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Unfortunately, collecting requires some pretty specific equipment if you plan to do anything outside your county. Fortunately, it’s all pretty cheap and anyone with a fish tank probably has most of the supplies.
The biggest piece of equipment I use is a bag seine. This is the one piece of gear that most people don’t have. I use one from work or borrow one from the school. If you don’t have access to a seine, you can still use a classic dip net with a fine mesh. Things just tend to take longer and you have to be more subtle. Even if you're using a seine, having a dip net is still recommended. When startled, most fish will retreat into obscure holes and divots under roots and other such cover. Seines will either just pass over them, or get snagged on it. Having a dip net lets you get into smaller places. Collecting madtoms is virtually impossible without one, because the little buggers love the tree roots. While I’m talking about nets… a cast net is nice to try from time to time. I find that most cast nets don’t have a mesh size small enough for aquarium fish. Unless you are a pro at using one (I’m certainly not), cast nets are more headaches than useful. They get snagged ALL THE TIME, and if you mess the first throw up, most of the fish are all hidden away, and out of reach during your next attempts. If you have a seine, it’s not worth the effort to even carry a cast net.
You'll see in the picture, I have my seine net. It's pretty standard seine net. The dip net is a welded metal frame, with a rugged, fine mesh netting. After breaking 2 of the old cheap ones, I bit the bullet and got a really nice one. A standard net will work as long as the mesh size is small enough, but you have to remember to be gentle.
Other personal equipment: Wading booties! I would never recommend the classic rubber boot. 75% of my seining is done in mud that easily comes past my knee. Whether it is in estuaries, rivers, creeks, or backwaters, I am always up to my a@$ in mud (literally…). Once mud gets past the top of your rubber boot, you will never find it again. I invested ($20 at walmart) in a pair of neoprene wading booties. They zip snug in front, and they have Velcro at the top, so you don’t slip out of them. They also have a very thick hard sole, so broken glass won’t go through. Nothing makes a trip worse than losing a boot and having to walk through oyster beds barefoot.
The only other equipment necessary is something to keep your fish in. I use a standard 5 gallon bucket, rinsed and clean. I also have a lid so water and fish don’t go all over my car. I’ve modified a cheap lid so I can fit airline tubing through the top. I simply drilled a hole large enough for the tube to fit through, then flamed the hole so a jagged corner won’t cut the tubing. This allows me to run a pump in my back seat, while just the tube and air stone go into the bucket. For long trips, I have a similar lid, but with holes large enough for a powerhead to fit through. I run my little maxijet in a bucket with the diffuser tube attached. This circulates and aerates the water. I only use that when my trip is over 2 hours.
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