Recently I was at the Virginia Fly Fishing and Wine festival as part of the Mossy Creek Fly Fishing crew. At the festival, I gave four on-the-water tenkara demonstrations, two each day. At each demo, 30-50 people came down to watch, wiggle the rods and ask questions.
I am giving more and more presentations each year and I’m not alone. A quick scan of Facebook will show you a number of other people giving individual presentations all over the country.
The really exciting thing that is happening is the growing number of tenkara specific gatherings taking place. I have been to a few in the past and they are a great chance to learn techniques and tactics, see a variety of products and network with tenkara enthusiasts.
Tenkara, once considered a passing fancy, has truly become a movement.
Midwest Tenkara Fest
Organized by Matt Sment of Badger Tenkara, The Midwest Tenkara Fest is the weekend of May 2 and 3 in Coon Valley, Wisconsin.
I spent time with Matt last fall and he is both an ambassador for tenkara and the Driftless Area of the Midwest. The Driftless contains hundreds of miles of spring-fed limestone streams that are home to plenty of trout. It is an overlooked trout fishing gem in the heartland of the country.
Matt and his committee have brought together an impressive group of vendors and presenters. Coon Creek runs along the festival site (American Legion Post) so there will be on-the-water presentations during the festival and plenty of local fishing.
“Tenkara till the cows come home” is the tag line for this gathering and you can get all the details on their website Midwest Tenkara Fest.
Appalachian Tenkara Jam
Hosted by Great Feathers Fly Shop, The 2015 Tenkara Jam is the weekend of July 11 and 12 in Herford, Maryland.
Appalachian Tenkara Jam is the brainchild of two North Carolina tenkaranistas, Jason Sparks and Lance Milk. This is the second year for the “Jam” and is shaping up to be a good as the first. I had the pleasure of being a presenter at last year’s Jam in Boone, North Carolina and hope to be able to get to at this years event as well.
Planning is in the beginning stages but given the experience of last year I have complete confidence this Jam will be as well executed as the first one. The Gunpowder River is nearby and is an excellent trout fishing venue and common destination for fly fishers in Northern Virginia, DC and Maryland.
Sparks recently posted, “There will be more tenkara expertise in this room on these two days then you will find all yearlong anywhere else on the East Coast.”
You can get details as they become available on their website, Appalachian Tenkara Jam.
Tenkara Summit
Organized by Tenkara USA, The 2015 Tenkara Summit is Sept. 19, in Estes Park, Colorado.
This is the fifth summit for Tenkara USA and the second one in Colorado. I was a presenter at the first one in West Yellowstone, Montana and was part of the Mossy Creek Fly Fishing crew that hosted 2013 Summit here in the Shenandoah Valley.
Since it is not until September, details are slim but they do have lodging info up on the Tenkara USA summit website since this is a popular destination. You can also see last year’s schedule to get a good idea what 2015 is apt to be like. With five years of experience under their belts they know how to make things work and provide a lot of solid information.
There is fishing on-site and the Rocky Mountain National Park close by.
Author’s note: Author’s note: This article first appeared in Hatch Magazine.
