fly fishing, conservation and politics.
Sometimes it is the simple gifts that light up your day.
Ashley from LearnTenkara.com surprised me with a gift of this wonderful Punk Rock Sakasa Kebari that she tied.
There is close-up of it and some more info on the Learn Tenkara site, just click here.
She was also kind enough to include a couple of purple starling feathers so I could try my hand at my own kebari.
We shall see how that turns out….
stay tuned.
“The road goes on forever and the party never ends” or so I texted friends back home as we continued our tenkara tour of the Jackson Wyo. area.
After a sensational day on Flat Creek (click here for that story) we were pretty stoked to fish more smaller streams in the area.
A quick check in with our friends in a couple of local fly shops gave us da beta we needed.
Our first stop was Fish Creek, and a chance to put a big bend in the tenkara rod.
During our last visit to the Jackson area we had fished the Gros Ventre and wanted to give it a try again. We headed up that way and decided that Crystal Creek, water we hadn’t fished before was worth a look. Crystal Creek was prime tenkara water and we roamed about trying a variety of spots.
After spending two weeks with a tenkara rod in my hand fishing a variety of water and catching some pretty decent sized fish I am more convinced than ever of both the effectiveness and versatility of tenkara fishing.
If you want to learn more I encourage you to check out the Tenkara Guide section of Dispatches, just click here.
My good friend Chris Hunt who blogs at Eat More Brook Trout has started interviewing some fly fishing notables. Last week he interviewed another good friend, Craig Mathews.
Chris writes:
“In addition to being one of the country’s fly fishing elite, Craig is a staunch conservationist who, over the years, has been able to speak truth to power in a way that is constructive and helpful. And he puts his money where his mouth is–in partnership with Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, Craig helped start the “1% for the Planet” program, where businesses and industry could earmark 1 percent of their profits to conservation-centric the non-profits of their choice.”
Click here to read the entire interview: Eat More Brook Trout: 20 Questions: Craig Mathews.
Craig is responsible for my getting me started on tenkara and it was a treat to spend some time with him at the tenkara summit last month.
He also shares a very special place in the Sadler household having officiated at our wedding 5 years ago.
After the tenkara summit in West Yellowstone, MRS and I took off for Wyoming and some tenkara fishing in the Jackson Hole area.
Before we left West we made a trip to the Madison River and some fishing at $3 Bridge.
Five years ago Beth and I go married at this spot and we were excited to be back.
We worked our way down through Yellowstone National Park, fishing as we went. Ok I fished, Beth took pictures…
We wound up in Hoback, WY. for a couple of nights with the Rivers of Recovery crew. BTW: If you don’t know about RoR then click here and check it out.
Be sure to watch the two videos, start with the one on the right. If you are unmoved by them, check your pulse.
We made a foray to the headwaters of Flat Creek. It was a spectacular 4×4 drive into the backcountry.
The chance to visit the headwaters of Flat Creek and to do it in the company of good friends made the trip special.
That they have served our country with honor and distinction makes me proud to be in their company.
As they say the road goes on forever and the party never ends.
Stay tuned for more pictures in episode two. Coming soon.
Last month I traveled to West Yellowstone, MT for the first Tenkara Summit. More than 100 hundred people showed up to hear presentations, talk tenkara and see an on-stream demonstration.
Here is part of the write up by Daniel Galhardo on the Tenkara USA blog:
Originally we had expected, optimistically, that about 70 people would show up. The conference room was setup to accomodate 100 people, but that was not enough. Over 100 people showed up yesterday. People came from 23 different states, and from 3 different countries specially for the Summit (well, they did come to fish in Montana…). I’d really like to thank all those who came and helped make this an extraordinary event; it was the best crowd ever. Thank you!
The Tenkara Summit had the presence of special guests Dr. Hisao Ishigaki, the leading authority on tenkara in Japan; Chris Stewart of tenkarabum.com; Craig Mathews of Blue Ribbon Flies who gave a very passionate presentation about tenkara in Montana and showed some great clips of large fishing being caught; Ryan Jordan of backpackinglight.com as well as ryanjordan.com; and Tom Sadler who spoke about the advantages of using tenkara as a guide and as a way to introduce new people to fly-fishing so they can continue conserving the environment in the future.
Dr. Ishigaki is known as the “Tenkara King” in Japan. His presentation was a wonderful insight into the world of tenkara. He is a warm and charming story teller lacing his presentation with witty anecdotes of his tenkara exploits.
It was a special honor to part of the summit and to learn from fellow tenkara enthusiasts!
One personal highlight was to have lunch with Craig Mathews and Yvon Chouinard. Those two were the reason I got started with tenkara so it was a special treat to spend time with them both at the summit.
Dr. Ishigaki showed his tenkara chops during an on-stream demonstration.
Watching Japan’s Tenkara King put a tenkara rod through it’s paces was fascinating. It was also reassuring to see that my on tenkara technique was not so bad.
One of the really cool things about getting involved in something new is seeing the recognition grow. When I picked up a tenkara rod for the first time I had no idea it would become such a part of my life.
Since then I have had the opportunity to introduce tenkara to people who then do a story about tenkara. Of course I appreciate the coverage of tenkara and naturally since I am a bit of a ham, enjoy seeing my name and face in print.
The article and photo’s in Garden & Gun August/September issue may very well be my favorite. It gave me a chance me to introduce two new friends to tenkara, fish in my favorite places and because of their excellent craftsmanship, share tenkara with Garden & Gun’s readers.
First stop was Ramsey’s Draft with the article’s author Donovan Webster. Don was an accomplished fly fisherman and he was a quick study with the tenkara rod. As you will see, Don did an outstanding job of capturing the essence of tenkara in his article Whisper Fishing.
Michael J.N. Bowles is an extremely talented photojournalist and no slouch with a fly rod as well. He was a bit reluctant to pick up the tenkara rod since he was supposed to be shooting images not fishing. When he finally did and caught a fish, his excitement was infectious. You can see his marvelous photos from our trip to the Rapidan River in Fly Fishing Without A Reel.
Garden & Gun is a favorite in our house and has been long before I was fortunate enough to grace its pages. If you want great writing and beautiful photography steeped in southern charm, then do yourself a favor and subscribe.
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