I am wondering how many of you fish tenkara with more traditional western flies such as the a pheasant tail nymph or others like that.

Do you use a good mix of sakasa kebari and western flies, or do you use sakasa kebari only when fishing for trout using tenkara rods?

Steven

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I use a mix of maybe 70% western to 30% SK's, primarily because it's what I feel comfortable with. But I keep getting closer to drinking the one fly koolaid as I play more with it.

I find myself using a mix of flies. I like to use dry flies on small streams when the fish are looking up - so that eliminates tenkara flies.

I do try to keep it simplified - I have a go-to wet-fly that I use most often. It's not a sakasa kebari - but it is very similar to some tenkara flies - so I consider it "tenkara".

I love tying and trying different flies though just for the fun of it.

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Ebisu, Iwana 11'ft (with additional short handle), Amago, Ito, Ayu II

When I first started tenkara fishing I of course had no clue about kebari, but the idea really intrigued me. So as of the first of the year I have gone strictly kebari only and I have learned so much just by trial and error. I honestly can't ever see myself not using a kebari. I feel the kebari and tenkara rod go hand in hand when fishing areas that other flies may get swept down stream to quickly. However I am all for everyone fishing tenkara how, where and for what ever species they want.

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www.tenkaraelevated.com
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This year I have mixed it up a bit. I have used both styles of flies. My favorite western fly, and the pattern that has been absolutely dynamite for me is the Pass Lake.

http://www.danica.com/flytier/jfreund/pass_lake.htm

http://www.wisflyfishing.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1335306212/18

http://www.wisflyfishing.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1169175841/0

This fly has worked in every situation I have tried it in this year for me, warm and cold water. This makes me ask one question: While this fly may be more complicated than a simple kebari, is it still in the spirit of Tenkara if it were the only fly pattern one used?

Dale

Sometimes I migrate effective traditional patterns to sekasa kebari style. Below the example only to show the possibility:
>>

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Small stream junkei and tenkara apologist, write for The Tenkara Times.

This is my first year fishing Tenkara, and have only fished Tenkara since I started.

For small streams I have only fished Kebari. For the larger streams I have used a mix of a Western Dry Fly, or the Kebari. I must say that I have only fished three patterns all year. Usually I would fish more than three patterns on any given day.

I tie both traditional and tenkara flies but I seem to use only traditional. Use what I know works on the fish, what I'm confident with. I use a tenkara rod as a tool, not too concerned about fishing traditional with it just to have fun

That is the point of trust. Many years ago, when I started tenkara, I used traditional flies. Now 95% of my fishing is with sekasa kebari. Reversed hackle flies are very effective; try to converts your favorite wet or dry flies to sekasa kebari. I've started with migrations too, look the examples in my blog http://www.tenkaratimes.co.uk/tenkara-blog/from%E2%80%9Cmatchingthehatch%E2%80%9Dparadigmto%E2%80%9Coneflyphilosophy%E2%80%9D2-ndissuebyolegstryapunin. I like experiments and tying also, every fishing day I try at least one new pattern/color combination, always sekasa kebari.

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Small stream junkei and tenkara apologist, write for The Tenkara Times.

I use a mix of the two. For me it's less about trust or faith in the fly or kebari and more about reading the water and the fish.

As a general rule if the fish aren't rising, and when I'm fishing water that is 3' or less in depth, I will use Tenkara flies ether dead drift or manipulated various ways. If the water is deeper than that I will often, but not always, switch to a heavier nymph style offering. I think this has more to do with my selfish ways than it has to do with confidence or tradition (eastern or western). It's not because I don't have confidence in a pattern or the patience to stick with it, because I have found that fish in general will take any fly or one fly. However they aren't always the fish I'm looking for. That's what I mean about being selfish. If you see a monster come out from under a rock to look at your sakasa two feet above him only to turn and go back, it would be wise to go down deeper and get him.

JD

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