There are several theories regarding the origins of tenkara. It may have been imported from China, it may have passed through the lowlands in the hands of samurai and up to the mountains, or it may have originated independently. Personally, I have no reason to believe it didn’t originate independently. The mountain folk in Japan had an abundance of fish in their reach, and plenty of streams around them. The abundant bamboo in some areas made bamboo rods an obvious tool of choice, and what is perhaps one of the most logical steps towards fly-fishing, creating artificial flies that could be used over and over again to catch fish in small running streams was by far much more efficient than using bait (tie one fly and catch several fish v. look for bait, catch bait, change bait, catch one fish…). One of the theories for the origins of tenkara is the “samurai tenkara theory”. It’s the theory most westerners are quickly drawn to because it brings to mind the poetic image of a samurai with a fishing rod as substitute for a weapon. I think it is plausible, and cool, but based on one counterargument, presented here, it may not be the most likely origin.

It is known that the samurai, one of the highest classes in Japanese society at times, fished for Ayu and other fish found in the lower flatlands of the country. They even used this method of fishing as a martial arts practice substitute at times of peace and quiet. It is also known that the samurai sometimes used flies; intricate patterns made with several types of feathers and silk wound around bent needles. As the samurai tenkara theory goes, their method of fishing may have found its way to the high mountains of Japan where it was adapted by locals to small, fast running streams and became tenkara.

Before visiting Japan…

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Happy New Year!

Today Midcurrent sent out a newsletter with a topic named “Fearless Fly Fishing Predictions – 2010“. No one explicitly said 2010 was going to be the year of tenkara fly-fishing – when newcomers and experienced anglers discover that fly-fishing is really simple and these anglers realize for themselves that the long tenkara rods provide significant advantages to fishing, and that reels are really not necessary in most small stream fishing – but everyone seemed to have these thoughts near their words. We particularly liked the second prediction, by author Lou Ureneck:

“One of the best things about fishing is its resistance to change. Too much technology, too fast, seems an affront to the soul of the sport. So my hope (and prediction) for the New Year is that fishing will find its equivalent to Europe’s slow-food movement — cooking based on local ingredients, prepared slowly and with care for taste and health. A slow-fishing movement would return us to the health of our local streams, fishing deliberately, maybe with a youngster at our side, with cell phone apps and iPod ear plugs safely out of sight. Just a man and a fish, with a rod and a line between.”

Other interesting predictions were:

“…the continued Balkanization, or specialization, or fracturing, or whatever you want to call it, among fly anglers… the various fly-fishing subcultures—tournament bass fishermen, carp anglers, steelheaders, backcountry saltwater fishermen and so on —will continue to define themselves more distinctly and vocally.” – Ted Leeson, Author. He failed to include tenkara anglers in the subcultures, but you are part of a distinct, and shall we say, a very cool group of anglers!

“Trends for trouties: The European proliferation of deadly nymphing techniques will continue to gnaw on Yank rod makers, who after many years of ignoring anything longer than 8 1/2 ft. and 9 ft. rods for regular fishing are going to convince users of the versatility found in longer (9 1/2 on up) equipment.” – Paul Bruun, Columnist and Guide. Huh!

Our prediction is that 2010 will be an awesome year for angling with a rod, line and a fly; when angling will be the simple and relaxing experience we crave, when you don’t need to (though you may still want to) travel far to enjoy pristine waters and wild fish, and perhaps a year of retirement for your underworked reel. This will be a tenkara fly-fishing year for many anglers throughout the world who will enjoy the simplicity and relaxation only tenkara allows.

A couple of days ago a package arrived at my mailbox. As I opened it, I was quite overwhelmed, wowed!, astounded, ecstatic, well you get the picture. A very good tenkara no oto-san, Dr. Ishigaki had sent me a one-of-a-kind find: two volumes of a comic book devoted to tenkara! Wow! is almost all I can say. Thank you Dr. Ishigaki! This is a rare treasure that I will cherish forever.

These books are beautifully illustrated, and with very good content. Take a look at the pictures below.

By Kondansya Comics

If it was not clear that fishing is a vital part of Japanese culture and life by now, then I think the existence of these books will clear any doubt. The two comic books are part of a larger series of comics devoted to fishing. The comics are called “Tsuri kichi Sanpei (Sanpei, a boy crazy about fishing). Volumes 6 and 7 are entirely devoted to tenkara, and are now part of our tenkara museum. These comics were published some 30 years ago. Each volume has about 200 pages of the most beautiful illustrations. Not only are these comics artful and entertaining, but they also have several tips and real fishing knowledge: fly-tying, rod making, native fish, casting and fishing techniques and other knowledge of the world of tenkara.

