Trip Report: Tenkara vs Machaca

6/28/2016

Adapting tenkara to catch an exciting new species

The first and obvious question is “what the heck is a machaca?”. The short answer is “the most perfect tenkara sportfish species you’ve never heard of”. The more precise answer is that the machaca is relative of the piranha that inhabits rivers and lakes in Central America. They share the piranha’s intimidating dental hardware, but have a vaguely carp-like body. They take flies aggressively, and fight like
smallmouth bass...only angrier! And, dare I say it, stronger.

Tenkara up - The Wisconsin River Smallmouth Crash is ON!

6/14/2016

Tenkara fishing for Smallmouth on the Wisconsin river during the Crash feeding Frenzy

It is a great time of year on the lower Wisconsin. The weather is warm, the bugs are not yet too thick, and most importantly, the annual phenomenon known locally as "The Crash" has finally begun. What's that you say - never heard of it? It's a month or so period of time where schools of ravenously hungry, thug-like big river Bronzebacks cruise around corralling bait-fish in places they can trap them against restrictive terrain features - and then gorge on them in splashy feasts that boil the water as the entire school feeds and the baitfish attempt to flee for their lives. Bass fly through the air, smash fish on the surface, and swim in crazy circles as they pursue their prey. It sometimes leaves you awestruck just watching them, and it is almost enough to make you forget to fish - almost.