Colorado 2019: The Tenkara Summit & Breaking In The Ebisu

Saturday... What. A. Day.

After a long, but eventful day of travel and fishing on Friday, it was now time for the Tenkara Summit, presented by Tenkara USA. I think this was the fifth Summit I've attended over the years, each one being an enjoyable mix of presentations, instruction, and fishing camaraderie. This year's Summit was not only a gathering for anglers both new and experienced, but it was also marking Tenkara USA's 10th anniversary of operation. Quite the milestone for a style of fly fishing that was once called a fad!

Note: Jason Klass did a wonderful recap of the Tenkara Summit over on his Tenkara Talk blog, please check it out HERE if you want more specifics around the day's events. This post will simply share a few photos and comments from an attendee's point of view.

TJ Ferreira (L) & John Geer (R) tell stories from their years of Tenkara USA customer service.
It's funny how many different (hilarious) scenarios they've encountered...
John Geer: "Our rods are covered by acts of marmots!"   

Morgan Lyle, author of the book Simple Flies talks about how easy
to tie flies can be incredibly effective when it comes to catching fish.

A panel discussion with (L to R):
Morgan Lyle, Jason Klass, Tenkara USA Founder Daniel Galhardo, Bart Lombardo

There were many vendors in attendance with unique wares to be had.
I picked up a wooden line spool / fly patch from craftsman Dave Burchett.

There was a break for lunch, lawn casting, and fly tying.
My friend Brian Lindsay put on a display of his advanced casting style...

...while Daniel Galhardo provided rod rigging and casting advice to a group of new anglers...

...which then moved to Boulder Creek, that conveniently runs right behind the host hotel!

A few eager anglers even snuck away to try out their rods.

Back inside, Lou DiGena tied some Ishigaki kebari using a unique purple hackle.

Graham Moran crafted his orange, blue, and white Broncos kebari.
I made sure he knew an Eagles green, black, and white version would catch more fish!

The afternoon session's highlight was a half hour screening of The Manzanar Fishing Club.
Director Cory Shiozaki and Writer Richard Imamura provide context to the WWII Japanese internment.

To commemorate their 10th Anniversary, Tenkara USA
revealed their new rod, an re-issue of the cult-favorite Ebisu.

Which I promptly took up to Boulder Canyon following the afternoon session to break in.

The water was a little fast; but I ended up catching 2 on kebari
and 3 on beadhead nymphs in about an hour and a half.

 A quick drive back down the canyon to town to hit the Summit's evening session.

Where there was a night of fly tying and music!
Tyers Marshall Houston (L) & Dennis Vander Houwen (R) exchange stories.

Joe Egry is an amazingly imaginative tyer.

Mark Bolson (L) looks on as John Sachen (R) displays patterns. 

Takenobu provided the musical backdrop.
Anybody who has ever watched a Tenkara USA video on YouTube has probably heard Takenobu.

Last but not least, I wanted to thank Daniel Galhardo & Tenkara USA for naming me one of their "crazy dancer" ambassadors. It was a very unexpected and humbling honor.

In looking back at the past decade of tenkara, it has certainly been an adventure. Without Daniel bringing the telescoping rods & techniques to the U.S. through this original video, who knows what direction my fishing life might have taken. Tenkara has transported me to so many different places across the country, introduced me to hundreds of new friends, all while making me a much more efficient and educated angler. Perhaps that's what made it so easy (and me so eager) to share with everyone through word of mouth, this blog, and Tenkara Angler magazine. No matter the reason, I'm extremely excited to see what the next 10 years (and beyond) of tenkara might bring!

Colorado 2019: Return to the North St. Vrain

Time travel is sweet, particularly when it's to your benefit.

I had a 6:30 AM flight to Denver last Friday. Fortunately, there's a 2 hour time zone difference, so the four hour flight touched down in Colorado at only 8:30 AM local time. Solid.

After picking up the rental car, snagging a fishing license (Colorado, why don't you sell the type you can print out online?), and grabbing a quick bite to eat, I headed out to find some trout.

My original plan was to hit a trailhead that led into the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area. There was a certain stream and trail I wanted to try, but other day hikers and general outdoor recreators must have had the same plan. Not only the small lot at the trailhead, but all of the legal parking a good few miles down the road was packed solid. So I bailed. Time for Plan B.

Plan B was the North St. Vrain in Rocky Mountain National Park. I've fished there before, so I knew how to get there, and more importantly remembered that it had somewhat ample parking. Done deal. 

Fortunately, my hunch was correct. While the trailhead lot was full, I was able to park at a picnic area a short walk up the road, so I grabbed my gear and headed up the trail with childlike abandon.

Whoa, upon arrival, I was greeted by a creek that was pumping out quite a bit of water. Colorado got a huge snow pack this past winter, so the melting and run off has been a bit longer and later in the year. 

This was definitely going to be quite a bit different fishing than the last time I was here. Gone were the calm runs, meandering bubble lines, and gentle plunge pools. Picking soft spots behind rocks and along the banks, or suspending a fly in eddies was going to be winning ticket on this day.  

Luckily, those tactics worked swimmingly and fishing was quite productive. It was definitely a brook trout sort of day, and they were particularly cooperative when it came to pulsing or suspending a road kone kebari on the end of about 4 feet of 5x tippet, 12 feet of 3mm level line, and the Nissin Royal Stage 320 rod.