This series of comics has also been adopted by schools in the education of their young; talking about a way to get kids engaged in reading, and then really into the sport, heh?

Long story short, tenkara just found itself in the hands of some great anglers, one may say “the biggest of big guns” at a gathering in the River Itchen, one of the most famous chalk streams in the UK.

British angling author Peter Lapsley recently discovered tenkara. By chance, the day after he received his tenkara gear, he attended a small gathering of some of Britain’s best and best known fly fishers and angling writers for a day’s grayling fishing on the famous River Itchen. Of course, he took his coolest new toy to the gathering and amused many people with it.

Mr. Lapsley said, “We all tried it, liked it and were intrigued by it; it is a most attractive blend of ancient Japanese tradition with modern materials and technology.”

Neil Patterson, John Goddard, Brian Clarke, Dr Tony Hayter

The gentlemen in the picture are (left to right): Neil Patterson (author of Chalk Stream Chronicle), John Goddard (well-known angling entomologist and designer of numerous trout flies such as the Goddard Caddis), Brian Clarke (fishing editor of UK’s The Times) and Dr Tony Hayter (author of the definitive biography of F.M. Halford and of a future biography of another great angler).

This last weekend Tenkara USA hosted the first tenkara outing in Northern California. And, it was absolutely phenomenal. Leaves were changing colors, weather was cool and crisp, and the fish were biting. We fished 2 streams on Saturday and 2 more streams on Sunday and all were very productive.

Thanks to all who came and made this a memorable weekend! We’ll look forward to the next one.

Following up on Dr. Hisao Ishigaki’s visit to the Catskills in May, we just posted a movie preview of our upcoming movie on Dr. Ishigaki’s visit marking the introduction of tenkara to the US.

During his visit, Dr. Ishigaki did a fly-tying demonstration of the one and ONLY pattern he’s used for almost 10 years, a “sakasa” fly pattern (reversed hackle). He first learned about this fly in a shop in Japan, and after some years of fishing several different patterns was quickly attracted to its simplicity,sparseness, and soon its effectiveness. It’s a very simple and quick fly to tie.

This one-fly approach puzzled many of the present guests, particularly since he expressed his philosophy and theories in an area known for its fly-tiers and the invention of a multitude of fly-patterns. A doctor in the field of vision studies, Dr. Ishigaki bases his theory on the fact that a fish’s vision is very poor, and it will go for anything moving nearby, and also on the fact that despite of only using one fly-pattern he’s continued to catch as many fish as he ever did when using several different patterns. The instincts of a trout won’t allow it to waste an opportunity to grab food.

As Dr. Ishigaki says, in tenkara “it’s all about technique; whether one catches fish or not is entirely up to him, not the gear, not even the fly.” The main appeal of tenkara to Dr. Ishigaki and many other tenkara anglers is its simplicity. He fully embraces the simplicity in fishing with only a rod, line and a fly. But, he takes it further than many dare.

The idea of limiting yourself to only the most basic elements of fly-fishing and fully dedicating yourself to technique and presentation is appealing! This experience really got me thinking, what if I could only carry one fly? Would I still be able to catch fish? It is hard, VERY HARD in fact, to stick with only one fly. I have been trying it, but it takes a level of confidence, or discipline, I don’t yet have.

John Steinback once wrote, “It has always been my private conviction that any man who pits his intelligence against a fish and loses has it coming”. Maybe intelligence also involves selecting the right fly, but, maybe switching flies is just…the easy way out.

One of the main reasons most anglers are attracted to tenkara fly-fishing – whether a tenkara veteran such as Dr. Ishigaki, or any of the recent adopters of tenkara – is, simply put, simplicity. That draws some to add it to their repertoire, and makes others leave their reels behind permanently. That is also the reason we have fallen in love with tenkara fly-fishing to begin with.

In his column“Gazing into the future of angling in America”, writer Mr. Gordon Wickstrom defines the two most current eras of fly-fishing: “The Trout Unlimited” period, and now, “The New Period“:

Now the fishing that remains to us– I’m going to call it “The New Period”– will be marked, I think, by greater simplicity of gear, technique, style and purpose. It will be done closer to home, more impromptu and with less media attention. It will be gentler, more elegant, and less aggressive — in some ways more old fashioned…
There’s my new friend in San Francisco who is introducing the tackle and practice of Tenkara, an ancient Japanese method of fishing the fly with a long, reel-less rod and short line.
It is a method of the same values as we envision for our new national life … For me, Tenkara is a sign of the times.

From the beginning, the vision behind Tenkara USA has been to show the simplicity inherent – although long forgotten – in the art of fly-fishing. We have not yet ellaborated much on our philosophy, but, in sum, it is:

“fly-fishing is simple”

…..don’t let them fool you.