Now available in Patagonia retail stores and online is a new book entitled Simple Fly Fishing: Techniques for Tenkara and Rod & Reel, authored by the founder and owner of the company, Yvon Chouinard, in collaboration with Craig Mathews and Mauro Mazzo. It is part of a campaign being launched by the company designed to demystify fly fishing and make the sport more accessible. The book is the centerpiece of the Patagonia Simple Fly Fishing kit, which contains a tenkara-style fly fishing rod, box of flies, line and leader, and quick set up guide.
The tenkara fly rod contained in the kit has no reel and comes from a centuries-old Japanese fly fishing technique. “This is for the young person who has wanted to learn, but is intimidated by the complexity, elitism and expense of fly fishing,” notes Yvon Chouinard. “This is for the woman and her daughter who are put off by the image of the testosterone-fueled, good-old-boy bass and trout fisherman who turned the ‘contemplative pastime’ into a competitive combat sport. And for the long-time angler who has everything and wants to replace all that stuff with skill, knowledge and simplicity.”
The philosophy behind the campaign comes from Chouinard’s belief that the way towards mastery of any endeavor is to work towards simplicity, and to replace complex technology with knowledge. Patagonia’s Simple Fly Fishing kit aims to achieve just that. Chouinard has found this incredibly simple technique to be highly effective at catching even the most difficult, highly selective fish. Read More
