The ZENAQ PLAISIR ANSWER PA108 arrives

I had not used it yet, but I was already very impressed.

Long, yet light. Wonderful.

Twenty guides. The whole thing felt like a work of art.

In fact, my wife only had to hold it before she began eyeing it as a rod for herself.

A memory of the MUTHOS

Once I actually own and handle a ZENAQ rod, its pricing feels more restrained than that of other makers.

I used to have a MUTHOS. That was a good rod too.

I wanted to catch a buri—a Japanese yellowtail—with it, so we went to Nanatsujima in Kagoshima. I did not like the smell around the fishing spot, and we moved to a nearby yacht harbour.

But its breakwater was extraordinarily long.

I went to scout it while my wife waited in the car. It took more than fifteen minutes to walk from the car park. After looking around and deciding that we could fish there, I walked back.

Then the two of us walked out towards the end of the harbour. Dawn began to break around 7 am.

Two anglers had arrived before us and were partway along the breakwater.

Near the end stood a small lighthouse, leaning as though it might fall over. Just before it was a ladder leading up onto the breakwater.

Once I climbed up, it was frightening: a narrow ledge, high above the water.

I was using a 100 g pencil lure. On the second or third cast, I landed a 90 cm yellowtail.

The fishing was slow that day. I think mine was probably the only fish landed nearby. Someone else lost one.

Behind me, I heard someone say that one wandering yellowtail was caught there each day, and that people who knew the place went home as soon as someone caught it.

Oh, really? I could see the logic.

A seabass rod—with other possibilities

Back to the new ZENAQ. Yes, it was good. Its character was wonderful.

It was a seabass rod, but I wanted to try all sorts of things with it.

Ajing first… What? Would that really work?

There were situations where I could see a use for it. Under Haiya Bridge in Amakusa, for example, targeting larger fish at long range called for around 20 g.

I had not yet tried the Over There 109, but I enjoy unusual ways of fishing, and wanted to try this rod too.

There was another place on an outer-coast breakwater in Ushibuka where very large aji could be caught in February. At that time of year, bait anglers lined up along it, leaving no room.

Across from it, though, there was a position from which an extremely long cast looked as though it might reach the fish. I wanted to try there as well.

With these rather odd plans in mind, my collection of long rods had been growing.

The ajing rods I was considering only stretched to about 8–9 ft, with casting loads around 15 g.

I was looking into the fishing beyond that.

This is a November 2021 arrival note. The 90 cm catch belongs to the earlier MUTHOS trip, not a test of the newly arrived PA108. The later ajing ideas were still plans.