# Tenkara rods



## fishreaper

I've come up to Utah for the last few days to tour Utah State and we may have made our way to Powder Mountain. However, while in Ogden, I came into a sporting shop that sells tenkara fishing rods. The brand I believe is TenkaraUSA. They seem pretty awesome, and would fit well in a dorm room and hiked up a mountain, collapsing up pretty tight despite being 14 feet long (less than 2-2.5 feet I believe. Has anyone had any experiences with them? They seem pretty promising and the shop assistant seemed pretty sure about them, but he was of course in the business of selling them. What's up with Tenkara?


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## wyogoob

They've been around for quite some time. 

I use them backpacking lately; they weigh nothing, there's no reel, and when you're up in the high country who cares what your fly cast is like.

Most of the models are not made for large fish.

The guy that runs TenkaraUSA gave a presentation at one of our TU meetings this past year and took a bunch of our members, that don't have real jobs, out fishing......pretty cool.


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## fishreaper

If it has the Goob seal of approval it can't possibly be too bad. I'd love to learn to truly flyfish, but this seems like another pretty cool way to get around with less hassle.


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## wyogoob

fishreaper said:


> If it has the Goob seal of approval it can't possibly be too bad. I'd love to learn to truly flyfish, but this seems like another pretty cool way to get around with less hassle.


They are not for everybody. It's a completely different kind of casting that takes some practice. I was raised using cane poles. These things are fancy-dancy cane poles with superfine tip sections. A furled leader is best.

Madonafly is well versed in Tenkara and she also makes great furled leaders. Hope she posts up.

If you're hiking and want to take a rod just along for subsistence fishing they are the only way to go.

I think I have 4 of them, 2 of which are identical 11 1/2 footers, a shorter one and then a real long one that I haven't used yet. They are a little tough to use in the wind so I squeeze a BB-size split shot on the end of the line with a nymph or wet fly tied about 10" above it. If the split shot gets hung up it will just slide off the line.


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## Wind In His Hair

I experienced a bit of tenkara style fishing when I was in Japan about 10 years ago. As a westerner, it was so strange to me to see people fishing without reels. Their traditional flies are also tied backwards from the way we're used to. I remember watching some of the older men and how graceful and precise their technique was. True masters of the craft for sure. I was able to land a few small fish, but the big ones got away. I didn't quite get the finesse down pat during my stay. A tenkara rod would be real nice for some of those hikes into the Uintas.


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## Wind In His Hair

If the tenkara style isn't for you, Cabela's has 6-piece pack fly rods that have sections 18" or less.


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## mightybowhunter

Tenkara is fun. I have also found that this is a very nice fly rod to use for teaching kids about fly fishing.


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## madonafly

Thanks Wyo. I have the AYU II a 13'er. Lately I have been in Carp mode so the Tenkara is waiting patiently for Uintas.
Such a cool style of fishing. Like the Flossing style where the fly literally dances on the water. You can of course nymph as well.
It is enough of a difference to actual fly fishing to keep it interesting. I watched a video of Joan Wulff with one. While she loved the simplicity, she had no idea what to do with her left hand,...sadly I have an adjustment period for that reason..LOL
The actual Tenkara flies are going to look a little different, but to be honest, you can use any fly with them. 
I would say that a Tenkara is more a SECOND choice though.


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## goonsquad

So, I'm now interested in this... 
Is casting any different, how about presentation of a dry?


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## wyogoob

Casting overhead requires some practice. Like I said before I grew up using a cane pole and always cast them with an underhand "lob" so I usually underhand cast a nymph with a Tenkara. That is unacceptable to a die-hard Tenkara person, but what the heck, it works for me. I rarely use dry flies with a Tenkara.

The wind can kick your butt, so try a furled leader.

See this video:
http://www.tenkarausa.com/video.php

I like the Tenkara rod for Illinois crappie and bluegills using 1/64th to 1/100th ounce jigs.

.


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## madonafly

goonsquad said:


> So, I'm now interested in this...
> Is casting any different, how about presentation of a dry?


