DAVID E. DIRKS
Small Water Strategies for Tenkara “Small streams are the essence of tenkara. They’re really the heart and soul of it.” Paul Vertrees
Tenkara originated in the small mountain streams in Japan and so it’s safe to say that it was built for small streams and brooks. That doesn’t mean that fishing small streams and brooks is easy. It takes strategy and stealth to fish small water effectively. Tenkara surely gives us plenty of advantages in terms of being able to place a fly so that it looks as natural as can be but that isn’t enough. Small water takes time and patience to fish but the rewards can often be great in terms of your enjoyment and fish-catching ability. Vertrees: Small streams are the essence of tenkara. They’re really the heart and soul of it. Fish a small stream slowly and patiently. There are so many opportunities presented by a small stream. Fish all of them! Never pass up a little piece of pocket water or a little plunge pool. It amazes me where trout will lie in a small stream. I’ve been very successful fishing the shallow edges of small streams or the little eddies along the edges. Always try to find the tiny spots where a trout could rest and feed. Don’t discount the downstream cast to pools below you. Tenkara on a small stream is much like spot-and-stalk hunting. Look for trout and move in carefully. Much of my casting on small streams (which is the majority of my fishing) is done from a kneeling position. Use stealth as much as possible. There’s a little stream in a wilderness area along the Front Range of Colorado that I call my stomping grounds. This creek is about 6 miles in length, from the headwaters at nearly 12,000 feet to the confluence with the next larger stream. It’s covered with what I call “nano-pools.” Tiny pocket water no bigger around than a skillet. I suspect that the mountain streams in Japan are much like this creek. Drifts are short and quick, the brook trout are eager to slam a fly, and you can catch fish all day long with a tenkara rod. The water is gin clear, and so you have to do much of your casting from either a kneeling or sitting position. This little creek is where I practice much of my 74
