The other day, I was wondering where tenkara was most popular outside of Japan. I had a few suspicions and did some quick research on Google Trends to see if I could get any insights. What I found wasn’t shocking, but I must say I was pleased.
According to Google Trends, the U.S. tops the list for overall interest in tenkara by country:
And within the U.S., Colorado is #1 (with Utah as a close 2nd):
Of course, this isn’t a thorough analysis but it seems to make sense. After all, our rivers and streams are ideal for the tenkara method. And, with the number of bloggers located in CO, the large turnouts I’ve seen at local tenkara events, and the recent relocation of Tenkara USA to Boulder, I can easily see Colorado being the western hub for tenkara. Looks like I chose the right state to live in. 🙂
I’m inclined to agree, although I’m in Taos , I certainly was turned on to Tenkara in South Fork Co.
An importer of crazy little camping gizmos had a few telescopic rods , had no line , and I had some level line . I was hooked . It took some time till I ran across Tenkara USA .
Till then it was close to impossible to find gear / DIY sites etc.
Now every time I’m in CO , I’ll see a few bush wackers with no Reels . Last Tenkara takeover there , I think I talked to dozens of Tenkara fish people .
I’m glad that Colorado is the epicenter, I would prefer to keep Idaho as just an aftershock. When I lived in Colorado there were already too many people on the streams. Keep them there, Jason! A tenkara fisher at every bend on every river. If there is anything I can do to promote tenkara in Colorado, just let me know! 😉
East slope or west slope? 😉
Lynne/Tom, looks like the majority are in Denver so probably East. But again, not a very scientific study at all.
East slope or west slope? Yes!!
I’m with Tom on this….Idaho has NO good fishing at all and no one should ever want to come and do Tenkara in Idaho. All of our streams are empty of trout!
🙂
Paul
Well, Paul, then I’m NEVER going to Idaho. Thanks for the heads up. But do you have whitefish?
I am tickled pink that California is #20 on your list of Tenkara popularity states, there are already way too many fishermen here in this state for my taste. I would like to put out a public notice for all California anglers that Colorado is the place to visit if you want to catch trout, especially big Tenkara caught trout. After the last two years of record poor snow falls, California has lost a big portion of its stream fish and fishing. For sure, Colorado looks like the place to be if you are a fisherman. But be careful what you wish for Jason, you may start something that you will eventually come to regret.
There are fairly large and passionate communities of tenkara anglers all over the world. And, the tenkara community has been active in Colorado for sometime, part of the reason I thought it would be nice to move here. But, also, since moving here I have been very active with connecting with people here and the word has been spreading like I have never seen before. It is interesting to now get recognized when I walk around or sit in a cafe 3 out of every 5 times I’m out and about. The word-of-mouth here has been something I have never seen before. That California dropped so much (it used to be #1 for quite sometime), is interesting to see too. Of course, this is based on searches, not necessarily where people are fishing or where people love tenkara.
Daniel, very cool.I used to get “recognized” in airports & other places when I ran my Gear Talk Blog, but not anymore since I focused on tenkara. Backpacking is obviously a bigger market with a wider audience so that makes sense. But I’ve had a few times when people knew who I was. I was more excited about the fact that they knew tenkara than me. 🙂
So, Colorado must be No.1 in the world, I believe. I did not see any tenkara angler other than my friends on the streams this season.
Eiji,
I have the same experience. I never see other tenkara anglers I don’t already know. The only time I ever did was when I first met Karel: https://www.tenkaratalk.com/2010/09/tenkara-serendipity-and-solidarity/
But since then, I haven’t seen any strangers fishing tenkara.
I’ve been using Tenkara on numerous rivers throughout NY, PA, CO, and MT for the past 5 to 6 years and, to date, have not encountered anyone using this method… However, I frequent a lodge on the Ruby River (MT) where one of the patrons keeps one on-hand along with her regular fly fishing gear… It’s fun to see the curious looks from others as they observe… I had one guy on the Frying Pan River ask if I lost my reel… 🙂
Japan doesn’t list in the top three countries that use Tenkara? That is hard to believe.
Keep in mind the context.
I’m guessing many Japanese wouldn’t use “Tenkara” as a search term. I bet if you used “テンカラ” Japan would come out on top. 🙂
Cliff is right. And, remember that this post is about tenkara’s popularity outside of Japan.
I am so used to not seeing anyone flyfishing much less tenkara fishing so you could say Texas aint exactly an epicenter of that sort of thing despite having plenty of fish to catch. Course there aint trout and there aint no mountain streams here either. Don’t stop me though. May I ask why it maters where the epicenter is? Does that translate into converts or technological advances? Not being smart just wondering what brought this one on? The greatest opportunity for change has to be along the line of expansion beyond what would be called traditional style or use of the tenkara rod. I think I’m kind of referring back to the purple cow article a little. No offence Jason. I enjoy reading your stuff. 🙂
Damn Brian, you lost me at the last three “aint’s”! WTF?
Brian, the “epicenter” doesn’t matter at all. Just fish tenkara the way you want to and have fun buddy!
Hi Brian,
What brought it on was I heard someone say they thought there were more tenkara anglers in the U.S. than in Japan. But then I heard a Japanese tenkara angler say he still thinks there are more tenkara anglers in Japan. So it just got me wondering where the hotspots for tenkara are around the world and where the most interest was. It was really just curiosity. Nothing else.
It’s a great place to live, and I love him home state! There have been many changes here over the past 50 years. However, the fly fishing has always been great, and yes, tenkara has really taken off here. I contribute that to the amount of water we have that’s perfectly suited for tenkara. Or vice versa! As for too many people on the streams, well I haven’t experienced that. There so MUCH water where you’re the only angler there all day or even multiple days. It just takes getting off the beaten path.
Cool, aint no big thing. LOL