Today I want to talk about "The Essentials". I took a look at what I thought was important to take and what was not so important to bring along. Sure there are luxury items and my thoughts here are only a suggestion. Your experiences and needs may differ from mine so you might take more or less than I do.

I enjoy the freedom of being able to move quickly from hole to hole. As a result of that I have found that the less I have to carry the better I can maneuver through the brush, around the trail and to the next hole.  One of the major advantages tenkara has over the traditional Western style fly fishing is the reduction of gear. In my most stripped down form I can carry everything in my hands, pockets and on my body. It shouldn't take you 10 minutes to get out  to the stream because you had to dress up, rig up and make sure that everybody knows you are there to fish.

We’ve all heard it. “Tenkara is just a rod, a line and a fly”. …Yeah …yeah…yeah. This is true but does not apply to the “extras”. I strive to only take what I need that day on the trail I am taking or for that pull off I am stopping at. Beyond the rod, line and fly there are a few things that you will certainly need to have worked out.

I am always looking for ways to life hack or even multipurpose things. Utility is king in keeping things simple. If you have a tool that will do more than one job you save yourself from a redundancy of carrying two things. The main things I need to do on the stream are to cut lines, store flies, spool my line, land a fish safely and finally, have something to remove a deep set hook. Most everything else can just stay kept in your vehicle unless you have indication that you will need it. I leave a lot of items in my vehicle rather than take them with me.

All I really need are good pockets and most fishing shirts offer a good selection of pockets. If you are like me you also really like cargo pants and shorts.  Managing your pockets is a skill in itself. Practicing putting things back in the same pocket every time will save you time and sanity.

Here are my "Essentials" and thoughts...

• The "Mostly Optional" But "Handy" Sling Pack . 
  I take my sling pack along primarily for food, water, a raincoat and to keep my wallet keys and license. The size of sling pack you use is up to you. I am currently testing out different sized sling packs to see how low profile I can go without giving up the efficiency and utility that they can offer. Your needs may be greater or less than other’s needs for comfort. If you are going to be stepping into the terrain and trails away from your vehicle a sling pack can be a nice way to carry a controlled amount of gear with you and help you manage your pocket space.
  
  
• "One... and ONLY One" Rod
  As recently as last Monday I did what I usually do and carried my spare rod with me into the brush. Unfortunately, it fell out of my sling pack somewhere in the deep brush and despite backtracking as best as I could, it remains lost.  This one event has made me think about the idea of carrying a back up rod with me.
  I can alleviate the need for a second rod by making sure that the rod I am using is in good working order. It also motivates me to be more careful with the main rod.  Just keep your spare rod in your car unless the bother of going back to your car is going to mean the end of your day. Wouldn't it be just as smart to just have a spare top three sections of your rod anyhow? These segments take up less room if you do decide to carry them with you and should you lose them it is a lot cheaper than losing a whole rod... Yeah, I'm still moping about the lost rod.
  
  
• Lines, Leaders and Tippet
  Which ever main line you use, level or furled, be sure to have some extra with you. Have at least enough back up for a second rigging should you need it. Ever go to rig up and pull off some tippet and are surprised to find you only have a foot left on the spool? Yikes! Lines and tippet are light and take up very little space. There is no reason not to just have an extra supply of each with you.  As insurance I also always keep an extra spool of tippet in my glove compartment.
  
  
• Flies, Flybox, Better Still ...a "TenkaraPath Flybox Spool"
  I don’t like to carry a large box or multiple boxes of flies out with me. Boxes can be bulky and nobody needs to carry 1000 flies out with them for "just in case"  This year I am doing the “one fly” approach. It has treated me very well even in the middle of a colossal mayfly hatch.  I keep a "main supply tin" of flies in my car and reload my "stream supply" as needed. Though the ingenuity of consolidation I created the TenkaraPath flybox spool. The spool holds my tippet, line and acts as a fly box too. It has eight chambers that will each hold two flies securely with rare-earth magnets. I can carry 16 flies with me. The Flybox spool fits neatly in my breast pocket when I am fishing. Otherwise it is used as a traditional line spool and slipped over the collapsed rod. 
  
  
• Streamside Hardware
  These items of hardware are your nippers for trimming your line and a set of long nosed pliers or forceps for removing hooks. It never hurts to carry a pocket knife, a whistle and perhaps a lighter too. All of these items still carry easily in your pant pockets. Your phone (aka your camera), keys and wallet can go into your sling pack. Sunglasses are imperative. These can be hung around your neck or just worn.
  
  
• Waders, Shoes, Hat and Sun Glasses
  Depending on the time of year and the conditions that you will want to have the option of waders and boots or shoes to get out into the water and muddy terrain. In the hotter months I will occasionally forgo wearing waders altogether and just wear a pair of boots or water shoes to fish in. It is nice on those hot days to just let your legs and feet fly free in the water. It is important to pick shoes that are meant to be submerged and that have a good grip on the rocks should you find yourself in swift water. Keeping your head covered with a hat is also a good idea. I wear glasses for reading need them to thread a fly. I continue to work on solving my eyeglass/sunglass dilemma. I will keep you posted on that.
  
