From 13 inches to 13 feet, with several stops in-between…
If you follow the Tenkara Rod Co. on social media, you may have seen that they launched a Kickstarter campaign yesterday to fund their latest rod release. It’s a pack (not pocket) tenkara rod called the Backpackr, and is fairly unique in the fact that it has 3 fishable positions (330/360/390cm) in a form that collapses all the way down to slightly over 13 inches!
There have been a lot of smaller format tenkara rods that have been released over the past two or three years, but the multi-zoom function of the Backpackr is what really seems to set this rod apart. It’s rare to find a pack or pocket zoom rod that fishes quite as long as 390cm (almost 13 feet). The only example I can think of off the top of my head is the Tenryu Furaibo TF39TA, a rod that retails around $500 USD, given you can find one.
The versatility of lengths in the Backpackr is going to give an adventuring angler a lot of fishing options in one rod, particularly if you’re in a situation where you’re concerned with saving space and can only bring one rod with you. For the sake of simple comparison, the very popular DRAGONtail Kaida pack tenkara rod is longer (around 18 inches) than the Backpackr when collapsed and has a shorter longest fishable length of 320cm. However, the Kaida is a bit lighter, at 2.5 ounces to the Backpackr’s 2.8.
In addition to the lengths, the Backpackr also has an interesting background. First, it’s not an “off the shelf” Chinese rod or a Japanese rod with a different paint job. Rather the rod is produced in South Korea, a country in which some of your favorite tenkara and fly rods have moved production to in recent years (without naming makers). South Korea is well known for their expertise with carbon fiber and high quality fishing rod manufacturing.
Second, the blank is a blend of carbon fiber and fiberglass to make it more forgiving at all fishable lengths. Zoom rods, especially when fished at their shortest position, can often be quite stiff. Drew Holleback, founder and El Presidente of Tenkara Rod Co. claims they’ve remedied this problem with their blend of composite materials.
“The handle features high grade cork for a secure, tactile grip in wet or dry conditions, and the rod sections are tuned for a mid-flex action, what we call the “Goldilocks” feel. It offers the responsiveness of a faster rod with the smooth presentation and forgiveness of a slower taper. This makes it especially effective for both short-range tight water and longer, more delicate drifts.”
Note: The Tenkara Angler crew hasn’t fished a Backpackr yet, so we’re just passing along the information as presented for now.
As of writing this article, the Tenkara Rod Co. Backpackr has already met its funding goal with just over 200 backers. They are projecting that the rod will ship in September 2025.
It’s amazing the reach Tenkara Rod Co. is able to get with these Kickstarter campaigns. It’s certainly been a template for success and I’m curious to see how many additional Backpackr rods get backed over the next month of of the initial offering.
For those that are interested, good luck on those early bird deals and happy backing!
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Cool rod. Regarding backpacking – through my experience I found that I’m fine with standard 20-24 inch tenkara rod pack length. What this compact rods are actually useful for is concealment (it fits INSIDE the backpack). You do not burn you fishing spots, and you do not get odd questions from random people…
To be fair TF39TA is actually not that difficult to find, and it is not 500 now. But it is RED. And I’m not aware if spare parts available. I hope The Tenkara Rod Co will sell spare parts for the Backpackr.