Today, I came home to a small stack of packages on my doorstep. If you’re an unapologetic tenkara gear junkie like me, you know what such a site causes: an adrenaline fueled, single-minded mission to find the closest box cutter. Oni Tenkara Line Spools The first package came from a friend in Japan who got me…
DetailsI was recently able to test out the Stone Fly series of rods from Fountainhead and was actually surprised by the quality. By the price, you’d think that they are low end rods–and they are. But in this case, “low end” doesn’t mean “poor quality”. Here are some of my basic observations about this line…
DetailsToday, I got my moose antler tenkara line spool hand carved by Chris from The North River Blog. This spool is a work of art reminiscent of Dr. Ishigaki’s wooden line spool and I just wanted to share a few photos…If you follow my blog, you know that I have a deep appreciation for…
DetailsIf someone asked my what the best all around hackle for sakasa kebari, I would answer (without hesitation) that it’s brahma hen cape from Whiting Farms. Here’s why… Two Hackles for one I think probably the main reason I think this is such great hackle is that every cape really gives you 2…
DetailsThere seems to be a fair amount of confusion among tenkara newcomers when it comes to level lines. People talk about level lines in terms of “lb. test” or “breaking strength” and people don’t seem to get the rating system used in tenkara so I thought I’d make a post to clear it up and…
DetailsThese flies might not win any beauty contests above water, but I’m sure they’ll be sexy enough down below. With some classic color combinations, nice contrast, and a bit of weight and movement, I can’t see how these “plain Jane” sakasa kebari wouldn’t catch fish. Here’s the recipe… Hook: TMC 2499 SPBL # 10 Thread:…
DetailsI recently got some eyeless tenkara hooks from Tenkara Bum and have been having a lot of fun trying out different patterns. But I was curious…are the claims about eyeless hooks having more action in the water true? So, I decided to do a (very unscientific) test and see. I tied two flies with identical materials, put them underwater, and took video so I coud compare.
DetailsI got some eyeless tenkara hooks today from Tenkara Bum: the Owner Yamame and Gamakatsu Amago. They’re both great hooks with interesting bends and finishes that will surely make for some fun experimentation. In Japan, tiers would use a silk cord to form a loop “eye”. I didn’t have any silk cord so I’m…
DetailsIn terms of gear, waders are just about as sexy to me as socks. I’d much rather fawn over new rods, nets, or a really nice wooden fly box. But, waders are a necessary fishing tool. Many years ago, I became a breathable wader convert but I had one complaint–a lack of durability. Even after…
DetailsI’ve been asked by several people to make a video showing the basic steps on how to tie a sakasa kebari so here it is. I chose a very simple pattern for the demo but you could easily substitute a lot of different materials to create a wide variety of patterns.
Here’s another quick video clip from the Denver Fly Fishing Show of Daniel Galhardo breaking down the basic tenkara casting stroke. Sorry for the bad audio. It’s hard to get good sound at a trade show without a lapel mic. Plus, the lighting at the show was horrible. While the quality might not be great,…
DetailsThis weekend, I sat in in a cabin next to a wood burning stove with the Arkansas River not 20 yards away from me. I brought my Yamame and Ito hoping to get some fishing in but it was not meant to be. The winds howled, rattling the wood stove chimney and everything else in…
Details