  
• Landing Net, (Tamo)
  The less we touch fish the better. I like having a net to also help me get a fish to land. Be sure that you are using a net when you can to bring a fish in. Tenkara fishermen often use a special net called a “Tamo”. This net has a unique bend shape to it and is made usually from a single branch of a tree. They are aesthetically beautiful on their own and a literal lifesaver for fish. I made my own net and continue to play with making nets.
  
  
• Food and Water...But Mostly Water
  Having food is more of an option but water is a necessity. I love taking a break now and again and finding a granola bar or bag of M&M’s in the side pocket of my sling pack is always nice. It can give you a needed bit of energy. Put it in your pack and forget about it. Having water is probably the most important thing you can carry with you. I try to keep a gallon jug of purified water in the trunk of my car and I carry a water bottle in my pack. Recently I started carrying a personal filter straw and have used it to drink directly from the stream. These are relatively inexpensive and if you don’t want the weight of a water bottle they are a way to stay hydrated on the fly.
  
  
• FIRST AID KIT/BUG STUFF/SUN SCREEN
  It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. I don’t go overboard on the first aid but as I have fallen on rocks, hooked my finger, scratched my face, and been bitten by mosquitoes, I have a small kit that carries at least a few band-aids, some bug repellent and a small container of sunscreen. These you can keep together in a small sized camera bag stored in your sling pack.
  
  

And that folks is how we “keep things simple”. You can certainly add to what you want to carry with you. There is always an exchange of stuff for weight or management. I think the main point is to plan for what you need without packing in stuff you really don’t. Recently I read a great blog called "Tenkara Tales" written by David West Beale of the United Kingdom.  I really liked what he shared in his blog that similarly covered this topic. Please see what he has to share about keeping things simple too.

Colorado weather seems to continually surprise me.  It is February and while you might expect it to be cold it has been unseasonably warm for about a few weeks.  Well, that is to say until today.  We went from 60's and 70's to snowing in a matter of just 24 hours. I'm not here to bore you with a forecast of the weather though. I just make this comment here to explain and set the scene for my last week here. 

Two days ago I saw a break in my busy schedule. I realized that I could take my kiddo to school and then have all morning and into the afternoon if I wanted to for a day of fishing.  I could squeeze a day or so more out of my fishing license and maybe even explore a new place or two that had been tipped to me.

On a tip from an acquaintance, in a passing conversation, I decided to head to some water that he suggested I check out. Now I won't name the waterway out of respect to him for sharing it with me but I will tell you make sure you get exact directions when you get information like this. You see I ended up at the wrong place. That in itself isn't horrible. In that foible I actually did find myself on a stretch of that water that I hadn't covered yet.

My adventures in "the wrong place" was a pretty futile effort in the long run for actually catching fish. The water was clear and seasonably skinny.  There were clearly pockets of fish-able water to be found. As I walked the mile or so downstream from the parking lot I tried to imagine what this place could provide in the spring. I tried to take mental notes of holes that would be good to visit another time. An optimist at heart, I was hopeful still for a little luck in finding a lazy brown hiding along a bank undercut. (BIG SIGH) Nope. Nothing. On now what amounts to a walk, I did see one other fisherman who felt compelled to tell me stories about 18" rainbows that he was pulling out of that stream in the early spring.

I worked my way back to my car and then headed north a bit from that parking area and found a pull off that I was new to me as well. There were other cars there but I presume they were all hikers in the area as I didn't see anyone on the water. I walked upstream and found places that I had driven by many times but never stopped at because they were, well... just too far down the hill and likely to have been fished out by the "harvesters". What I found was again thin skinny water without any signs of life. There was plenty of fishy looking water with aeration and deeper pools along with a clearly visible rocky bottom; my hopes were raised slightly. I had one fish rise to a cast. It was a small... let's say "half-strike"...and didn't take. Just a nibble, spit and dive. Well that was encouraging but the excitement of that wore off quickly.

The following Tuesday I was able to head back out. I dropped my son off at school, grabbed a doughnut and a cup of coffee and bolted for the waterway.  The weather again pretending to be spring.  I headed back up the hill on the same stretch of water but to a more familiar stop. I found a pull of or two and edged my way up stream repeatedly being disappointed at the lack of life in the water. There were pools that I fished that I can usually count on 80% of the time to find a fish hiding in. When I made my way to my chosen end stop I worked downstream again into waters that I seldom fished in the past just to learn the terrain and the turns of the stream. I will spare you the details. It was a bust. At this point I didn't know if I was frustrated or just disappointed to a whole new level. 

Don't you hate it when the title of a section kind of tells it all? Well this does that but I promise that I will come to my main point when it is all over. I checked in with the friend who gave me the original tip that inspired me to dust of my license and get out while the getting was good. Explained my non-adventure and was promptly told I was in the wrong place.

This time I got a very specific location thanks to our friends at Google maps.  I dropped my son off at school, skipped the doughnut and had a coffee with me from home. I parked and checked my Google location and was definitely at the right place. I will be honest. This is not the usual place I would have thought to look for fishing. On the map it seems a little suburban but it is a nice little stretch of water and I could see potential going into it. It was one of those places where you see everyone unloading bikes and walking their dogs. It was a little closer to the city than I like...a place that probably only a few fisherman would fish without at least a touch of spite stuck in their craw.

