 85cm. That is the entire point of the range: an 88cm tube fits inside a normal checked bag, so a 15ft salmon rod travels with the rest of your luggage rather than as an oversize item handled separately.
Warranty
Gaelforce does not publish written warranty terms for its rods, so we are not going to quote you a coverage period or a fee schedule that we cannot stand behind. Rods are covered against defects in materials and workmanship, and claims are handled case by case through the dealer network. If you have a problem with a rod, get in touch with us and we will point you to the current process. Keep your receipt and keep the tube, since both make any claim simpler.
More Info
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Rod Action: Medium-fast. Gaelforce rates every model progressive with a strong tip, fast recovery on all but the 12ft 9in and 13ft 9in 7/8wt models, which are medium
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Best For: Atlantic salmon, sea trout and steelhead on the swing, and traveling to fish for them. The blank design places no restriction on line type, so it handles matched floating or sinking spey lines, shooting heads and Skagit heads equally
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Grip Style: AAAA grade slim cork, full two handed spey grips on the 11ft 9in and longer, switch grip on the 11ft 3in
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Ability Level: Advanced to Expert
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Line Weight Range: 7/8wt through 10/11wt
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Piece Count: 6 piece, every model
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Models and Weights: 11ft 3in 7/8wt switch (205g); 11ft 9in 8/9wt (223g); 12ft 9in in 7/8wt (248g) and 8/9wt (252g); 13ft 9in in 7/8wt (269g) and 8/9wt (282g); 14ft 6in in 9/10wt (297g) and 10/11wt (323g); 15ft 1in 10/11wt (323g)
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Tube Length: 65cm on the 11ft 3in, 66cm on the 11ft 9in, 75cm to 76cm on the 12ft 9in, 81cm on the 13ft 9in, 85cm on the 14ft 6in, 88cm on the 15ft 1in
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Guides: Fuji stripping guides, hard chrome snakes
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Reel Seat: ALPS Tri-Lock down locking
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Finish: Matte green with silver whippings, alignment dots on every section
Recommended Lines
Gaelforce publishes a line chart for every Destination model, and the grain weights move a long way across nine rods, so buy to the grain window for your model rather than to the line number printed on the blank. Broadly, Gaelforce puts the 11ft 3in switch in the 380 to 500 grain band, the 11ft 9in and 12ft 9in rods around 460 to 550 grains, the 13ft 9in rods from 460 grains in the 7/8wt up to about 710 grains in the 8/9wt, and the 14ft 6in and 15ft 1in rods from 600 to 910 grains depending on head length. For a traditional integrated line, the Gaelforce Equalizer Spey Fly Line - 54ft is the rod maker's own match and the line Gaelforce lists on more Destination models than any other, running 462 through 710 grains across the 11ft 9in, 12ft 9in, 13ft 9in and 14ft 6in rods. On the two longest rods you can also step up to the Gaelforce Equalizer Spey Fly Line - 63ft, which covers 600 through 848 grains with a longer head, the length that suits a progressive rod with an unhurried sweep. When the water is high or cold and you need a tip and a big fly, the Gaelforce ESP Skagit Patriot Shooting Head runs 450 through 650 grains and is listed by Gaelforce against every single model in this range, from the 11ft 3in switch at 450gr up to the 15ft 1in at 650gr. It is a head rather than a full line, so pair it with a running line; the Gaelforce Equalizer Shooting Fly Line - ESL is the matched option. For the 11ft 3in switch and the 11ft 9in fished short, the Gaelforce Equalizer ESSS Switch & Short Spey Line is the shorter headed answer, an integrated 33ft head that Gaelforce lists at 380gr and 425gr on the switch and 470gr on the 11ft 9in.
