How was the practice of area born in the land of the rising sun? In what context and how did this movement come to us? The area, which can be translated as "zone", implies a "closed area" dedicated to fishing.
Most of the comments collected and translated are those of the sales manager of Jackall/Timon in Japan and the feedback of Thomas Vogels, Illex product manager, who has already had the chance to practice in real areas in Japan.
How was trout fishing in Japan born?
It is difficult to say when exactly the area was born in Japan. The origin of the area in Japan seems to be dedicated fly stream managers who started by renting a part of the river as a recreational facility for the American occupation forces after the war.
The oldest pond-type area/reservoir is Higashiyama Lake Fishing Area, which was built 350 years ago using an artificial lake created as an irrigation reservoir, and began fishing for rainbow trout with spoons in managed fishing areas over 30 years ago.
The current style of fishing began about 25 years ago when micro-spoons in the 1 gram range, which were rarely used before, were introduced to the area.
There had been small competitions before, but about 20 years ago (in the 2000s), a nationwide fishing competition was held on a fishing TV channel, which led to the development of various fishing methods and techniques to catch more fish than other anglers by using not only spoons, but also plastic lures. In the fishing tackle industry in Japan, private management fishing has become one of the most popular forms of fishing.
What is the weight of the area in the fishing industry in Japan?
In the Japanese fishing tackle industry, trout fishing in areas is a much smaller market than sea fishing or black bass fishing.
On the other hand, it is very convenient and effective for novice fishermen, as they can always find released fish on the paid fishing grounds and can enjoy fishing in the city by using the outdoor pools closed during the winter.
What are the views of wild trout fishermen on the area?
People who fish for native trout in the wild tend to be those who enjoy spending time in a beautiful natural environment and those who appreciate the beauty of the equipment and the culture of catch and release fishing.
There may be a large number of older anglers, but with the recent outdoor boom, the number of young anglers is increasing. There is a real difference between wild trout fishing and area fishing.