It was as I said before, a suburban area. You could see apartment complexes in the distance. It was wintered over and ugly. Not a leaf in a skeleton of trees and not a sign of green anywhere. But the sun was shining and I decided to go into this with an open mind yet realistic expectation that there would be little if any life.

What I found was exactly the kind of stream features that the friend had described. I could imagine the water with more cover of leafed our trees, growing grasses and raised waters. The pools were obvious and you got a sense of where the water levels had been at one time. The canopy was actually not bad for tenkara at all and even as I hopelessly went through the motions of casting to the pools and cascades of white bubbles I knew I could see myself back here again in just a few months.

I am a person of imagination and hope. While these three late-winter/pre-spring outings provided little in the way of fishing action. I did slow down long enough to think about the waters. From new found accidents along the way to new sections of old haunts and actual locations that a man swears are some of his best "go to waters". As the song goes..."there is a season". 

Dormant waters should be expected. Fish are subject to seasonal changes, water levels and predators. They do what they must to survive the winter season. This makes me wonder where they actually do go of course but at the same time, that is a secret that is perhaps best unknown. Well, I still want to understand it better. 

As I reflect on this and project the idea onto my own relationship with the season, I see that I need to perhaps have my own places that I escape away to during the winter. Places that I will be in solitude and remain unmolested by others. This gives the world I live in during the spring a little time to flow without me directly in it or struggling to survive in a less than optimal environment. Winter is a time for slumber and reflection. Certainly it is a time for planning and thinking about the future seasons ahead as well. Eat doughnuts, look at maps, tie flies etc.

Perhaps this whole blog post is really about me reminding myself that we need these slow, unproductive times for introspection. They can act as a comparison for us in the more productive and busy times. Maybe make us appreciate the more bountiful seasons. I wish that the rest of our society was perhaps more seasonally affected.
Arguably it probably is but is ignorant to its effects. It seems every January that we are supposed to be "out of the gates" rushing towards some goal. Well this guy is going to take a cue from the groundhog and slip back into my hole only coming out occasionally if the sun is shining. I won't be fooled by the false promise of early spring. When I do emerge though I will be ready and focused. See you in the spring. I'll bring the doughnuts.

I honestly believe we have fallen prey to the world of commercialism and have been sold a huge bill of goods. We are advertised lifestyles that are mere snapshots of opulence that we should supposedly be working towards living. We have been taught through our consumer culture that possessions equal freedom. Looking back at my own childhood I think about being on the poorer end of the scale compared to my friends. We weren't dirt poor but it seemed that the things that would have made me feel "normal" compared to others were always just out of reach.
I have been on that roller coaster of striving for that idealized image of what is a "successful life". The road was paved with false ideas and false promises of happiness.

Now that I am older I now see the things that mattered in my youth for what they were, trivial  consumerist thinking. With time and experience as my teacher I find myself drawn to the aesthetics of simplicity. To the value of time, quality and clarity.  I want life to quit being so complicated and full of clutter.

Over the last few years now I have been working to minimize my lifestyle.  The items that I had accumulated despite any actual need for them were both a virtual and literal weight on my life and psyche. Too often I had made the mistake of confusing the things I wanted for the things I needed. I see now that I like if ever stopped to ask the most important question.  Why did I need anything that I thought I wanted?

Tenkara really has been a great teacher for me. It has helped me see that I could have as much if not more enjoyment with less gear and less thought given. I learned that having more than I needed was a burden Most of the stuff I was carrying was not needed.  My fishing gear was actually taking up space that I could use better for things that would extend my day and make the whole experience better, easier and yes, more personally fulfilling.  Tenkara and its elements of simplicity have become a practice that has imprinted itself on me and that I try to live into now with other parts of my life.

I want to give a few thoughts for you to consider as well as a few questions for you to throw at yourself regarding the things you own and have been holding on to. I am not an expert yet at this.  I have been working for a few years now with leaps forward and slides backward to minimize my life and lifestyle.  It is not easy to purge things from your life. Minimalism isn't for everyone and I am not suggesting everyone dive deep into it. I know though that for me it has been a great thing. It has served my life. Maybe you will find a few things that will help you change the way you think about your stuff. Here are a few questions to start you off.

1. Think about the things you own and now ask how do I feel about getting rid of these things?
I keep looking at my things and looking at how I am emotionally tied to them. These emotions keep us from getting rid of things. For me sometimes, objects seems to have an invisible tag tied onto them. The things we own should really serve a specific and desired need. They should serve us as more than just items we can say we own. Often times they feel like they own us. By exploring our emotions surrounding items and being honest with ourselves we can examine why we are keeping things and better still, should we be?

2. If your house was on fire what would be the 5 things you would grab to save?
Let's pretend you have only 1 minute to grab those 5 things... (For the record, your family and pets are safe and not part of this list. We are talking about "things") You might be surprised at what things you do grab. Why those 5 things and not others? Most things can be replaced of course. What things we value most can give us a lot of insights into ourselves and our values.

