Partners

We are proud to call the following brands and organizations partners of Tenkara Angler. Their support helps highlight all that is positive in the tenkara and fixed line community. Please click on the profiles below to learn more about each.

Brands

Discover Tenkara

Company Profile Discover Tenkara, established by Paul Gaskell and John Pearson based in the United Kingdom, offers the most in-depth and authentic tenkara instruction online. Combining Japanese traditional angling philosophy with modern multimedia delivery, the company provides fishers worldwide with…

DRAGONtail Tenkara

Company Profile DRAGONtail Tenkara was founded by Brent Auger and Brandon Moon in 2013. Their goal was simple: offer high‑quality tenkara gear at prices accessible even to beginners. Under the umbrella of Cub River Outfitters LLC, which also operates the…

ESZ Fishing

Company Profile ESZ Fishing is a Colorado-based fly fishing brand founded by Ethan Zhang and headquartered in Colorado Springs. The brand emerged with a simple mission: design high-performance tenkara rods from an angler’s point of view and offer them at…

Nikko Tenkara

Company Profile Nikko Tenkara, based in Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan, links centuries‑old fishing traditions with modern visitor experiences. Referred to as the birthplace of tenkara, Nikko has preserved a unique regional version of this minimalist fishing method, rooted in…

Red Brook Tenkara

Company Profile Red Brook Tenkara, based in New England, was founded by Bill Holleran around 2016, after Bill became an early adopter of the tenkara method but found a lack of local support and gear. Motivated to spread tenkara across…

river peak

Company Profile river peak was established in May 2014 in Kobe, Japan specializing in tenkara and fly fishing products. Their fly and tenkara lineup includes everything from rods and reels to lines and hooks. Even tying materials and tools. river…

Rocky MTN Tenkara

Company Profile Rocky MTN Tenkara, based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is a small, family-owned tenkara rod company by Kevin and Casey Canfield. They acquired the brand in 2024 after Casey discovered it on Facebook Marketplace, and immediately recognized its potential to…

Tenkara Adventure Outfitters (TAO)

Company Profile Tenkara Adventure Outfitters (TAO) was formed in 2019 when Tom Bayly acquired the former Badger Tenkara brand, originally founded in 2014 by Matt Sment and Mike Lutes. Bayly rebranded Badger’s established lineup under the Tenkara Adventure Outfitters name…

Tenkara Path

Company Profile Tenkara Path is a workshop-based artisan brand founded by Colorado-based woodworker Dennis Vander Houwen. Since launching in 2016, Dennis has crafted hand-turned tenkara line spools, hook removers, furled lines, and kebari flies, all guided by a core philosophy…

Tenkara Rod Co.

Company Profile Tenkara Rod Co. was founded in 2013 by Drew Hollenback who was inspired to share the joy of tenkara fishing. Spawned from a Kickstarter campaign, their mission is to simplify fly fishing by making quality tenkara gear affordable…

Tenkara Tanuki

Company Profile Tenkara Tanuki is a boutique tenkara rod brand founded and led by Luong Tam, an engineer-turned-angling artisan based in San Francisco, California. What began as a passion project to build rods matching his personal fishing style evolved into a…

Tenkara USA

Company Profile Founded in 2009 by Brazilian-American angler and entrepreneur Daniel Galhardo, Tenkara USA was the first company to introduce and popularize tenkara fishing outside of Japan. Galhardo’s vision was to not only provide tenkara rods but also foster a…

Wasatch Tenkara Rods

Company Profile Wasatch Tenkara Rods is a U.S.-based tenkara rod company founded by Ruben Garza, operating out of Ogden, Utah, at the foot of the Wasatch Mountains. Rooted in a personal journey of frustration with fragile tenkara rods, Garza committed…

Zen Tenkara

Company Profile Zen Tenkara (also branded as Zen Fly Fishing Gear) was founded in 2012 by Karin Miller, a passionate angler who relocated from South Florida to Colorado and discovered tenkara as the perfect way to fish local mountain streams.…

ZimmerBuilt

Company Profile ZimmerBuilt, founded and operated by Chris Zimmer, is a custom backpack and gear brand based in Doylestown, Ohio. Known for meticulous craftsmanship and ultralight performance, ZimmerBuilt produces high‑quality, durable fishing packs and accessories, many built-to-order to exact specifications.…

Organizations

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers

Organization Profile Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) is a grassroots, non‑partisan sportsmen’s conservation organization founded around a campfire in Oregon in 2004, now headquartered in Missoula, Montana. Committed to preserving North America’s outdoor heritage of hunting and fishing, BHA operates…

Native Fish Coalition

Organization Profile Native Fish Coalition (NFC) is a nonpartisan, grassroots, donor-funded 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2017 by Tom Dickins, Bob Mallard, and Emily Bastian. Based in Maine, with a virtual headquarters and statewide volunteer chapters, NFC is dedicated to…