Tenkara Quiz
Are you a tenkara newbie or a tenkara know it all? Take our quick quiz to find out. Test your tenkara knowledge with this 20-question quiz. It’s fast, fun, and offers absolutely no prizes for winners. What else could you ask for? (Except prizes).
Tenkara Quiz
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Question 1 |
What is the English translation of "tenkara"?
"from heaven" | |
"fly fishing" | |
"mountain bliss" | |
"flowing water" |
Question 2 |
Early tenkara practitioners were mostly...
Aristocrats | |
Samurai | |
Poor farmers and commercial fisherman | |
the Yakuza |
Question 3 |
What were traditional tenkara rods made from?
Green willow branches | |
Sakura branches | |
Split bamboo | |
Hollow bamboo |
Question 4 |
Which of the following is a char (not trout) that swims the mountain streams of Japan?
Yamame | |
Iwana | |
Amago | |
Hane |
Question 5 |
In mythology, who is the Japanese god of fisherman?
Amaterasu | |
Sakana | |
Shinto | |
Ebisu |
Question 6 |
How many "colors" of tenkara are there?
3 | |
6 | |
10 | |
12 |
Question 7 |
A tenkara level line with a diameter of 0.14" would correspond to which number in the Japanese line rating system?
# 3 | |
# 3.5 | |
# 4 | |
# 4.5 |
Question 8 |
What is a tenkara net called?
Tamo | |
Sumo | |
Sapporo | |
Ito |
Question 9 |
How many compartments does Dr. Ishigaki's fly box have?
3 | |
4 | |
5 | |
6 |
Question 10 |
"Zenmai" is a type of dubbing used in some tenkara flies that comes from which flora?
Bamboo | |
Cherry Blossom | |
Fern | |
Seaweed |
Question 11 |
What of the following would be the best all around tippet size to use to prevent the tip of your tenkara rod from breaking on very large fish or snags?
1X | |
2X | |
3X | |
5X |
Question 12 |
Which knot is typically used to attach a traditional furled tenkara line to the rod?
Clinch knot | |
Girth hitch | |
Surgeon's loop | |
Bimini twist |
Question 13 |
What do the majority of tenkara anglers in Japan fish with?
Dry flies | |
Wet flies | |
Streamers | |
Bait |
Question 14 |
Which of the following tenkara rod ratings is considered the "fastest" or "stiffest" action?
5:5 | |
6:4 | |
7:3 | |
8:2 |
Question 15 |
Which of the following is an example of a tenkara dry fly?
Sakasa kebari | |
Fujioka kebari | |
Gujo kebari |
Question 16 |
What were traditional tenkara lines made from?
Silkworm gut | |
Braided cotton fiber | |
Horse tail | |
Geisha hair clippings |
Question 17 |
In tenkara, what is the typical method used to sink flies?
Add splitshot | |
Cast further upstream or just above whitewater at the head of a pool | |
Cast as aggressively as possible into the water causing the fly to dart down into the water with more force | |
Add saliva to the fly to help it break the surface tension of the water more easily |
Question 18 |
What is the name of the cord at the end of a tenkara rod that you attach the line to?
Unagi | |
Ayu | |
Lilian | |
Kawa |
Question 19 |
When casting a tenkara rod, most experts recommend that you...
Cast with your arm fully extended to get the maximum reach possible | |
Cast exactly the same as you would cast a Western fly rod | |
Cast with your arm as close to your body as possible | |
Cast in a wider 4 O'clock/8 O'clock motion |
Question 20 |
The "bow and arrow cast" is used in which situation?
Trying to sink your fly in faster water | |
Making a more delicate presentation | |
Just looking cool | |
Delivering your fly into tight spots like under low hanging vegetation |
Once you are finished, click the button below. Any items you have not completed will be marked incorrect.
There are 20 questions to complete.
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About Me
Jason Klass is a former fly fishing guide who now exclusively fishes Tenkara for trout in the streams and lakes of Colorado...Read More
Thanks Jason, cool quiz, great friday night entertainment
Nice… and now am going back to do some home work.
Missed 4. One a no brainer and the other 3 I just flubbed on. Thx for the fun. Tj
Hopefully my fishing will be better on my next trip after Thanksgiving than my results of 9 of 20.
Thanks for the quiz. Just finished a “continuing ed class” for our business and seems that I need to pursue more for my hobby…
Not sure what is meant by the “colors” of tenkara – what’s that about?
17/20. I need to pay closer attention to the good Dr.’s fly box the next time. Fun quiz!
I got 18 out of 20 but several correct answers were guesses.
Hey, guesses count!
Hi Anthony,
In Japan, there are several different variations of tenkara styles, flies, etc. that are mostly regional. These are apparently called the “10 colors” of tenkara. I’ve seen this referenced on the TenkaraUSA blog but haven’t really seen a comprehensive list of what the specific differences are between all the different “colors”. It would be interesting to see that. I suspect that in American tenkara, we have 100 colors.
Hrmmm….the real answer to question 11 is not 5x but 7# tippet…that is until as recently as November 3, 2011. The site has been updated to read 5# tippet.
In my opinion, using 7# tippet is well within the strength of tenkara rods.
Thanks for posting a quiz like this. Fun, and informative.
Hi Erik,
Where does it say 7 lb.? On Tenkara USA’s site, it still recommends 5lb. as a mx (5X or thinner):
http://www.tenkarausa.com/about.php?pageid=about
I got 14 out of 20. Not very good. I thought I knew more but the ones I got right were the important ones in my view. I didn’t know the Iwana was a char and I should have known they used horse hair for leaders. Duh! I wanted to say 5X tippet but I know 4X is stated as the largest tippet to use on Tenkara USA. So I wasn’t sure what to say there.