3. How many places do you have that you put stuff to keep..."Just in case?"
I can easily bet that if you are reading this you have a junk drawer full of "tid-bits", a shed full of duplicate tools, a medicine cabinet with expired pills,a garage or storage unit with boxes of things you forgot existed, or maybe a box (or is it boxes?) of fly tying materials you will never use in a single lifetime. We keep a lot of stuff "just in case you need them".  It would take you a lot longer than 20 minutes in some cases to find that one thing you are looking for. The reality is that if we really need something it can probably be gotten new in less than 20 minutes and replaced for less than $20. So what is the real benefit to keeping it?

4. What items are you keeping for no other reason than the memories associated with them?
When an item reminds us of a happy time or a person in our lives, that should and can be a good thing. But if we are really honest some of those things don't really recreate that moment and we really don't need that item to remember that event or person in our lives.  Nostalgic items come in all shapes and sizes. From old concert ticket stubs to ratty baseball hats, etc. Certainly some items can be cherished and kept. But if the nostalgia is the only reason you are keeping something then you might be just be holding on to an item as a way to hold on to the past. What I have found is that only a few items ever make it to my "keep for nostalgia" box. Yes, a small cigar box can hold a great treasure that won't take up too much room.

5. When you buy things do you buy in bulk?
A short while back I found realized I owned more fly tying materials than I would ever need. More thread spools, feathers, dubbing material, hooks and even duplicate fly tying tools. These things all accumulated because frankly they were sold in large quantities.  Add to that I wanted to have a large variety of materials to tie with. So I decided to take out just what I would use and to put the rest in a box. The box was there and if I needed something I could go to the box and get it.  Truth be told, I never opened the box. After a year I made the leap and  was able to donate my gear to a friend's son who was taking up fly tying. The biggest reward was that my fly tying bench became much easier to use. Quite often when we buy things we are purchasing them because we don't want to be without.
 
6. Have you told yourself that having variety makes you more creative, saves you time or even money?
Why do you feel this way and is that really the truth? I have found that having fewer choices is the best way to find true creativity and focus in my life. Whenever I have too many choices it becomes much harder to make a choice. Things become more difficult to store and manage. Having too many choices in front of us can actually be a block in our progress and in our creativity. Remember that it is necessity that is the mother of invention not variety.

Letting go of things we don't use or need is actually a very bold and brave action to take. Physically speaking, it can really open up our storage spaces, clear our cluttered shelves, closets and garages. Practically speaking it can open our lives up to great things too.  Things like more time, more money or mental health.  We see very quickly that our lives are not measured by the things we own. Our lives are measured by the experiences we have and the people in our lives. There are many benefits to working towards a minimalist lifestyle. You cannot expect though to just jump into these changes. You have to take intentional steps. You have to look at items you own and decide what importance they have in your life.  How do they enrich your life and when was the last time you used that item? I am taking steps currently to see that the things in my life are things that I have intentionally said yes to owning. The process is incredibly therapeutic and humbling.  There is a freedom that comes with letting "things" go. There is absolutely an art to it. A process that changes your outlook and perspective.

1. Find one room in your house. Perhaps a very personal room to you that has mostly if not all of just your things in it.  Examine what is in this room. What belongs there? What is just being stored there? What things are cluttering the space?

2. Get yourself 4 boxes. One box is for stuff you want to donate, one is for stuff you need to move to another place in your home, one is a small box marked "just in case" and the last one is just a garbage.

3. Try to fill each of the boxes. Save the "just in case box" for items you think you might need later and aren't ready to get rid of.

4. Make decisions quickly and without second guessing yourself.

5. Remove the boxes from the room.  Put the stuff away that needed to be in a different location. Put the garbage into the waste bin outside, take the charity donation away. Put the sealed up, "Just in case box" into a closet, under your bed or if need be on a shelf in your garage. Mark the box with a date of up to 6 months. Whatever you haven't removed from the box after that date should be tossed or donated.

6. Now come back to the recently cleared room space and begin to tidy and reorganize what you have left.

7. Once you have done these steps you can then appreciate your new found space and the feeling it gives you. Think about the things you kept and why you kept them.

8. Wait a day or so and then find your next space or room to tackle.

Some final words
Letting go of stuff feels good, clears up your space from clutter and can be a psychological weight lifted off of your shoulders. Letting go with intent makes room in your life for easier living and has a holistic effect on your overall thinking.  The real trick is to establish a new way of thinking about stuff. Establish a new mindset, think differently about the things you purchase and do your best not to over-consume. Sure things will find their way into your life again. As items do come into your possession just ask your self "do I really need this?" "Do I find value enough in this thing to keep it?" I wish you the best in your process of downsizing, minimizing your possessions and understanding your relationship to your stuff.

I can't believe we are in the middle of fall fishing already. The seasons have rushed on by. What a great summer it has been. Lots of good water and beautiful fish. I have been getting out as often as I can and over the last few outings started to notice that my left wader foot was getting progressively leaky.  I wear Chota hip waders. I love that they are lightweight and pack small.  They are perfect for most every stream I fish. Not super expensive but also not cheap. I would like to get more than a few seasons out of them.  In the past I had touched up the seams that started to peel back with a little super glue. These held pretty well for a while. 

Unfortunately the waders near the end of this season have been just slowly wetting my socks. The left wader finally got so bad that it immediately soaked my sock just stepping into the water. I looked for a seam that might be blown out and eventually using an old trick found an actual hole in the toe. More about that shortly.

