Tenkara Cuts

Heavy to Light - Bamboo to Tenkara - for Cutthroats in Colorado

In 2011, on a stream we like in Colorado not far from Denver,  Fred Miller and I decided on a themed trout outing. We'd do a throwback on our throwback and use bamboo to catch and then release some cutthroat trout.  

Fred's rod, like all his gear, was museum quality and he could actually hold it with one hand. Mine from a garage sale in Canada on the other  hand, took two hands and soon had my left arm exhausted.

Now, 5 years later it was time to visit again.  We believe in resting a stream. Yes, we are that good.
Fred chose his 9 ft 3 weight and I brought my Sato Tenkara rod, extendable to 12' 9".

I fished all dries starting with a Jay Zimmerman Clown Shoe Yellow  Sally.

 
The cutts cooperated. Nice sized and healthy they were.

Fred fished the banks with his 3 weight.


Cutthroats are gorgeous fish but the stream is quite spectacular also.








I convinced Fred to try his hand with the tenkara and he landed a cutthroat on his 3rd drift. We'll see if he adds to his rod collection.


For traveling between stretches in this very bushy area, the tenkara rod telescopes nicely but managing the line is a challenge since, of course there is no reel on a tenkara rod.  TenkaraUSA sells "rod ties"  that look like this. 


I wanted something a little more permanent so I mounted a hook keeper onto the top of the first telescoping section and squeezed a small rubber O-ring between the screw off end cap and the cork handle.



Then when I collapse the rod I loop the extra line around the hook keeper and figure 8 around the rod plug in bottom. 



Where to put the fly is still a problem so I wind an elastic band around the grip and roll it up and down as the  tippet gets longer and shorter to hook in the barbless fly. 





Ready to bush whack.



Much as I dislike removing a fish from the water, Fred insisted we pose this nice cutthroat for a portrait. At least I didn't touch him and he was only out for two breaths. Unfortunately, Fred encountered a proud father and his pre-teen daughter with a string of DEAD cutthroats. It was enough to make you cry. Fortunately for them, Fred was at a loss for words. Want to bet they are now getting freezer burn prior to being trashed in a few months. Why, oh why,  can't we get over this obsession to flaunt a kill.