Great Quiz Jason! Very entertaining and informative. Thanks!
Very nice quiz, 14 out of 20…
About the tenkara colors never heard before…
About tippet, 5X may be true for the TUSA iwana, maybe, but for others tha’s not true (i have an yamame), this rod are much stronger than that!
Thanks Blatt! As for the tippet size, If T-USA still says 5X, that’s what I’m going with. I reworded the quiz to talk about the manufacturer’s recommended maximum size rather than the “should” I had before which is more subjective. Anyway, no quiz is perfect I guess but I’m glad you and others are having fun with it!
Sorry Karel–I had to throw a few curve balls in there so the likes of you and Chris wouldn’t ace it blindfolded. LOL.
18/20…I think I did OK but I’m with Anthony I didn’t get the “colors” thing either. I’d like to see how the Bum does. When is the Final exam?
It said 7 # as recently as November 3, 2011.
Looks like the TUSA site has been updated since then.
Good business decision, but I believe tenkara rods can easily handle 7#
I knew I wasn’t crazy.
Go here:
http://www.tenkarausa.com/index.php?cPath=22
“*Use only tippet of 7lbs (~3.5kg) breaking strength or less. *Due to the telescopic nature of the rods, and the fact that we rounded the numbers to have a clean metric-to-English conversion, rod lengths may vary slightly from indicated.
Weird, because on the link I posted above, it says this:
“The tippet used in tenkara fishing should be very thin. They are normally classified as #X, with larger numbers being thinner diameter tippet. We recommend using only tippet of 5lbs breaking strength or less (usually 5X or thinner – 5, 6, 7 or 8X) in order to protect the rod.”
I’ve reworded the question again to avoid confusion.
14/20 not to bad for only one year down of Tenkara. But at least I did learn a few things that I did not know before. One question that was missing though was how to properly release a tree without damaging it. If anyone has a question on that I am an expert at it and would be happy to teach you the technique to make it work so that a tree is released safely and healthy enough to live another day.
Graham,
I have a question. One time, I hooked a tree bad…really bad. While trying to get the hook out, I broke a few of it’s branches. It didn’t look like it was going to make it, so I thought is was better to just put the tree out of it’s misery and chop it down for firewood. Is there anything I could have done in this situation?
Jason, to answer your question the best advice I can give is that it is sometimes best to cut your loses and run. But in your case, without seeing how you had the tree hooked, I can’t be totally sure. I can say that it is best to try and do as little damage as possible. Horsing it is totally unacceptable because this is a living organism and therefore we need to respect the tree the same way we respect a fish. Also it depends on the time of year when you hooked the tree. If the air is warm the tree might be able to recover but it is extremely cold then it is not a good thing for the tree and at that point all I can say that it is really best to make firewood out of the tree since it didnt have a chance to live since you did so much damage to it. Stay warm and hope the park warden does not show up at your front door. If she does, don’t answer the door.
Great quiz, thanks. This is the first bit of information I have been able to find on the traditional way Japanese Tenkara anglers sink their flies. Where can I read more information about fishing with wet flies? Also, do articles on nymphing apply to Tenkara with wet flies? (I am brand-spanking new to tenkara: 2 days, 3 small fish on dry flies.) Finally, please check out my bud’s new blog, “Tenkara Rising”.
Thanks Dax, I’ve added it to my blog roll. Not sure how I missed that site so thanks for calling it to my attention!
Started not to take the test because I did not think that I knew much about Tenkara. Surprised myself by getting 14 of 20. Still have more to learn and am looking forward to it all.
Nice job Larry! To be fair, there are a few curve balls in there.
Just bought a T rid but haven’t used it in anger yet!
12 0f 20. Not bad having only one day of Tenkara fishing under my belt.
woohooo!!!!! 14 out of 20! Not bad considering I don’t even have a rod yet!
Interesting quiz proving a old dog can learn new tricks.
Doesn’t it depend on whether it’s a hatchery tree or a wild native tree?
14-20 not to bad for a newbie….
16/20 and I’ve only had a tenkara rod in my hand since June. I’m happy that the answer to #19 is ‘cast with your arm as close to your body as possible.’ An accident 5 years back froze up my right shoulder and has effectively stopped my traditional fly fishing (can’t get to ’2′). But tenkara is still possible and enjoyable.
19 out of 20, can’t complain about that.
Nice going John!
I missed one out of twenty one. What is the traditional line made out of? I answered “horse tail”. My next guess would be silk worm gut, but I would fish the hell out of some Geisha hair.
JDS
Oops, missed 1 out of 20.
JDSmith
Horse tail is correct. It said you were wrong?
18/20 – missed Dr. Ishigaki’s fly box compartments and I only know line diameters in metric (Pulp Fiction quotes anyone? – “hell no man, they got the metric system there; they wouldn’t know what the f^(* a quarter pounder is”)
LOL. sorry, I should have also listed metric.
What are the right answers to all the ones ,9, that I got wrong? It would be a great category on “Jeopardy”!
Hi Tex, after you take the quiz, it tells you what the correct answer are. Did it not?
Der. That’s why I got so many wrong. Now I see! Bet I do better if I take it again!
12 out of 20 and half were guesses.
Hey!
16/20! Not bad for someone who’s only been fly fishing for 2 years and used his tenakra rod once! Of course, it does help being of an academic bent and reading everything possible. I need to get out fishing more….
Fun Quiz. It’s amazing what one learns stalking the interwebs a bit. My friend was kind, or unkind, enough to let me use his Tenkara rig a couple of time, I’m so hooked it’s pathetic. I’m getting myself a Tenkara rod as soon as my tax return rolls in. One thing I really like about Tenkara is that there is some “lore” surrounding it, that is very appealing.