At first I thought maybe I would just try and reseal everything up again with the old superglue. One thing that I noticed about using superglue though was that it would eventually crack and flake.  What I really needed was a rubberized substance that I could apply to the seams.  I remembered a product that I had seen at the hardware store used for resealing leaky gutters and such.  Then I also remembered a product used for dipping tool handles into that created a rubberized grip.  With a little on line research I found Plasti-Dip by Performix was also now available in an aerosol spray. Basically a spray on rubberized sealer! This product seems to have sealed my seams dare I say better than manufacturer's standards.

Spring is here! Spring is here! Spring is here!!!
All winter I have been tying flies and pouring over maps for places to hit once spring and summer hit. Once the waters looked good I had to get out.  We had some false starts which is about right for Colorado and the front range. Mother nature has a way of playing an evil game of "psyche".  I was able to get in a few days between snow storms.
Those early spring snow falls are welcome as water for the streams up to the point that I start swearing about all the mucky slushy snow. My patience is moderate at best when it comes to season changes and weather.

Through the winter I did quite a bit of daydreaming of fishing in the warmer season. Of those places there was one place specifically that I was looking forward to hitting.  Now we all have those places that we fish that are absolutely sworn secret places.  This place I am about to tell you about is not so much a secret as it is a place you could easily find yourself going to if you made a little effort and made the trip a destination.  In addition to the great fishing, there is also beautiful scenery and amazing amounts of wildlife. No, not Wyoming, or Montana, I'm talking about South Dakota.

Specifically I'm talking about Custer State Park. We went this year just before Memorial day and it was absolutely a dream get away. The trip for us was a little more than a 6 hour drive to get there. Our first trip there was two years ago in mid June. Both times that we have been there were just great.  There are plenty of accommodations in the park for whatever floats your boat. Tent or RV Camping, Cabins and even a lodge. We did the cabin for this trip and it was perfect. The Blue Bell Campground had RVs, Tents sites and wonderfully clean and cozy cabins.  There is a small store near by where you can get what you need and even buy your fishing license. There's beer and some essentials as well as a modest amount of tourist souvenirs.  The cabins are pretty much, low-end "Glamping". Bunk beds and a table but power to charge your phone or to run your portable dvd player if you are 7 year old and can't live without an episode of Scooby Doo. So you are a long way from roughing it and having to hike into a back woods. It's nice to have a shower and for a family trip it is perfect.

There are only a couple of streams in Custer State Park to fish. The one that stands out the most and that I spent my days on this trip was French Creek. I got the 3 day fishing license and could have probably added an additional day or six. There is a lot of stream to cover. This stream seems to be everywhere in the park. I winds around in so many different directions and covers so much of the park. I got disoriented trying to figure it out. It was almost spooky that every time I saw a stream it was this same one in a place you didn't expect it. But how? I think this is the most winding stream I have ever fished.

Day one I didn't wander far - Getting Started
Blue Bell Picnic Area
Just on the main road before the turn off to the Blue Bell Camp ground is a public picnic area that I probably would have normally avoided assuming it was probably over pressured. But I hadn't seen anyone on the water at all and it was as good a place as any to start. I worked my way down stream and then back up again. That day I caught several really nice brownies while my wife and son went driving around the park. The fish were not over abundant but were exactly where you thought they would be and occasionally you found more than one hanging out in the same neighborhood.

Day two - Deeper Into the Park.
After a morning of touring about we headed a little deeper into the park. I brought my rod along as we drove through the park and saw the herds of bison, white tailed deer, wild turkeys, coyotes. prairie dogs  and marmots. ON day one my wife and son had found the "Horse campground" while I was fishing. She wanted to take me there to see that part of the park again. Horse Campground is basically a very nice, special campground for equestrians.

Horse Campground
It was just early afternoon when we rolled up.  I noted a few spin casters in the creek  here and there. It had the atmosphere of a typical municipal campground only with lots of RVs and horse trailers. If you ever wanted to watch a horse get "shoed" this would be where I would send you. French Creek drives right through the middle of the campground. But don't let that stop you from fishing it.  I walked a small portion of the creek here and caught a few more browns including a fish that was easily 14-15".  From there we moved on to another place that I had been told by a local would be a great place to drop into. He was right as rain.  

Fisherman's Flats
This portion of French Creek is called "Fisherman's Flats". The Flats is actually the only "open area camping" in the park. It is designed to be a 2 to 3 day pack trip that you can take and hike from one end to the other.  Fortunately for us there is also a way to drive up to a trail head and hike down to the creek. It is a nice little hike (I'm guessing about a mile) that drops you down into a valley. I hiked down into this area at roughly 2:30pm and when I got close to the water I could see fish rising and jumping at bugs. I only fished about 100 yards of water on this jaunt but what great water it was. Lots of really good sized browns and few brook trout too. I ended up catching at least 13 fish in the short time I had. Good quantity but also great sizes all the way up to 13- 14". The local who keyed me onto the spot said he was always surprised that he hardly ever sees anyone else fishing it very much. This was hands down the best day of fishing on the trip. One warning though...the hike out is all up hill and seems longer than the hike down.
Also be on the lookout for rattlesnakes and poison ivy. I saw no snakes but there was plenty of the latter.

