Fishing with kabura or tenya, two efficient techniques to catch sparids

© Paul Duval

Tenya and Kabura fishing are techniques that combine lures and baits. With adapted baits, pike, sea bream, bass or pollack have only to behave well.

Fishing with bait lures allows to realize beautiful fishing. Reserved mainly for sparidae, it can also interest many species. Here is a technique relatively easy to set up and which will seduce many beginners.

Des prises variées
A variety of holds

Fishing with kabura

For beginners of these techniques, I advise to start with the kabura. The kabura consists of a round or egg-shaped head that slides on a piece of dacron.

Of different weights, we add two hooks on a piece of braid of different lengths. These hooks are dressed with plastic skirt filaments and will receive the bait, usually cephalopod tentacles.

Hameçons habillés de jupe plastique
Hooks dressed with plastic skirt

The game consists in touching the bottom and to go up quickly of 1 or 2 turns of the crank. This avoids hooking the bottom. Then, the animation will be to go up the lure in the different layers of water, the filaments and the pieces of tentacles will be then irresistible in the current. With this method, we address all kinds of fish.

Near the bottom, it will be the pike, gurnard and sea bream, a little higher or during the animation, the pollack will be interested in it. And in the upper layers, mackerel, bonito and bass will not resist. This method is easy to put into practice, whether you are in a boat or a kayak.

By fishing above the bottom, you won't lose many lures. It is necessary to take into account the drift and to avoid an angle too large compared to the float. An angle of 30° is the right value, this will avoid the line to take too much belly. I use Astupag from Astufish, the small Breton company which operates near Port Louis, in Morbihan. The weights go from 20 to 60g.

Différents grammages
Different weights

Fishing with tenya

When one masters this technique, one can then try the tenya, there one will be closer to the bottom, with all the risks that it involves. The tenya can be of different shapes and colors. The lead often has a flat spot to land on the bottom.

The main hook is cast in the lead and a thief hook is added on a piece of dacron. The main bait for these tenya are the gambas, with for targets the big pagres or big royals. You can also put a crab on it.

Escher avec une gambas
Escher with a prawn

As it is a bottom fishing, you have to expect to get hooked often, but the fish interested in the big prawns are worth these few losses at the beginning. The key is to fish as vertically as possible, lift, set, lift, set, like a shrimp moving.

I also use Astufish astunya or the range of shells from Flashmer, the KAMOU. The weights go from 20 to 60g also (I fish in kayak) but there is heavier.

Deux techniques qui sont adaptées à la pêche en kayak
Two techniques that are adapted to kayak fishing

These fisheries give very good results and can be practiced without worry in a kayak.

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