Happy Sunday! Suddenly, it’s October. I can’t believe we’re in the last quarter of the year. Leaves are changing, Halloween decorations are popping up, and some folks have already fast-forwarded to Christmas! The fishing season is also starting to wind down in many parts of the country, but it doesn’t mean that the Riffles are less active. I still have at least one more trip to the mountains in me next weekend, and it seems like folks out in the community have a similar mindset. They’ve been busy filming, writing, and posting, so there’s plenty to catch up on this week.
Anyway, let’s wade into those Riffles…
Blue Lines and Native Brookies
Fixed Line Appalachia is back with Appalachian Tenkara Episode 16, wandering the high-country blue lines of western North Carolina after native brook trout. It’s peaceful, it’s small water, and it’s exactly what October calls for. Take a look…
Montana’s Overgrown Little Creek
Tenkara Addict headed back to Montana and fished a tiny, brushy creek with the adjustable Rocky MTN Tenkara Chico. Fishing a creek you’ve never seen before, with branches reaching in from every side, is my kind of puzzle. Grab a coffee, because this one runs almost 20 minutes: watch here…
Tanzawa Yamame Overload
Over on X, ShouJ (@Jimnynori) posted from Japan’s Tanzawa area about a stream so full of fish shadows he could hardly keep up. By noon he’d dropped down to the main river hoping for iwana, only to find they were all yamame. Not a bad problem to have. See the post…
Time With Master Sakakibara
Piacere Tenkara spent an hour in Japan with Masami Sakakibara on a beautiful but difficult stream, fishing an Oni rod. I would be freaking out “Tenkara no Oni” was looking over my shoulder while I was fishing. The video then turns to footage of Masami on stream and watching someone like that work water is its own education. Have a look (translation subtitles on!)…
Dry-Dropper Time
Fish The West Films and Tenkara USA are up to Episode 6 of their Masterclass series, this time on how to fish a dry dropper with tenkara. If you’ve been meaning to try two flies on the line and keep chickening out, this is a friendly nudge. Episode 6 is here…
A $10 Rod and a Whole Lot of Good Advice
Over on r/Tenkara, u/Bows_n_Bikes, a lifelong spinning-reel angler in SW Michigan, snagged a used Aventik rod for ten bucks and asked how to rig it up. The community came through: a 12-foot furled line or 3.5 level line, 5x tippet, a clip-on line holder, and “fish whatever flies look right” were the common threads, with a few folks pointing the newcomer to a DRAGONtail starter kit. A nice reminder that this little corner of fishing is still pretty welcoming…
Early October in the Rockies
Tenkara Tweezy documents the streams and rivers of the Rocky Mountains, and the latest upload is a look at early-October fishing. Quiet, seasonal, and a nice reminder to get out before the weather turns. Here’s the video…
Catching Char With Your Feet
Over on S-1. [Field Communications Bureau], the Headwater Tenkara 2026 season finale wraps up a long late-September climb to the top, and the title says it all: “Catch Char with Your Feet!” Even if you don’t translate the Japanese, the scenery does the talking. Switch the audio to English and see the finale…
A Red Autumn Yamame Before the Closure
Tenkara Hiker (@tenkarahiker) wanted to see this fish before the season closed. It turned out to be a bright red autumn yamame, not the iwana he and a guide had spotted earlier. Even without the Japanese, the photos are worth the click. Take a look…
An All-Italian Partnership
Tenkara ITALIA goes behind the scenes with Fabio, director of Veret fishing rods, on an all-Italian partnership. It’s always fun to see how tenkara is growing in different corners of the world. Switch the audio to English before watching…
Find the Trout Before You Get Wet
Tenkara Obsession shows how to scout trout water from your couch using TroutRoutes before you ever lace up your boots. I haven’t always been the best blueline researcher in the past, so this may be worth your time. Watch it here…
Tenkara Angler Article Roundup
Over the past two weeks our Japan coverage has continued (sorry if it’s overkill, only two more days of fishing to still recap), as well as two major Tenkara Angler-related announcements, including the 2027 Print Issue Call for Submissions as well as our Fall 2026 Kebari Swap. We’d love to see your participation in each…
Meet Our Friend Takuya
One more introduction to make before we get into our days of fishing. When we sat down for dinner at the Kinugawa…
Three Rivers, Ramen, and a Mountain Lodge in the Clouds
Tuesday. We’re going fishing. For real this time! After Monday’s long car ride, sightseeing, brief teaser session on the water, and welcome…
Announcing the 2027 Print Magazine!
A Call For Submissions for the 2027 Print Issue October is here, which means it’s time to briefly step away from our…
Into the Headwaters
Wednesday was a big day. Settled in at Hatcho-no-Yu, we were all eager to head up into the headwaters and spend the…
Meet Our Friend Takashi
You’ve already met Takashi Sakauchi. He was in Colorado in 2023, the guy who landed what might have been the fish of…
Tenkara Angler Fall 2026 Kebari Swap
Time for Another Community Kebari Swap! On the heels of announcing the 2027 print issue, we thought we’d strike up a bit…
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