Tenkara ... What?

[Fishingfiend]

I am sorry ... I really don't want to upset anybody. But I have got to get this off my chest.
What is all this hoopla over Tenkara? I guess I was really a trend setter in the 60's and didn't even know it. But back then, we just called it jigging a fly with a cane pole. There are some major differences that I don't like. With the cane pole, we always used a stout line, and the line length was usually no longer than the pole. This allowed one to quickly land a big fish for releasing if desired.
With these Tenkara poles and the light leaders, you have to hand line the fish in. If you catch a large fish, you'll have to exhaust the fish before you can bring it to you by hand. I fear this will result in more fish kills due to over exertion.

Am I the only one who sees this ... or am I somehow mistaken?

[billhouk]

Except for steelhead, I find myself hand lining more often than reeling a fish in regardless of using a Tenkara rod, or a rod and reel. It is pretty hard to reel up 10, 15, 20 feet of stripped line when a fish takes the fly. You adjust the size of the Tenkara rod to the size of fish you expect to catch. The light tippet guarantees a fish bigger than you can handle breaks off before you exhaust it. This should be true for Tenkara or rod and reel. Good catch and release techniques would have us protect the fish until it is capable of swimming away on its own regardless of equipment used. (See other threads on catch and release mortality...)

So, based on my experience, I don't see much diference between raising a Tenkara rod up and swinging the line to you as opposed to high sticking a rod and reel, stripping in line and eventually taking the line in hand to land the fish.

And, to top it off, I was fishing with a cane pole last week, too. They're made of fiberglass now...

[NewTyer 1]

Back in your day, they never practiced catch and release

[narcodog]

Your mistaken. This subject has been beat to death. I have landed trout to 24 lnches and released them successfully. There are similarities but you are using a rod that weighs about 2 ounces not one that weighs two pounds.

[JohnScott]

It's pretty easy to become informed. Just follow the link and read what a lot of inexperienced people ( like me, at the time ) and a lot of experienced people had to say about Tenkara.

http://www.flyanglersonline.com/bb/s...?37309-Tenkara

As indicated above, the subject has been beat to death ( almost, anyway ) and it's not likely this thread that you have started will take on any life. So it would probably be more productive to go where you can get some answers to your questions.

John

[Betty Hiner]

"like me, at the time"


"it's not likely this thread that you have started will take on any life. So it would probably be more productive to go where you can get some answers to your questions."
He DID come to the right place ... he's here isn't he???!!!??? Don't put him down for asking.

I'm sorry fishingfiend ... I failed to welcome you to FAOL! Glad you're here! Ask ANYTHING you want, about anything ... some of us will surely answer! New guy brings the donuts!

[Uncle Jesse]

Since we are discussing rudimentary Tenekara, several years ago, I cut off about 10 ft. of level fly line added a leader and tied onto an extendo fiberlass pole. What is the difference in that and a Tenekara pole (rod).

[JohnScott]

"like me, at the time"


"it's not likely this thread that you have started will take on any life. So it would probably be more productive to go where you can get some answers to your questions."
He DID come to the right place ... he's here isn't he???!!!??? Don't put him down for asking.

I'm sorry fishingfiend ... I failed to welcome you to FAOL! Glad you're here! Ask ANYTHING you want, about anything ... some of us will surely answer! New guy brings the donuts!

I didn't "put him down."

I directed him to a thread on the FAOL Bulletin Board that will give him much more information than he can possibly get on a new thread.

John

P.S. Glad you found something to laugh about.

[Fishingfiend]

Okaaaayyyy!!! I've gotten all kinds of answers, and thank you all for helping me "get informed". I simply must respond to some of the above, or I won't have any self respect left.
Bill Houk, I agree with most of your answer. However, the videos I watched, showed the angler with line about twice the length of the rod. He would get a hold of the line and the hand over hand the fish in. Fortunately for him, or the fish, everything he caught was small. If I tried to do that with a largemouth, I'd lose the fish or get a line burn that would take a week to heal.

Newtyer1 ... Scott. While I do admit we kept a lot of fish ... My Dad always taught me to only keep what I could eat that day. We would only start keeping enough to freeze when winter started threatening. So, I have been doing catch and release my entire life.

Betty, thank you for the welcome. I have been "message boarding" and chatting for about 15 years now. I have long since learned to NEVER take anything personal online. I can't be offended online ... and rarely can I in person. Thank you for defending me from JohnScott, though ...

JohnScott ... I tried going through the Tenkara posts, but there were way too many. I gave up after failing to see reasons why it is such a phenomenon. Truly, I am not attempting to change anyone's mind ... if you like it, more power too you. I just don't get it, myself. Seeing a good fly rodder sail a long line through the air is a beautiful thing. Whipping a line a few feet at the end of a cane pole is ... reminds me of my childhood, that's all.

In closing, please please please ... do not take offense at anything I am typing. I am a very happy-go-lucky kind of guy and very little that spills from my mind is serious.

[JohnScott]

Bottom line, from my point of view, is that Tenkara rods, which are quite different from cane poles and possibly very different than "an extendo fiberglass pole" mentioned by Jesse ( but I'm not sure exactly what an extendo fiberglass pole is and I have no inclination to find out ), is that Tenkara rods offer an option for certain situations where they have clear advantages over conventional fly angling gear. Perhaps if you had read further in the linked thread you would have picked up on that ??

As to Tenkara being a phenomenon, if it is, and that is your word, Fishingfriend, and not mine, that is likely due to the recent availability of Tenkara gear. Probably like the automobile was a phenomenon shortly after it became available to a public that was used to the horse and buggy.

I don't think anyone around here is trying to change anyone's mind. Just folks making information about various experiences available to those interested in using the resources.

John