Day three - That Creek is Everywhere
We took a quick day trip into the town of Hot Springs, SD. If you go there the only saving grace of the town is the Mammoth dig site that we did go and see. It is a pretty lame little town. Struggling and trying too hard to be charming but missing the mark.  We were less than impressed with the town. After a bad lunch we returned to the state park and I decided to take a hike and fish French Creek where it passed near the campground. A few days prior my son and I had taken a short walk and found that our cabin was really close to the creek. I walked the short trail and in a very short time I was on the water and had my first 9" brown in hand. The view in this back area was just beautiful. Cliffs that loom up and the creek just winds around. I only caught 2 or 3 more fish in this section. It didn't seem to have the population. This seemed odd to me as it was actually quite off the beaten path. Oh well not every day on the water is hand over fist catching.

Some Closing thoughts
While I was there I saw very few fly fishermen and I was the only tenkara guy.  We had been here before and I had an even better trip than last time. It was the week before Memorial day but when we were there in June of 2014 it was only slightly busier. 

I think getting outside of your local area every chance you can is one of the best things you can do for your fishing. I do love my Colorado places to fish but getting into these new waters I saw that not all fish are the same. A few times I found myself missing the strike but getting it with a patient presentation a second or third cast. Maybe I am imagining it but the fish just seemed to behave slightly different to what I had gotten used to in my home waters. The change of scenery is always nice and it gets you out of your old habits and makes you have to think a little. Getting to fish a new place is what keeps it all interesting.

The population of South Dakota is relatively small with very few large cities. There is a lot of tourist traffic of course to Mt. Rushmore and the surrounding area. Finding Custer State Park was a real score for us as a family. It has a lot to offer and is very much overlooked. I don't expect this to change. You have to look for these places though. You have to get out of the mind set that everyone else is following. I share this location with you in the hopes that you might actually make the trip yourself, enjoy the great fishing and give the local economy a little of your support. As a family we are considering making Custer an annual trip. Maybe next year I'll see you on the banks of French Creek.

The reasons we collect so much.
As with any process of simplifying we do need to look at the root of the problem which is our mindset about the stuff we buy, own and keep. We have an uncanny knack for hoarding our materials and supplies in quantities that go beyond our needs. Perhaps the thought is that we don’t want to be without something.  Perhaps the thinking attached to the items is that we really want to have a variety of colors and sizes.  Perhaps the quantities that materials are sold is too much too. I think it is a combination of all of these things. Add to that our culture of consumption, our challenge of passing up a good deal and for me the discovery of a new material that I just "have" to try and tie a fly with. 

Being honest with ourselves.
Downsizing requires us to take a moment to understand and evaluate the importance of each item to us and have a moment of honest questioning about why we are holding on to certain materials. Sometimes the reasons are logical and other times they are illogical. We all have probably collected more than we will ever use.  I know for a while I was collecting materials out of curiosity.  At other times I did because of my desire to learn to use and tie different materials like elk and deer hair etc. Finally, I wanted to have a huge palette of materials for my fly tying creativity. If we want to be more creative and tie better flies though we really have to reduce our options. Much creativity comes from adaptation and not from having a large selection of options.

Some of the reasons we collect.
 I don’t know where fly tying materials fall on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, but let’s look closer at the big picture of why we buy materials in the first place.

1.  We have got to start somewhere.  Yes, this is true. We have to have some of the basics when we start. Those basics usually include a vise, a bobbin, hackle pliers, scissors, some thread, hooks, tying materials and feathers.
Somehow we end up also deciding we need to add a second bobbin, or a whip finisher. That is fine. We just don't ever seem to know when enough is good enough.

2.  Emotional Collecting  You may have seen some of these reality "Hoarding" shows on television. The people on those shows have some pretty serious psychosis going on.  We all have it to a small degree. It is hardwired into us as humans to gather supplies for our security and survival.  We should be mindful of our purchases and decide if the thing we are buying is for actual use or if we are buying it for emotional reasons.

3.  A habit of Spending.  How often do you go into your local fly shop or on line to look at materials and end up buying materials?  Are you buying out of need or habit? The issue is that we don't establish limits to our needs. We can slowly build our supplies through one purchase here and one purchase there. We fail to appreciate what we already have and fool ourselves into believing that getting that new rooster hackle in purple is good idea. Watch your own habits. Decide if they are serving you or bogging you down with more stuff you will only use a little of once.

4. The great deal. Who doesn't love a great deal on materials? (or anything for that matter?) When we see a great deal we have to do everything in our power not to purchase or we will "lose out". We should maybe decide if we are sold on the great deal or if we really need the item. If we do find a great deal and we do need the item maybe we should consider if we know someone who could also use the materials. Take advantage of the deal but also don't feel you need to go for quantity. Share what you don't need or even split the deal with someone.

5.  Bragging rights. Do you ever socially brag about your quantities or variety of materials to others? Do you feel a certain amount of status or see yourself at a level of expertise in owning so many materials? We fool ourselves sometimes with these small insecurities. We want others to see us as equals or even experts. This status cannot be obtained by quantity but rather should be measured by quality.

