Took the Plunge

[wayneb]

Hi All;

Just recieved my 10'3" Daiwa Tanago rod from CM_Stewart Saturday, I saw the rod at the SowBug round up and just had to have one! I'm going to try it out Monday on a pond at work full of bluegills that need thinning.

I'm totally fascinated by the Tenkara style of flyfishing.

Wayneb

[Gig]

Sounds great, good luck and tell us how you go

[CM_Stewart]

Wayneb, if you have a pond at work that has bluegills that need thinning, I want to work where you do.

So how did it go?

[wayneb]

Hi Chris;

It's actually an old clarifier tank that we use for emergency firefighting water. A while back, we drained out a sediment basin prior to cleaning and there were some bluegill in it. We felt sorry for them and threw them in the clarifier tank. they grew to enormous size before they bred. Now there's a ton of them that I catch and release in the local creek every spring.

The Tanago rod was perfect for this. Unfortunately I left my line at home but had a 9ft leader with me and substituted that. The leader was a bit stiff but worked. The rod is very sensitive, I was basically sight fishing and was able to set the hook before the fish could swallow it deep, most were lip hooked something I'd never been able to accomplish with bluegills in the past. The fish were 4-5 inches long and put a good bend in the rod but it has the ability to deal with much stronger fish.

Overall I'm quite pleased with the rod and can't wait to try it with a proper line setup and on the quarry I originally intended it for brook trout in remote creeeks.

Wayneb

[CM_Stewart]

I am pretty sure you will like it. I was able to get out Sunday and fish with the shorter ones a bit (the first time I'd had a chance to fish with the 9' and 6'6" rods). The 10'2" and 9' rods are very capable rods for modest sized trout and I'm sure your 10 footer will easily handle anything you catch in your brookie streams. The 7'8" and 6'6" rods are fun with 4-8" fish but they have such a short casting range that you have to be part heron.

[EdD]

<snip> The 7'8" and 6'6" rods are fun with 4-8" fish but they have such a short casting range that you have to be part heron.

Sounds like Cary Hiner needs a small, Tenkara rod. I don't think I've ever seen such an intense, heron-like angler.


Ed