Since the water was so swift, it was difficult to wade in the creek itself for any significant length. As such, using the trail to strategically pop in and out seemed to be the path of least resistance. I probably missed a bit of holding water, but I was getting enough action at the end of my line where it didn't seem to matter. I'd save that water for another day (maybe a quick weekend later this fall?)

Here are a few of the colorful, albeit invasive, jewels of the creek...

I had originally hoped to hike up above the one large set of waterfalls (Calypso Cascades), up into greenback trout territory, but I chose to turn around at that point when the skies opened up for a solid early evening rain shower. I had at least an hour's hike back to the car, so it just seemed prudent to call it quits for the day. The wildflowers were out in force, which made that walk very enjoyable despite the unexpected drenching.

While the first day in Colorado didn't go exactly as planned, it was still awesome to be up in the mountains. Plus, I'd still have a chance to fish some more on Saturday and all day on Sunday, so all considered, things were off to a great start!

The Rocky Mountain Flyathlon

Couldn't help but enjoy this short video of the recent Rocky Mountain Flyathlon event in Saguache, CO. The video was done by Tenkara USA as some racers use tenkara rods for their portability, but don't mistake this as a tenkara-exclusive event.

The theme is "Run - Fish - Beer," and the competitors need to run a trail course, catch a fish along the way (with photographic evidence), drink a beer, and run back. Plus, proceeds go toward conservation efforts. Now I'm no runner, but that sounds pretty damn fun.

From the Tenkara USA blog:

"Run, Fish, Beer! That’s the tagline for the Flyathlon, an event that brings together people to run a race, catch a fish, and at the end of the day enjoy a cold beer…all the while raising money to protect native trout. On August 11, 2018, 60 participants ran the race in a remote location and caught brook trout as well as the native cutthroat of the area. Several of them used tenkara in their race. And, overall, that event raised over $22,000 for native trout conservation efforts too! Talk about a triathlon!"

If this is something that interests you, I'd highly recommend checking out the Rocky Mountain Flyathlon website to learn more information. There are multiple events in Colorado, as well as an event in the (non-Rocky Mountain) Driftless Area of Iowa!

FREESKIER Magazine's Summer Adventure Series, Volume 1

Watched this last night. The first of a four-part series of things the FREESKIER Magazine crew is doing in the mountains during their offseason. I really dig the concept of a publication leaving it's niche to expand the horizons of its readers toward other outdoor pursuits.

Image: FREESKIER.com

"As spring gives way to summer and the winter snowpack slowly trickles into nearby streams, our time in the mountains shifts focus to new activities. Each day brings with it the opportunity to revel in the glory of a favorite summer pastime, or better yet, step out of the comfort zone and try something entirely different. FREESKIER’s Summer Adventure Series is a tribute to those summer days in the mountains."

Anyway, take a peek at Volume I, it features some great fly fishing footage from the Fryingpan River Basin in Colorado...

2017 Tenkara Summit

It took a little longer than I thought it would, but figured now was as good a time as any to do a recap of the Tenkara Summit that took place in Estes Park, Colorado back on September 16th. Actually, this will be more of a photo dump, with a few captions included for good measure.

Daniel Galhardo kicked off the day with opening remarks and a quick history of the Tenkara Summit

Matt Sment from Badger Tenkara's presentation was extremely informative.
Many tips on how to be a better tenkara angler were covered.

Jason Klass (Tenkara Talk) discusssed tenkara techniques

And Steve Schweitzer rounded out the morning's presentations discussing fishing both Rocky Mountain National Park & Indian Peaks Wilderness (his books on both are excellent!)

There were quite a few vendors present. The Tenkara USA tables were a hub of activity...

Shiso, Daniel Galhardo's dog was also in attendance.
Shiso has recently taken to social media with his own Instagram account!

The Hane 2 prototype rod was introduced and made for sale for the first time at the Summit.
Those that bought it will provide feedback to see if this becomes a permanent rod in the TUSA lineup.

There were other vendors too, like Trek Light Gear...

...and Dennis from Tenkara Path with many handmade items including line spools...

...and some interesting nets.

Lunch was provided out of two food trucks - pizza & BBQ.

I went with pizza, the truck had its own wood fire oven!

Back inside, there were other wares, such as rod cases...

and fly boxes. All so beautifully crafted.

 

A full view of vendor row

There was also "Tenkara Pie" for all... I went back for seconds. :)

 

Jammers enjoying their BBQ lunch...

After lunch, Dr. Ishigaki put on a casting clinic.
He casts effortlessly and had a great rapport with the crowd.

Adam Trahan put out some targets for casting accuracy drills.

 

There were also breakouts for rod/line rigging...

...and fly tying.

Chris Zimmer from Zimmerbuilt showing off some of his packs.
Every tenkara angler should own one.

The afternoon had two wonderful presentations.
The first was by Patagonia founder, Yvon Chouinard.
The crowd was captivated by his passionate plea for protecting our natural resources.

Dr. Ishigaki also addressed the crowd and touched on many different tenkara topics.

The day's program ended with a panel Q&A from many of the day's speakers.

 

But that was not it! After a short break for dinner, the hall reopened for fly tying.

Again, Dr. Ishigaki drew a crowd as he tied his namesake patterns.

Colorado band Paper Moonshine provided the musical backdrop

Many of the tyers participated in an "Iron Fly" style competition moderated by 303 Flies.

The winner being presented his spoils from Dr. Ishigaki.

It was an incredibly full day of events, and there was so much great information being shared. Not only did I leave feeling like I learned a ton, but it was so great to see old friends and make new ones. If you've never attended a Tenkara Summit, I'd highly recommend considering one in the future.