Autumn On The EB

Autumn On The EB

Thursday, March 17, 2016

Tenkara Revisited and the Western Ma. Fly Fishers Expo

And never fall into that statistical macho trap that's so prevalent in fly fishing these days. If you keep score, you can be beaten, but if you refuse to compete you can leave the impression that you have long since risen above that kind of cramp. When someone says to you, "I caught forty-eight trout and ten of them were twenty inches or better. How'd you do?" say, "Yeah, we got some. Couple of nice ones too." John Gierach


When I first introduced myself to Tenkara (Japanese for "from heaven")a few years ago I was taken in by its pure simplicity and it's minimalist approach. Let's face it, the collecting of fly fishing weapons is not driven by necessity but by marketing and clever marketing at that. Owning rods from 0 to 6wt in every length to fish for TROUT is being over loaded. Tenkara wipes the slate clean. A rod, a line and a fly. Perfect!

Tenkara was developed for small streams. I consider the Swift a small stream as are most in this State. It is not your best choice for larger rivers (Millers, EB, Ware, Deerfield) but there are sections of these rivers that contain ample pocket water which is a collection of small streams within a larger stream. My wife has become pretty good at Tenkara pocket picking on the EB and she had never fly fished before!

Now it seems that the winds of marketing have swept over Tenkara Land. Where a 12 ft rod has been proven to be the only rod that you will ever need you are now given the choice of multiple lengths and weights. All of a sudden you can't fish a 15 ft mountain stream with that 12 ft rod. You need an eight footer or a ten footer or a six footer.......!!!

Resist the temptation at least for a few seasons. Nobody would suggest that break into fly fishing by purchasing rods from 2wt to 6wt at the start. Keep it simple. As a 5wt rod covers most situations a 12 ft trout action Tenkara rod will do the same. Buy a level line (hint: mono or floro with a diameter of .014 should do) the length of the rod, 4 ft of 5x leader and some soft hackles. You are equipped to handle all small streams and at least the first 20 ft of the larger rivers. This strategy has worked for me.

I also teach this form of fly fishing. It gives you a chance to "try it out" before you buy ANOTHER piece of fly fishing stuff!!

I belong to a GREAT group of hardcore fly fishers called the Western Mass. Fly Fishermen. This group will be having it's annual expo on Monday March 21 2016 at the Ludlow Elks on Chapin Street in Ludlow. The doors open at 6:30 and you will be greeted with product booths, great tying demos, a giant raffle and Dan Trela will be our speaker focusing on the Upper Connecticut River and Montana's Bighorn!

Tickets are only $7:00 at the door. I will see you there!!!

Ken

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Tenkara - Thank you for making this a bit clearer for me.

Jack

Millers River Flyfisher said...

Jack,

Tenkara should be clear and simple.

Ken

Brk Trt said...

I really love the simplicity of Tenkara.

Millers River Flyfisher said...

Brk Trt,

It's very effective too!

Ken

Herm said...

Ken,

I understand the attraction of Tenkara fishing - it has a Zen-like simplicity and can be very effective.

Personally, however, I'm very grateful that God invented reels ;-)

(I've watched Blue Ribbon Flies videos of Craig Matthews fishing Tenkara - it sure seems awkward trying to get fish in ...)

Best,

Herm

Millers River Flyfisher said...

Herm,

I like trout reels especially light weight click & pawl reels. Simplicity!!

Tenkara works best with 8 to 12 inch trout that are found in streams where the average size is 8 to 12 inches. Bigger trout (many Swift Trout) require a different technique that may not have been displayed correctly with that video. I've landed many larger fish solo or with the help of a fishing companion.

Ken

Mike C said...

I fished the Quinnepoxet today. I found one nice hold over brown. This was my first brown on the Quinnie. There was quite a bit of small black stones flies maybe size 18 or 20. On one rock amongst the black stones I also saw a much larger insect maybe size 16 and light in color (may tan). It wasn't holding its wings flat on its back but sort of angled. However its shape looked more like a stonefly than a caddis. Do stoneflies always hold their wings flat. Is there a light color stone fly this time of the year?

Mike

Millers River Flyfisher said...

Mike,

Most stones will hold their wings flat but a larger light colored stone this time of year is rare. Caddis hold their wings back in a tent shape. Also, good to see that you don't keep the rivers you fish a state secret.

Ken

Mike C said...

Thanks Ken
I figured in the past you have asked for reports from other rivers so I thought I'd share. I took some pictures of the insect but unfortunately they came out blurry. I wonder if they would still be helpful to share.

Mike

Millers River Flyfisher said...

Mike C,

Keep the reports coming and send the insect photo too. Thank you for the Quinnie report especially because you NAMED the river which is something some reporters refuse to do.

Ken