I had the idea that I would use my tenkara rig for dry flies, then a traditional rig for nymphing, could switch back and forth.

The fish were rising, so I was using the tenkara rig. And I swear I could not cast that thing at all and get a decent presentation. But I kept trying and trying. There was a little bit of wind, not a lot, and my level line could not deal with it.

Finally I decided to switch to the traditional rig and caught a fish within 5 minutes.

I didn't touch the tenkara rod after that. Maybe the tenkara is better suited for high-sticking on smaller bodies of water. Or maybe I just suck at it.

Often wondered about Tenkara. Having thrown copious dollars away on other equipment, I figured that this trend needed more of my money. Perhaps the AGE thing finally crept in and even though I would surreptitiously check out the Tenkara sites hoping my resolve would falter and I would be sucked into yet another expensive way to not catch fish, somehow I resisted. Truly that is unusual because I can resist everything but temptation.

Shifty, I owe you a debt of gratitude! Finally an honest man, not some You Tube hack that hooks and lands hump back whales on a Tenkara on the first cast. I think you have exorcised me of the compulsion to try one of these. I can see myself standing on the edge of the stream with thoughts of What the Hell was I thinking buying this thing!

Thanks for the truth!!!!!!!!!!

I've caught fish with tenkara at LMFR. I like it fine, but it just wasn't working for my purposes on the river. I like the simplicity of it. And I generally have faith that I can get a better drag free presentation with it. I'm not giving up on tenkara.

The other thing is that there are different kinds of level line for different purposes, just like fly line. I probably didn't have the right setup for the task at hand.

If it makes sense geographically, I would recommend you try 87flyfisher's intro to tenkara course. That will give you a pretty good idea if tenkara makes sense for you.

Tenkara is fun and has a place. I met a guy st Silver Creek a week ago that had a 20' tenkara rod! He crushed thr Trico, callibaetis morning hatch. The game In the morning is size 22-26 dry flies with a drag free drift and fish not seeing you. I tend to use for tight line nymphing and have a 4 wt rod for dry flys.

Were you using a flourocarbon or mono level line? If so, they don't work that well for dry flies. You need something like the Katana line from Moonlit Tenkara or a traditional furled or braided Tenkara line to do well with dry flies and bigger water.

87Flyfisher said:

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Were you using a flourocarbon or mono level line? If so, they don't work that well for dry flies. You need something like the Katana line from Moonlit Tenkara or a traditional furled or braided Tenkara line to do well with dry flies and bigger water.

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5x mono

You have strayed far from the path I showed you Grasshopper.

The level line is the standard stuff that tenkara USA sells. I just looked at it. Orange "4.5". I was talking about my tippet that was mono 5x.

Ok. I just use that type of level line on windy days and prefer the furled lines for everything else. I retract my statement about straying from the path.

It was still funny....and you will get more stars for that one.

obligatory

shiftyandquick said:

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87Flyfisher said:

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Were you using a flourocarbon or mono level line? If so, they don't work that well for dry flies. You need something like the Katana line from Moonlit Tenkara or a traditional furled or braided Tenkara line to do well with dry flies and bigger water.

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5x mono

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The numbers go that low?

So basically we are talking about fancy cane pole fishing?

Tenkara rods are going to be longer than a cane pole. The rods flex and load up and can cast line.

I think in certain situations it is easier to get a good drift with tenkara.

It's cheaper (no reel, no fly line). It's simpler. It's easier to transport (telescoping rod).

But on the river, I was finding with my line, I couldn't cast effectively to where I wanted. With dry flies.

Gotcha. Makes sense.

They allow you a huge reach and no fly line on the water. The drifts are better and with no line, many anglers can get a quicker hook set. They are incredible for tight line nymphing due to length and again, you can set almost immediately when your indicator moves (colored sighter material, coiled mono, wool, or just watch the fish take the nymph etc). I love tenkara on small streams for small fish. I don't tenkara a lot and absolutely love fly fishing for big trout with small flys. Tenkara falls apart for me when big fish bite. Many will throw the rod when they can't play a fish then chase the rod down stream. A gentleman I met 2 weeks ago actually had a 20' rod that he used successfully for bigger fish.

I have used tenkara to help teach new anglers how to fly fish. It is a great tool to help them get some success without dealing with line management, reel etc. I hear a lot of people bash tenkara that haven't tried it, give it a whirl! It isn't for everybody and definitely not for all streams.