What’s your favorite line and fly for Tenkara

Unless she is your fully grown daughter, the Amago is going to be too heavy for her.

The 2.5 line may be a bit tricky to cast until she has reasonably good form. The 4.5 is much heavier than she will need if you decide on an Iwana or comparable rod. I'd recommend the 3.5.

For flies, use whatever you want. Sakasa kebari work, but so do elk hair caddis and pheasant tail nymphs. The "one fly" thing is for people who don't like flies (or rather, for whom the fly choice is a bother rather than one of the truly intriguing things about fly fishing).

Thanks for the insight Chris. She's pretty tall for her age but still in middle school so I'll focus on the Iwana and similar rods. I started perusing your website yesterday; there's a wealth of knowledge on there that I need to read through.

I am sure I am the dissenting vote, but you've got a great opportunity with a daughter in middle school to teach and share with her not just one niche aspect of fly fishing, but why not conventional fly fishing, fly tying, float tubing, wading, etc, etc. Get her a quality vice, and a fly tying kit; put a 5 weight 8ft long fly rod in her hand with weight forward floating line and a #12 humpy, or a popper next to pond full of bluegills and she'll enjoy a remarkable sport and all its diverse aspects for a lifetime. By the time she graduates from high school she will have landed a bonefish, a smallmouth, and a golden trout in a float tube on a wilderness lake at 9,000 feet!

I've started later with my daughters–aged 20 and 24–but we're headed to the wilderness for float tube fly fishing this summer….an opportunity of a lifetime.

Hi Phil,

We have a couple western fly rods & vices and have plans to use them as well.

To give a little more background…

My daughter loves all things Japanese. I think much of this has to do with the fact that she's an artist and enjoys anime, manga, and painting Kanji. She also enjoys fishing but we've always been into crank gear and are trying to make the transition to fly fishing. Short term goals for next summer are to take a couple classes with a local fly shop to better understand the technique and to get certified to rent their drift boats on the Yakima. All this will be with western fly rods. I realize that there's more wrist action with Tenkara casting but I think learning the basics from Reds Fly Shop will serve us well regardless of the discipline.

We're planning a backpacking trip through the cascades where we'll keep the daily miles low (8ish) so we can spend more time fishing the lakes and streams in that area. For this trip, we'd like to do it all with Tenkara. Plan is to bring some Rigs float line (in addition to the Tenkara level line) for the alpine lakes but as I'm still learning, I haven't ruled out the possibility of just bringing an ultralight to do some bubble fly fishing.

I took a fly tying class and really enjoyed it. Another plan of ours it to tie all of our own flies for this trip.

“…just one niche aspect of fly fishing…”

If tenkara has a “niche” it is catching fish simply and effectively. It excels on headwaters, tailwaters, creeks, mainstream, and lakes.

It’s not complicated. It’s not broken to the point that you have to “mend” it every time you cast.

And if you want to get crazy you can…

Kirk Deeter brought this pink salmon to hand on a Tenkara USA Amago rod.

Now, back to the thread…

I fish a mainstream river with a 14’8″ rod, beadheads of all sizes, and a #2.5 line. If there is a hatch, I’ll go to drys, but that is usually a very small part of a day.

For Sierra streams along the JMT I’d take light 9′ rod (because I have one for small creeks). Those creeks are tight, you could reach the other side with ease to fish the far edges, and you have enough length to stay stealthy. Take a spool of #2.5 and a spool of #4, then cut to fit for weight and length as dictated by the wind and how crowded the stream is.

If you are also thinking Sierra lakes then consider an 11′ or 12′ rod. That would give you versatility back home and other places, especially for a young fisher.

I’d guess you’re going to end up with several rods. At under $100, +/- , it’s hard to go wrong.

Definitely the Iwana. My girls love it. Much lighter in hand. And as Chris says a 3.5 fluorocarbon level line would be fine. However I like starting beginners with a 10-foot furled line–easier to cast and easier to see.

Almost any flies work. For beginners start her with a Parachute Adams. Tell her to keep her profile low and put the fly anywhere she thinks a fish might be "hiding" and walk away. And when she asked to get down deeper, a red hen and peacock on a heavy nymph hook. But not until she asks.

Great family fun!

Kevin Kelleher

Thanks for the responses!

"I'd guess you're going to end up with several rods. At under $100, +/- , it's hard to go wrong."

I'm sure you're right.