>>2453562>When you hook a large fish that wants to run how do you allow that fish to do so with your tenkara kit?>Other than perhaps smaller packing size less a fly reel what real advantage do you have?Inherent tightlining is a real advantage. If you
There are "big game" tenkara rods capable of landing fish weighing dozens of pounds, but personally I target smaller species deliberately when fly fishing. Medium-sized browns are about as big as I get.
For species like carp, stripers, pike, and catfish, I put the fly rods away, even though some fly rods are capable of landing very large species like tarpon and permit.
Advantages:
>instant and inherent tightlining>actual fly line never touches the water, only a small portion of tippet>no need for floatant or even dry flies to keep a fly topwater>rapid re-casting in any direction, accurately, with no need to reel in (this can even create the illusion of many insects landing at once, and start a feeding frenzy)>increased rod and line sensitivity compared to even a 2 wt Western fly rod and reelAnd yes, they're extremely portable. What's more, you don't the dozens of gizmos and boxes of flies employed in Western fly fishing (and yes, I have those too).
The disadvantages (and they are heavy disadvantages, I admit) are low range, and being longer than just about any fly rod, meaning low canopy is a big pain. But wading and sticking to smaller streams largely eliminates these.
