My first tenkara (keiryu?) steelhead!

by Sean Rooney
(Marquette, Upper Peninsula of Michigan)

Hit the Carp river today (Lake Superior tributary in Marquette, Michigan) with my Kiyose 42SF, targeting steelhead. Saw a couple nice ones but they weren't interested in eating today. Caught this one that is young enough and far enough from the lake that I think it's an example of natural reproduction.

The rod handled this steelhead no problem! I was using this beadhead wooly bugger mostly as a weight for my egg fly because I forgot to bring split shot today.

I learned today that a zoom rod could be pretty useful. This is a small river with frequent overhead branches. I spent quite a bit of time untangling my rod and line and flies and there were a few places I just couldn't cast effectively because my rod was too long to fit.

“The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten” - Benjamin Franklin

"Be sure in casting, that your fly fall first into the water, for if the line fall first, it scares or frightens the fish..." -
Col. Robert Venables 1662

As age slows my pace, I will become more like the heron.

We've all had situations where seriously chewed up flies kept catching fish after fish after fish. It is no sin to tie flies that come off the vise looking seriously chewed up.

Seriously, all the hooks sold on TenkaraBum.com, whether packaged as loose hooks or incorporated into flies, are dangerously sharp. Some have barbs, which make removal from skin, eyes or clothing difficult. Wear eye protection. Wear a broad-brimmed hat. If you fish with or around children, bend down all hook barbs and make sure the children wear eye protection and broad-brimmed hats. Be aware of your back cast so no one gets hooked.

Also, all the rods sold on TenkaraBum.com will conduct electricity. Do not, under any circumstances, fish during a thunder storm. Consider any fishing rod to be a lightning rod! Fishing rods can and do get hit by lightning!