6.  Experimental materials.  I am guilty of this more than any other reason.  I love visiting the fabric stores, garden centers, craft stores and bead shops. I find stuff in the park and in my wife's sewing supplies. I don't even have to spend money.  I've caught myself looking at a carpet end thread thinking about how it will look on a fly. There is nothing wrong with this kind of experimentation to a point. I know I have gone too far though when I start looking for more loose carpet threads to pull.

What happens when we let go?
Removing the excess in our lives actually frees us up. Having smaller quantities makes things more manageable. Having fewer choices also helps us to focus and appreciate quality over quantity.  I work now to tie great looking flies.  I watch and learn how the materials adhere to each other; connect together and actually work together to create a thing that fish will find interesting enough to bite.

I have discovered an appreciation for the materials I do have.  I am less overwhelmed by the choices and feel less regret over materials sitting around collecting dust.  I can still explore new ideas and new materials when I want to.  I do it now with smaller quantities when I can. 

I like having a bench and tying area that is easy to clean up, maintain and that I can pack up easily and take with me when I travel.   Finally,  having a clutter free space to work and limited supplies helps me to sit down to tie more often. When I tie with limited choices for materials I am forced to look at the different techniques and approaches to tying a fly pattern. My tying style becomes focused, intentional and very much an art.

So how much should we downsize?
Simple answer... “Downsize as much as you feel comfortable.” You have to find that happy zone for yourself. Downsizing takes place over months or sometimes even years. It is a practice in an of itself. I’ve been doing it for years not only with my fly tying materials but with the rest of my possessions as well.  It feels good to get rid of excess and it can make others happy too when you pass on your excess stuff to them. I’ve already given away two old vises and lots of feathers and dubbing. Start with smaller containers to restrict the quantities you feel comfortable keeping. I use mint tins from Trader Joe's for a lot of my materials.

Here we are in the final post of the Three Part series on minimizing our basic gear and tackle.  I do hope that you can see now that the commercial answers are not always the best. There is a lot of benefit to be found in dropping the load stone that gear can be when we fish.  When I started backpacking I remember learning that if I didn't use something it probably wasn't needed. If I needed something I tried to remember to plan ahead or at least be able to improvise. I think these same thoughts apply to tenkara gear too.

FLY BOXES
Let's face it... your field fly box does NOT have to carry ALL of the flies you own.  I know that people have boxes with rows and rows of flies that look like soldiers in formation waiting to go to battle.  Sure this is fine for storing them at home or perhaps bringing along a good selection in your car. But why carry that big old honking box with you on the trail? Have the fancy big box for keeping your library of flies in but leave it behind. Carry a smaller box and be surprised by how little you really needed.

What I realized was that in any given day of fly fishing I never need more than a dozen flies at the very most. I can take couple varieties of flies along with me in a smaller box.  All I have to do is have a few dark patterns, a few light patterns and a few that I just want to try out for the first time.  The most I have with me at any given time is about 16- 24 flies and that too is overkill. 

Of course one of the basic tenants of traditional tenkara is to use presentation over the “match the hatch” approach.  We don’t need a dozen different flies to do this. I am of the school of make flies that you think will catch fish. If they catch fish then keep using them. I'm pretty sure at this point that there isn't a fly that can't catch a fish.

I love boxes of all kinds and am a self-proclaimed “box freak” who never met a box I didn’t like.  I collect boxes of all kinds because you never know when you will need a good box to put something in. You may notice with the ideas below that some of the boxes I have collected here can also be used as line holders. That dual purpose makes them a great way to manage your line and keep everything together in just your shirt pocket.

I've had a great time exploring these ideas. I hope that you are inspired to keep your eye out for solutions and other ideas as well. More importantly I hope that you will share those ideas. Until my next post...Have fun being creative!

Last week in part ONE we covered a scope of line management and spool options This week we look primarily at just a couple of ways of attaching your line directly onto your rod.
       
Its about being able to move quickly from one place to another.
One thing that I found troublesome on the stream is managing line while moving from one place to the next.  You know, when you have to break your rod down so that you can get past a bunch of brush and move to the next hole? I've wrapped the line in my hand and around the handle of the rod too. For these short cuts I've been rewarded with nice knots in my leader and frustrating time not fishing while I tried to undo my mess. 

Line tenders are not reels.
Just because Tenkara is without a reel doesn't mean we don't need to have a place to put line when we aren't using it.  Sure some of the spools I shared last week would work just fine.  They are reasonable solutions to the issue.  One thing to consider with some of those ideas is that they aren't always the fastest way to manage a line when you are just jumping up or down stream a short distance. You have to find the spool wrap the line and break down your rod. When you get to that next hole you end up going through the whole process again of unwinding from a spool and putting the spool back into your pocket. This is not a huge deal but... I don't  know how many times I've dropped that spool into the stream and had to chase madly after it. The obvious answer to this is a rod mounted line tender.

Rod mounted line tenders

My good friend Jason Klass wrote about creating these some time back on his blog TenkaraTalk. Someone else came up with the same idea and commercialized them.  (I believe personally that Jason was the historic inventor but I am a biased friend.) These clips attach to your rod and you wind your line around the two points. They are held on by elastic or silicon bands. These are probably the most practical item you can add to your tenkara rod. However the commercial ones in my opinion are overpriced for what they are. I have been experimenting with some variations on this idea.