These rods are 10 foot and longer. You will be dapping , more important......ROLL CASTING! I have never done an over head, but my rod is 13' long. I will also use 15' to 16' line leader
The idea is to keep the line off the water.


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## wyogoob

madonafly said:


> These rods are 10 foot and longer. You will be dapping , more important......ROLL CASTING! I have never done an over head, but my rod is 13' long. I will also use 15' to 16' line leader
> The idea is to keep the line off the water.


Yeah, my total line length will be around 4 feet longer than the rod. So with a 13-footer you can comfortably make a presentable 20-foot cast.

.


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## wyogoob

I have used my 13'-6" Tenkara USA. Threw it in my pack while bow hunting the top of the Ham's Fork a couple years ago. I have two 11-foot Iwanas. Use them when I have company. I have a 4th one in the camper, another Tenkara USA, but I can't remember what length it is.

It's wise to use some sort of spool to store the leader on, especially if using a furled leader. The pic below shows a spool on the Amago:


To save weight I leave the rod case at home when backpacking. Tenkara USA rods have caps/plugs that are durable and stay in place when the rods are stuffed in a backpack:


Remember there's a bajillion rod companies that make Tenkara rods. This is just a shameless plug for TenkaraUSA. :grin:

.


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## madonafly

Tenkara USA is a great place to start. I too like their selection more and the weight and action is perfect for me.
I just have the AYU II and I just pack the rod with the line spool in my back pack. No tube. See a fish rise, I am ready...LOL


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## Lonetree

I have been Tenkara fishing since the inception of Tenkara USA. Daniel, the founder of Tenkara USA is a great guy, and responsible for really bringing Tenkara to the masses, here in the US.

Having worked with Daniel, and knowing him a little bit. There are two misconceptions I know he would address here. The first being that these are in some way fancy cane poles. They are not, Daniel grew up cane pole fishing in South America, and the comparison, for a number of reasons, is a sticking point for many of us. The second is that Tenkara is "dapping", I fish shorter furled lines, but that is only because, I am a pretty strict, small stream fisherman. With level line, it is completely possible, I have seen it done a number of times, to work 40 feet of line. You just don't want to be near me when I attempt it :grin: with anything for that matter. 

Roll casting can be done, but the beauty of having the line attached to the end of the rod, is to not need to roll, or mend. With lighter line attached to the tip, you will see less drag, and less line contact on the water, which makes for better presentation. So roll casting is a certainly a method to be used, but in no way a requirement, in fact quite the opposite is true.

If you have not tried Tenkara, give it a try. BTW, the gear shop in Ogden that caries Tenkara USA products is Gear:30


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## madonafly

You are absolutely right and I apologize for the terms I used. Sadly I tried to put it into a familiar term, but it isn't.
The lack of line touching the water, not dapping. I tried FLOSS fishing once and really liked it. Dancing the fly on the water. So, I will leave it at that.
By roll casting again, relating to lifting line up and laying it back down rather than over head. But with keeping as much line off the water, again, not real roll casting in the sense.






Lonetree, you are the one to listen to on this. I have been there since intro to US, but have not had the hands on as much as I would have liked.
Thanks for clearing things up.


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## Lonetree

madonafly said:


> You are absolutely right and I apologize for the terms I used. Sadly I tried to put it into a familiar term, but it isn't.
> The lack of line touching the water, not dapping. I tried FLOSS fishing once and really liked it. Dancing the fly on the water. So, I will leave it at that.
> By roll casting again, relating to lifting line up and laying it back down rather than over head. But with keeping as much line off the water, again, not real roll casting in the sense.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Lonetree, you are the one to listen to on this. I have been there since intro to US, but have not had the hands on as much as I would have liked.
> Thanks for clearing things up.


No worries, I was the one that used to use all the same terminology :mrgreen:

Now, do any of us really have the "hands on" fishing experience that we would like :mrgreen:


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## wyogoob

Ha, ha, ha

Hey, Madonafly slapped me around several years back about the "cane pole" comment. And I knew "dapper" was a no-no.

