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I'm of the same generation mate, and while it's easy to reminisce, I can also remember the not-so-good stuff. Worst of all being the rubbish clothes we wore for winter fishing. I honestly believe I put myself at serious risk back in those days. Boys will be boys though.
Let's face it, most of the tackle was absolutely pants.
In modern angling you can choose your approach and I maintain many of the values I did when I started. But now I have decent gear. Ergo, it's the best of both worlds for me.