What attracts people to Tenkara fly fishing?
Greg
Simplicity.
Bob9
One of the best systems to fish s/h’s and nymphs.
Different people are attracted to different aspects of tenkara, but for me the primary attraction is that the line is so light that you can keep more of it off the water’s surface, which greatly reduces drag and gives you much better drifts. I also like that the fish pull against the rod rather than the drag so any fish that would normally take line puts up a huge fight. I prefer the softer rods, so even a small fish can put a good bend in the rod. Another thing I like is the portability. The rod collapses down to just 16-22" depending on the model, weighs just a few ounces and you don’t have to pack a reel. And I really, really like not having to deal with fly line around (and under) my feet. For me the bottom line is that I catch more fish and have more fun doing it.
For me the attraction is (1) the simplicity (2) portability (3) it’s just plain fun and (4) low cost.
To expand: (1) It is much easier, simpler, faster to gear up, get on the water and fish. No spending a valuable resource (time) string up the rod, etc etc - it takes seconds to take the rod out of it’s tube, attach the leader and tie on a fly and get to fishing. I’ve actually measured how much faster I can get in the water and included breakdown time - and I get just about 20 extra minutes fishing time. To me, that’s a lot.
(2) Portability - I can keep a Tenkara rod in the car, in my suitcase along with leader and a good selection of flies in very very little space. I can throw one in a backpack when out on an “exploration hike” and if I find fishy looking water, break out the tenkara gear and test the water! I just went to Florida with my gear and it took up so little space my wife thought I had left my fishing gear at home! Win win for me.
(3) The fun factor is something I don’t see much written about - but on my first outing with Tenkara my son came upstream to check on me. I didn’t know but he sat on the bank for several minutes watching me. He said that he hadn’t seen me grinning so much in years. I was just plain having fun and isn’t that what this hobby/sport is all about?
Oh - and (4) - low cost. You can get a complete “tenkara outfit” for about $200 and that’s all you need plus a few flies - literally a few flies. I’ve fly fished for so many years with a rod that cost x and a reel that cost y and I just saw what a new fly line costs - almost $100 - you gotta be kidding me! I can’t remember how many people have been interested in getting into fly fishing and then find out what it costs and walk away. I’ve since purchased an extra Iwana and will use that to teach / introduce folks to fly fishing and I’m just waiting for that teenager/kid or single parent or college kid that oh-so-wants to get into fly fishing but can’t and then gift them the rod, line and flies and I won’t be afraid to tell Momma what I did. Remember - it’s supposed to be fun and Tenkara has made it fun for me again.
Craig Matthews would add that when its below freezing you don’t have the fly rod guides freezing up.
I confess I am not involed in tenkara
I can see that there is room in my collection for all of the reasons given in your responses. Given the investment that I already have, what is the bare minimum cost to get into a light weight setup suitable for panfish?
Within its limitations, Tenkara is a very simple, straightforward, and fun way to fish. With the introduction of more and more rods, the limitations are not so narrow as they were just a couple years ago, but they are still significant.
In some situations, Tenkara rods, lines, and terminal tackle have significant advantages over conventional fly angling gear. In other situatons, they have significant disadvantages compared to conventional gear.
Expense wise, you can get started and maybe never invest much more than well under $100. Or you can spend a bunch and keep on piling up expense, just like with conventional gear, if that is what you like to do.
Check out Chris’ website www.tenkarabum.com for reviews and prices on a lot of the equipment that is presently available.
John
Thanks to a shoulder injury I now have trouble with casting a fly rod. But I can cast a tenkara rod quite a bit more easily. Plus tenkara seems to me to be much more an intimate experience with the end of your line and thus the fish. It brings me back to dunking worms when I was a kid (ok, I still do it sometimes) with an old bamboo pole that had maybe been in the family for a few generation before. I know a many don’t like to compare it to that, but to me it is a similar feeling.
For panfish/bluegill try a 9 foot Soyokaze, it’s a blast! But you can buy quite a few other longer and yet inexpensive rods on the Net like the Fountainhead.