Thursday, September 26, 2013

Slipping Away

The 2013 trout season is about to end. September is my favorite time to be out on a cold trout stream and I have not been able to get out even once this month. The new job makes my schedule difficult to plan time away and I am away from home a lot, which makes going off and fishing a difficult choice. I am holding on to some hope that I can get one more trip before months end. 

I did take my tenkara rod and bike to the nearby Credit River where I knew there might be some creek chubs. It's not trout but they are fun to catch. I caught a couple nice sized ones with a black sekasa kebari. 

Nice size chub!

I am still hoping to get out one more time to chase trout. The biggest issues are time off and I need a ride, someone to go with. We are having some vehicle issues and I can't make the drive. Anyone want to go?  No experience necessary! Contact me here or twitter @stevenpking. Seriously! 

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Long or Longer?

It's been some time since I last posted. The new job is taking up lots of time and my time on the water is down significantly from last year. I have had a few things rolling around in my head to talk about and finally am able to take some time to write.

I was able to get a new tenkara rod this spring. I almost bought the Tenkara USA Ayu because it was on sale for $100. The timing was not quite right and I did not get it. When the time came (tax return) I went with the TUSA Ito. I actually bought an Ito over a year ago and then lost it after just a few times out. I really liked it then and had heard almost only really good things about it.

The Ito is unique in that it can expand from 13' to 14'7". You really do have two rods for the price of one. It casts beautifully. It is very smooth and my accuracy improved. There are a lot of reviews out there and it is not my intention to add another one. What I have been thinking about is the difference between fishing the rod at 13' versus at 14'7".


When I first fished the rod I was surprised at how differently the two lengths felt. I love how easy it casts at the 13' length. The line loads smoothly and makes a nice loop that drops the fly right where I want it. It feels light in my hand and makes it easy to fish all day long. 

I was shocked the first time I put the rod out to 14'7". It is a completely different rod. Right away I noticed that it felt so much heavier. The action is much slower, you have to slow down the cast and let the line load. To be honest, I did not like it. I would extend the rod when landing a fish, which is a helpful use of the extra length, and occasionally when I wanted to have a little extra reach. I did not like using the rod at the longer length. It did not feel comfortable, especially compared to how it felt at 13'. 

Now here's the weird thing. Sometime in early July I was fishing a familiar creek and I wanted to have a little extra length to sneak up on a trout I saw rising ahead of me. After I landed that trout I kept the rod extended and fished it the rest of the day. I found myself enjoying the slower action of the long rod. Even though it feels heavier that at 13' it was still pretty light and I had no problem with it. I liked the extra reach and ability to keep more line off the water. Then a couple of weeks later on a different creek I set up the rod at 14'7" and did not like it at all! I was much more comfortable fishing at the 13' length. The more I fished the Ito the more I would go back and forth between the two lengths. What I found strange was it did not seem to relate to the type or size of the water I was fishing. Circumstances did sometimes dictate the length I chose, shorter for tighter casting area or longer for reach, but overall it seemed to depend on the "mood" I was in. The nice things is that with the Ito I have two different rods with me all the time, ready for whatever situation or mood I am in.

I would love to hear about how other Ito owners experience the different lengths. How do you fish them? Do you strongly prefer on length over the other? Leave a comment or you can tweet me at @stevenpking if you like too. 

Tell me about your Ito experience!