If I had to name one tying material that rivaled the versatility and universal fish-catching properties of the venerable peacock herl, it might be Jaimeson’s Shetland Spindrift Yarn. And lately, I’ve been tying the majority of my “working” flies with it. Why? It’s fast and easy to tie with. Just a few wraps of yarn…
Back in 2012, I wrote an article about how I came to know and develop a fondness for a version of Frank Sawyer’s Killer Bug pattern which had become a quick favorite among tenkara anglers: the Utah Killer Bug. The Utah Killer bug was developed by the Tenkara Guides as a modern answer to Frank Sawyer’s…
It’s been a long, dismal winter fishing season for me this year. The few places with open water were crowded with desperate anglers trying to get a drift before their fly snagged a miniature iceberg or jagged ice shelf. Most of the time, I was so frustrated by the crowds, low water, and lack of…
When I first saw the prototypes of the new line spools from NIRVANA On The Fly circulating around Facebook, I didn’t really give them a second thought. They looked exactly like the old Raji Leica I had already been using for years. I wasn’t much interested, but when owner Brent Auger offered to send me…
My mad-scientist friend and tenkara partner-in-crime Dennis Vander Houwen has been tucked away in his wood shop again working on some really interesting projects. A couple of them aren’t ready to be announced to the world just quite yet (soon) but today when we met up on the stream, he gave me a few samples…
In an industry full of “me too” companies, Zen Tenkara has always stood out in my mind as one that isn’t afraid to stray from the pack, break with convention, and do their own thing. Owner Karin Miller’s tagline is “Defining American Tenkara”, and whichever side of the whole “what is and isn’t tenkara” debate…
Unlike the soft hackle of their more famous cousins, the sakasa kebari, tenkara stiff hackle flies use dry fly hackle to create resistance in the water rather than absorb water and undulate fluidly. The fibers still do move somewhat, but their main purpose is to anchor the fly in the water for certain sasoi presentations…
For those of you who are familiar with so-called “universal rod caps”, you know they’re worth having a few on hand for when you inevitably lose your rod plugs to the same vortex that also devours guitar picks and socks. If you’re not, then you’ll be happy you read this. “Universal rod caps” are exactly…
I know most of you probably don’t and might consider it completely unnecessary, but I carry a fishing wallet. It’s where I keep my license, national park pass, emergency cash, business cards and other sundries. Until recently, I was carrying a Travax wallet which works great, but is a little bulky. So in my ongoing…
The Takayama Sakasa Kebari is one of the most iconic patterns in tenkara and has always been a good producer for me. My version incorporates two glass beads at the head which add sparkle and just enough weight to get it down when needed without getting snagged on the bottom the way brass or tungsten…
If you’re in any of the tenkara Facebook groups, you’ve undoubtedly seen all the buzz about the new Ninja rod from Tenkara Tanuki. And now, you have a chance to win one. Well … three chances, actually. You can enter below on my site, on Tenkara Tanuki, and on CastingAround. One winner will be drawn…
I don’t know about you, but right now I’m in fishing limbo. The few days I do get off from work are consumed by life obligations and even if I could get out, my local streams are iced over–with only narrow slots of open water lined with desperate anglers competing to get a drift without…
In case you missed it in my recap of the 2019 Denver Fly Fishing Show, I thought I’d repost my chat with renowned fly fishing author John Gierach. Every year, we bump into each other at our mutual smoking spot just outside the main entrance of the show and talk trash about the industry over…
There are a lot of excellent graphics and animations available that show the knot used to attach your tippet to your level line, but they typically don’t show you what you actually do with your hands and fingers. The Tenkara Knot was shown to me by Daniel Galhardo of Tenkara USA who learned it from Dr.…