Aerial Mends Made Easy

Tenkara is all about precision casting. Selecting a desired location for a holding fish and making an accurate cast to that target. Because we’re targeting specific locations expecting fish to be there, there’s an expectation when our fly hits the water that a fish might strike!

This brings us to aerial mends and why they’re important. Aerial mends serve two primary purposes for tenkara anglers;

1. When casting directly at a target where [you think] a fish may be, an aerial mend adds slack into the casting line. This slack line provides the fish the ability to take the fly without tension. Line tension, while it does provide better strike detection and “contact” on deeper drifts, it also increases the chances that a fish will detect an unnatural drift or an inedible quality about the fly’s “behavior,” especially in shallower presentations. This detection of an unnatural food item often leads to the fish quickly ejecting (or spitting out) the fly before a hook-set may occur. Therefore, by adding an aerial mend the needed leeway for the fish to take the fly without tension is afforded. The angler can then make a hook-set, as this “extra slack line” has allowed the fly to become deeper ingested, or has afforded the fish the necessary time to strike and make a head turn before detecting any unnatural line tension.

Reason #2

2. When anticipating a casting location and realizing “a drift” will need to occur before the fly would reach the strike-zone, an aerial mend may be used to allow time for fly repositioning. This “bought time” allows for the fly, line, and tippet to become aligned with the current presenting a natural-looking drift before the fly would reach the holding position or anticipated strike-zone of any potential fish. By anticipating where “we think” a fish may be holding and adding aerial mends to our casts we’re able to facilitate a faster natural drift in complex currents. The quicker a fly can demonstrate a natural drift, the quicker a fish can determine its’ food worthiness.

Aerial mends are NOT intended to make our casting better, but instead used to facilitate better PRESENTATIONS. While aerial mends serve other purposes, these two reasons are good introductions to why aerial mends are talked about so much in tenkara fishing.

Because we cast with a fixed-length line and rely mostly on shorter 3 to 7sec. drifts, this “bought time” matters a lot.

When we think about aerial mends, we should think about “buying time.” This is the advantage aerial mends offer most. Whether it’s buying time to allow for our fly and tippet to align with the current, or buying the necessary time [leeway] for a fish to strike without detecting line tension. These two primary reasons why the fixed-line angler should consider implementing aerial mends into their casting stroke.