Daniel did our TU presentation. :grin:

My Tenkara USAs are the most expensive *cane poles* I own.

Silly, kinda like the "suppressor" vs "silencer" thing. I mean, who cares?


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## Lonetree

wyogoob said:


> Ha, ha, ha
> Hey, Madonafly slapped me around several years back about the "cane pole" comment. And I knew "dapper" was a no-no.
> 
> Daniel did our TU presentation. :grin:
> 
> My Tenkara USAs are the most expensive *cane poles* I own.
> 
> Silly, kinda like the "suppressor" vs "silencer" thing. I mean, who cares?


I sell some specialized Tenkara rods, that come from Tenkara USA, and when I first put them on the internet, I called them "poles". And I used a lot of other terminology, that was very inaccurate. The email I received from Daniel was very polite, but long. :grin:

The suppressor vs silencer thing is too funny, and timely. I am building a custom barrel for a guy right now, that is going to accept a silencer, er, uh, I mean suppressor, that email was a little long too. 

Maybe its karmic? ;-)


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## wyogoob

Lonetree said:


> I sell some specialized Tenkara rods, that come from Tenkara USA, and when I first put them on the internet, I called them "poles". And I used a lot of other terminology, that was very inaccurate. The email I received from Daniel was very polite, but long. :grin:
> 
> The suppressor vs silencer thing is too funny, and timely. I am building a custom barrel for a guy right now, that is going to accept a silencer, er, uh, I mean suppressor, that email was a little long too.
> 
> Maybe its karmic? ;-)


ah, ha, ha

Yeah, I'm doing a custom gun now too.

I was always gonna do a thread on cane poles but I figured no one from Utah knew what they were. Cane pole fishing is one of the most popular methods of fishing in the USA, just not popular out here.

Way back when the UWN was a political forum disguised as an outdoor forum I put up a post about a "pistol", an old revolver. It was a great story complete with cool pictures. Kriste, the snipers on here crucified me, "a revolver is not a pistol." blah, blah, blah, on and on they went. Like I said, who cares? So goes internut forums.

.


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## wyogoob

I may start a thread on fishing yo-yos. That'll get em all wound up. :grin:



That's funny right there, I don't care who you are.

.


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## Catherder

wyogoob said:


> I may start a thread on fishing yo-yos. That'll get em all wound up. :grin:.


Hey, weren't you calling me a fishing "yo-yo" when we were fishing the Uintas? -Ov-


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## wyogoob

Catherder said:


> Hey, weren't you calling me a fishing "yo-yo" when we were fishing the Uintas? -Ov-


No it was "fool", you're a fishing fool. :grin:

.


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## Catherder

wyogoob said:


> No it was "fool", you're a fishing fool. :grin:
> 
> .


Actually Goob, it is just plain fool. :der:


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## madonafly

All this talk got me off my rear and drag the Tenkara out. Picked up some Level line from the Tenkara Booth at the Sportsmens Show. Tied some hackle forward dries and some Klinkhamers. Now just need to his a river that doesn't hold 30 lb carp...LOL


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## MarkM

How well would Tenkara fishing work for small brushy streams? I have been fishing a extremely small very brush filled creek this year and it is tough with a regular fly rod. I am using a 7'6" 3 weight but it is still tough to get a good cast with all the willows and brush that surround this creek. I was thinking of getting a shorter 6 foot fly rod but I wonder if a Tenkara rod would be the way to go for this type of fishing.

Mark


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## madonafly

At this year's Wasatch expo, tenkara USA was there with a new one. You can pick your length by pulling out what you need to and locking it in, I believe. Might want to check that out. I have one and use it when every thing is perfect but nothing beats the real/reel thing


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## HuntinFoolUtah

This is off topic, but I assume you mean Utah State University. If so, I will be going in as a freshman this year. We should meet up and go fishing.


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## fishreaper

HuntinFoolUtah said:


> This is off topic, but I assume you mean Utah State University. If so, I will be going in as a freshman this year. We should meet up and go fishing.


Sounds like a plan. only $70 bucks for a non-resident fishing license? I think I can deal with that.


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