# Tenkara



## frankp (Mar 7, 2016)

Anyone here ever do any tenkara fly fishing? Looking to get into it for hiking backcountry and have a book but I haven't cast a fly since I was about 14 years old. (And never was particularly good at it.) 

I'll be using it for fishing in streams and lakes but I'm learning as I go.


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## Cody Killgore (Mar 7, 2016)

I am certainly no fisherman but I bought a tenkara rod in case we found a stream with some fish in it when we were backpacking up in the ozark wilderness. Ended up not having enough time to get it out. I'm hoping to try it out pretty soon though! 

Interested to hear what people say.

Reactions: Like 1


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## JR Custom Calls (Mar 7, 2016)

@gman2431?

Reactions: Like 1


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## gman2431 (Mar 7, 2016)

Tenkera is a riot! Although it is looked down upon by the holier than thou "purist" fly fisherman but that's no biggie and should be none of their concern! 

Don't worry about traditional fly casting as most of those principles won't be applied while doing it. 

Most of your casts will be short and a lot of that is dictated by the length of the tenkera rod. 

One thing you will want to do is be stealthy! Due to limiting length of casting you will really be in close quarters of the fish and need to sneak up on em. After that it's a simple point and shoot type of deal. Just make sure once you get one on to always keep a tight line, you will lose lots of fish if you don't.

Reactions: Like 1


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## frankp (Mar 7, 2016)

The rods I bought (4 of them) are 4 meters long (ish). I'm not sure what type of tippet to buy yet, so I was going to try my hand with a couple of different ones and see what I like. One of the backpacking groups I read had some suggestions for flies based on the particular hiking route so I'll look those up again. I'm thinking we're going to try the rods out in the next week or two here in our local streams and see what we think. I'll let you all know how it turns out.

Reactions: Like 1


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## gman2431 (Mar 8, 2016)

Personally starting with a 5x is a good place to begin. Just make sure to total length of the whole line is as long as the rod, or even shorter, just don't exceed 1.5 times the length of the rod. 

I wouldn't fool around with dry flies and stick to soft hackle or small streamers. 

Make sure to post some pics!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## ripjack13 (Mar 8, 2016)

No reel? How do you land em? Just yank em up onto shore or something? Hold yer arm straight up in the air?....


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## frankp (Mar 8, 2016)

@ripjack13 the line is only about 15 feet long so landing them isn't as big of an issue, as I understand it. Keep the tip high and "walk 'em in" so to speak. Have a net handy, if you're looking to do bigger fish. My expectations are small fish, barely legal, that can be fried up for breakfast on the trail. I'm not looking to score trophies with these things.

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## gman2431 (Mar 8, 2016)

ripjack13 said:


> No reel? How do you land em? Just yank em up onto shore or something? Hold yer arm straight up in the air?....



That's why you don't want a super long line so you can play them right to you. Other than that yea just high stick the rod and grab em!

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## gman2431 (Mar 8, 2016)

Posted at same time as frank!

Reactions: +Karma 1


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## justallan (Mar 8, 2016)

So let me get this straight, someone came up with the idea of marketing a stick with a string tied to it, basically just like what every poor kid in the world used for their first fishing pole and folks are paying for them???
Heck, I'd bet someone could sell water if they package it right.
Actually, I'd bet they would be great for small streams. Have fun and post up some pics.

Reactions: Funny 1


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## gman2431 (Mar 8, 2016)

justallan said:


> So let me get this straight, someone came up with the idea of marketing a stick with a string tied to it, basically just like what every poor kid in the world used for their first fishing pole and folks are paying for them???
> Heck, I'd bet someone could sell water if they package it right.
> Actually, I'd bet they would be great for small streams. Have fun and post up some pics.



Very old technique from Japan I believe.

Reactions: Funny 1


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## gman2431 (Mar 8, 2016)

Lol I'm being serious @justallan

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## justallan (Mar 8, 2016)

With small streams it should work good.
I once bought a kids Snoopy fishing pole for using in thick brush

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## hmmvbreaker (Mar 8, 2016)

justallan said:


> So let me get this straight, someone came up with the idea of marketing a stick with a string tied to it, basically just like what every poor kid in the world used for their first fishing pole and folks are paying for them???
> Heck, I'd bet someone could sell water if they package it right.
> Actually, I'd bet they would be great for small streams. Have fun and post up some pics.


 i have caught many fish with a cane pole.

Reactions: Agree 2


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## frankp (Mar 8, 2016)

I actually learned how to fish (as much as I actually learned) with a cane pole followed by a small spinner and a "pocket fisherman". My grandfather was a big fly fisherman but had already had multiple strokes and was too old to really teach me by the time I was old enough to learn. 

Yes, there are folks paying $150-$300 for these poles, if you can believe that. I paid $20 for 4 of them and I suspect they'll work just fine for my needs. Collapsible, light, small, and easy for the kids to use.

Reactions: Way Cool 1


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## justallan (Mar 9, 2016)

I think my first fishing pole that was "store bought" came from a flea market and was cane also. With being the youngest of 5 kids and multiple cousins, I was generally the last in line, so I'd make do with finding some line and a stick or just find a bunch of line, spend the time to untangle it and tie the pieces together. I'd use whatever hook I found first and use just anything that I could find for bait. I don't remember catching much, but the few that I did made me a hero in my young mind.
Great topic.

Reactions: Like 1


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