Quote Originally Posted by Kaboom1 View Post
Thank you C M for the response. Fairly typical for some folks to take a simple concept and turn it into something it isn't. Happens all the time.

Brad
Too true, Kaboom. And I think fly fishermen especially have a hard time leaving simple things simple. My vest is proof.

I mostly use a rod length line for small stream Tenkara, but I often carry a longer line and use it for fishing lakes. I don't need to hold the line off the water in lakes, and the extra length helps. An extra Tenkara line weighs nothing and costs little. It's handy when I'm hiking into a high country lake and fish creeks along the way.

Actually, you can hold more than a rod length out of the water, even on an upstream cast. The line must be light, and you need some type of "anchor". A sunken fly and some tippet in the water provides enough resistance which allows you to hold some extra line up. This is somewhat like Euro nymphing where you lead the fly downstream with your line at an angle to the water. With a light fly, you can't do this very long, so the Tenkara gurus often use very short drifts.

Slow runs or low water with spooky fish are another good spot for long lines. Although you can't hold much line off the water, light Tenkara lines fall very gently to the surface for a stealthy presentation. An alternative to a 3 weight western with a very long leader.