The Origins of Tenkara

“It is very liberating … to not have to rely on anything but the essential.”

Daniel Galhardo

Like the ancient art of tenkara fly-fishing, Daniel Galhardo might not be a household name in fishing circles, but that’s changing fast. Few would dispute that Galhardo has almost single-handedly introduced many of us to tenkara. And fewer still have invested as much time and effort into understanding the tenkara art than Galhardo. I first heard of Galhardo when he visited the Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum a few years back with his mentor and one of the most renowned tenkara masters, Dr. Hisao Ishigaki. In the summer of 2010, Galhardo, who had already launched his Tenkara USA business, spent a few months in Japan fishing with Dr. Ishigaki and meeting other tenkara masters along the way. Galhardo has probably spent more time researching the ancient origins of tenkara both in and out of Japan. So it made all the sense to interview him and get his insights on the history and background of Japanese tenkara fly-fishing. Galhardo: The early origins of tenkara were not documented, and most tackle used a long time ago – bamboo rods, silk lines and flies – has since disintegrated. So, it is difficult to know for certain everything about the origins of tenkara. But, it is generally accepted that tenkara originated independently in the mountain streams of Japan and was the domain of people trying to catch trout for a living. Tenkara was the practice of commercial anglers. Seventy percent of Japan is mountain terrain. That landscape translates into an abundance of mountain streams, but perhaps a shortage of arable land or pastures. The main protein source for the folks who settled in the mountains was the fish that lived in the streams and rivers

crisscrossing their villages. People there had to learn how to “harvest” that food source, and they soon became tenkara anglers. There would be many kinds of tenkara anglers at that time. Some of them would spend most of their fishing season in huts situated near rivers, catching as many fish as they could, drying them out and then carrying them to local markets or villages to sell. Other tenkara anglers would spend less time and would travel to different areas. Yet, another group of those original tenkara anglers would focus on catching fish in nearby streams and thus sell their fresh catch to local villagers. It is easy to imagine a person living by a mountain stream observing trout feeding on bugs. Then, that person would try to catch the feeding trout – first with live bait and then, when he grew tired of losing the live bait, he would try to make an artificial imitation. The artificial imitation of a fly would be much more durable, and not have to be replaced often, so it was much more effective. Thus, I believe tenkara originated independently from any other methods of fishing. It was not until 1878 that the first record of tenkara emerged. And, interestingly, it took a British diplomat, Mr. Ernest Satow, to observe and record tenkara taking place. In his diary Mr. Satow wrote: July 24, 1878: “Last night we had for dinner capital fish called iwana [a native Japanese trout], caught in the Kurobe-gawa with a fly made of cock‘s feathers, weighing about 3/4 lbs.” [Note: the Kurobe river is not far from Tateyama, which is mentioned later in the same entry.] There are other theories for which the initial roots of tenkara came. Was the inspiration for making artificial flies brought from somewhere else? The fact of the matter is that tenkara as we know it today was always the domain of commercial anglers trying to catch fish for a living.