There certainly are more ideas out there for mounting different kinds of line managers to your rod. Please share your ideas in the comment section below. 

In the next and final installment of this post I will talk about some fly box and fly management solutions. After that I hope to share some other topics. I am sure I will be back to more of these ideas too.

When I first started writing this blog post over a month ago it was still fair weather fishing.  I wanted to look at all the ways I could reduce my gear in hand. I wanted to make the management and handling of line, flies and leader efficient. Along the way I found a lot of great options. So many as a matter of fact that I have had to break this topic down over three blog posts to make it more manageable.

At the core of my efforts is the pursuit of the simplest set up. I wanted a way to carry just the gear needed and have a reasonable sling bag to carry my day’s food and a few survival and minor comfort essentials.  Overall it was a very enjoyable process. I tried to remain honest with myself about my actual needs. Of course these needs can change over time and with each specific trip. It is better to plan ahead.

In researching hacks I found some to be less than ideal and actually causing more issues than they solve.  Some things pretend to be hacks and fall short of being a solution at all. By loose definition a hack should be practical, solve a problem, be fairly easy to make and accomplish the job intend as well (if not better) than the thing it is replacing.  Hacks are great because they let us look at things and use them in unconventional ways. . 

Some of the ideas I came up with did cross over onto each other and some were stand-alone ideas.  I have always enjoyed life hacks and small D.I.Y. projects and these ideas fall somewhere in those categories. I am sure that you too will find your own ideas and I hope that you will share them with all of the other readers either in the comment section of this blog or on the Tenkara Path Facebook page.

I continue to look at approaching tenkara fly fishing with the idea that getting in to the areas and fishing with least amount of gear in tow is the ideal approach. I can move quicker and cover more fishing area and holes which of course leads arguably to more chances to catch fish.

The Power of Reduction and Combination
One thing that tenkara has taught me is to keep reducing things to a simpler and simpler form.  Understanding that utility and necessity trump gimmick, newest model and hype.  Reductions should be a benefit that removes the use of bulkier solutions and yet still obtain the same effect.  Finding items that can serve two or more solutions as one item are almost always better than carrying individual items that have only one function. .

Keep the Essentials
I’ve continued to use a small nipper and carry a hemostat clipped to my shirt. My fly box and lines now fit nicely into a shirt pocket or two at the most. When I take a net with me I just tuck it into my belt at the small of my back. Net options will have to wait for another day.  I’ve been working on finding the best way to manage my leader, flies and tippet. I want to keep everything easy to access and easy to put away.  I have found that there is very little reason to have a fishing bag other than to carry my lunch, a rain jacket, maybe an extra rod, a phone and/or a camera.

I’ve probably gone overboard in my search and found a variety of items that work well as solutions.
I hope that at least one of the ideas that follow seem like something useful to you. You may not know until you try it out yourself and give it a field test.  Each hack has some advantages and disadvantages. I try to cover these with each description. 

Lets Talk First About Spools.
A spool of course allows you to manage your line when you are not using it. There are certainly very nice wooden, foam or even plastic spools that have been created specifically for line management. But this article is about DIY and hacks… So I started looking at spools I could find that were being used for something other than tenkara lines.  I like a lot of the commercial spools but I really like how personalized that a hack or DIY can be.  One thing I have wanted is a spools that could double as a fly box. I have listed a few of those with the ideas below.

Ear bud cases
Early on I repurposed some ear bud cases as spools. These worked okay in that I could put the hook in a chamber and then using the winder feature of the case to wind the tippet and line onto the spool. There was even a little room in the case for a few more flies to be stored.  Downside was that these cases are each different. Sure you could find one that worked but I have a couple lines and don’t really need that many sets of ear buds.  Purchasing a product just for a component is again not a bad or good thing.

Handmade spools
Pieces of wood and chunks of bone have been fashioned into spools for fishing line long before there were fishing rods.  I have looked at cutting out a flat “H” shaped spool for keeping my line on.  I know that there have been traditional spools of this kind used by the Japanese forefathers of tenkara as well.  One ongoing issue in doing this with modern day lines is that your line can form a memory on the bends and will need to be stretched out each time it is unwound. If you like this more primitive design I am sure one could be whittled out of a nice piece of found wood or your next trip out.  There are a lot of beautiful wooden spools on the market too but making one yourself is rewarding and personalizes it.

Backpacking Salt and Pepper bottle
I found this salt and pepper bottle at a backpacking store and probably spent too much on it. It has two twist-off caps that open and can hold a few flies on each side. You can actually wind a couple of spools of line on this one. It is small and fits in a pocket easily. The container is clear as well so you can see how many flies you have or what style of fly is kept in what side of the container.  Keep and eye out for these at garage sales and thrift stores.

The irony is not lost on me that I have covered so many ways to minimize your spool here that it is far from minimalist to use all of these. I would suggest that you look at them and decide for yourself what works best for you and go with that.

  In Part TWO of this series I will talk about rod mounted line tenders. I have fallen in love with them and continually look for materials to make them for all of my rods. I will tell more about that later. Until then I hope that you will explore these spool options and share any others that you find in the comments below.