2017 Tenkara Summit

It took a little longer than I thought it would, but figured now was as good a time as any to do a recap of the Tenkara Summit that took place in Estes Park, Colorado back on September 16th. Actually, this will be more of a photo dump, with a few captions included for good measure.

Daniel Galhardo kicked off the day with opening remarks and a quick history of the Tenkara Summit

Matt Sment from Badger Tenkara’s presentation was extremely informative. Many tips on how to be a better tenkara angler were covered.

Jason Klass (Tenkara Talk) discusssed tenkara techniques

And Steve Schweitzer rounded out the morning’s presentations discussing fishing both Rocky Mountain National Park & Indian Peaks Wilderness (his books on both are excellent!)

There were quite a few vendors present. The Tenkara USA tables were a hub of activity…

Shiso, Daniel Galhardo’s dog was also in attendance. Shiso has recently taken to social media with his own Instagram account!

The Hane 2 prototype rod was introduced and made for sale for the first time at the Summit. Those that bought it will provide feedback to see if this becomes a permanent rod in the TUSA lineup.

There were other vendors too, like Trek Light Gear…

…and Dennis from Tenkara Path with many handmade items including line spools…

…and some interesting nets.

Lunch was provided out of two food trucks – pizza & BBQ.

I went with pizza, the truck had its own wood fire oven!

Back inside, there were other wares, such as rod cases…

and fly boxes. All so beautifully crafted.

 

A full view of vendor row

There was also “Tenkara Pie” for all… I went back for seconds. 🙂

 

Jammers enjoying their BBQ lunch…

After lunch, Dr. Ishigaki put on a casting clinic. He casts effortlessly and had a great rapport with the crowd.

Adam Trahan put out some targets for casting accuracy drills.

 

There were also breakouts for rod/line rigging…

…and fly tying.

Chris Zimmer from Zimmerbuilt showing off some of his packs. Every tenkara angler should own one.

The afternoon had two wonderful presentations. The first was by Patagonia founder, Yvon Chouinard. The crowd was captivated by his passionate plea for protecting our natural resources.

Dr. Ishigaki also addressed the crowd and touched on many different tenkara topics.

The day’s program ended with a panel Q&A from many of the day’s speakers.

 

But that was not it! After a short break for dinner, the hall reopened for fly tying.

Again, Dr. Ishigaki drew a crowd as he tied his namesake patterns.

Colorado band Paper Moonshine provided the musical backdrop

Many of the tyers participated in an “Iron Fly” style competition moderated by 303 Flies.

The winner being presented his spoils from Dr. Ishigaki.

It was an incredibly full day of events, and there was so much great information being shared. Not only did I leave feeling like I learned a ton, but it was so great to see old friends and make new ones. If you’ve never attended a Tenkara Summit, I’d highly recommend considering one in the future.