Maki Caenis

Had a great day on the Kanna river with Maki catching Yamame and Iwana.
Maki was an excellent guide, getting me into fish with the right flies, all of which he hand ties, and made the right adjustments for picky trout.
In addition to a great day of fishing, Maki made my trip easy by arranging for my stay at a traditional ryokan inn that had great food, including bear and wild boar that the owner had hunted himself. He also provided pick up and drop off to the closet station asking only that I help with the gas. This allowed me to take the Shinkansen out from Tokyo with no worries, and the whole trip was an easy day and a half.
I highly recommend spending some time with Maki if you are looking for a great fly fishing experience in Japan.

We had two enjoyable days fishing with Maki in Gunma Prefecture to kick off a short visit to Japan at the end of March. We caught many Yamame on both days and a very nice Rainbow, all on 8X tippet. Maki very patiently answered my many questions as he helped me plan the trip via email. Although he charges for things like lost flies that many guides in my experience do not, there are no unpleasant surprises and he goes above and beyond to make sure you have a good experience. He handled all arrangements for local accommodations, greeted us at the station, and stayed with us the entire two days, which included some excellent meals and a visit to an Onsen in addition to the fishing. He sent us many photos of our trip and even went out of his way on a snowy evening to give us a ride to our next stop, Karuizawa, after our second day on the water. If you are interested in fly fishing in Japan, book a trip with Maki on your next visit.

Had tough conditions which often happen when you plan a trip far in advance, but I have enough experience to know Maki knows his stuff. In fact, I was surprised how much he had in common with my trout bum friends back in the United States. Not long after meeting he seemed like a fishing buddy I've know for years. Cold front gave us two rough days of fishing, but it started to warm and hatch started shortly before I had to leave and managed a nice rainbow. Will have to return for Yamame and Iwana. Despite the fish not cooperating, had a great time with beautiful surroundings.

Maki shared some wonderful spots with me and gave me a great appreciation for how best to fish Yamame using his bamboo rod. It was definitely worth the short trip out of of Tokyo.

Maki San is a great fishing guide with a vast knowledge of fishing in the Nagano region. There are very few people who can honestly say that they spend 200 days a year on the river. His time and incredible attention to detail on the water and surroundings has given him an intimate insight into the habits of fish and their ever changing appetites through the season. He is a knowledgeable and patient teacher, with good English communication skills.

Maki is an outstanding fishing guide. His local knowledge of the habits of Yamame (a landlocked salmon) and Iwana (a river char) is exceptional and I had a great experience landing Yamame in a beautiful mountain stream on 7x and 8x tippet. Challenging fish to catch as they are very wary, but we had a great day and brought enough to the net that I lost count (and, of course, I busted quite a few more off!). In addition to a great fishing experience, I enjoyed Maki's friendly and welcoming personality and he set up amazing traditional Japanese accommodations and meals that were almost as good as the fishing. I would highly recommend him for anyone who wants to experience the unique and rarely fished by non Japanese anglers waters he guides on. His English is excellent and he handled literally all the details. He is a patient teacher and when I landed a particularly large Yamame we were sight fishing for in a tough spot on very fine tippet he was more excited than I was! I highly recommend him!

I had a fun day on the water with Maki-san. He actively managed my flies, gave good advise on targets and retrieves, and spoke great English.

Thank you Maki San, I had a unique experience fishing for Yamame in Japan, an experience I'll never forget. The rivers are peaceful and their was hardly no one else around. Maki was very patient with his instruction for me, as I am unexperienced in Fly Fishing. Thanks again Maki, hope to see you again!

Maki San is by far one of the most professional fishing guides I've ever met. His attention to river conditions, fly life and rigging details were impeccable. If it wasn't under his guidance, I would have blanked the day with only a visual appreciation of Japanese beautiful sceneries. The day ended with 4 beautiful Iwana and Yamame. They put up tremendous fights. Very much enjoyed the day!!

We are brand new to fly fishing, and visiting Japan. We spent 2 awesome days with Maki. He proved to be an excellent guide and an accomplished instructor. He introduced us to the proper use and care of the equipment, the proper choices of leader, Tippet, and flies for the conditions and species targeted. He showed us Proper casting and presentation techniques, line management, proper playing of the fish, and how to properly handle and release a trout. He took us to an impoundment where we put these new skills into action. We caught plenty, and had a great day. We advanced to wooded streams where we learned to read the water and present properly. Success there as well. He has a lifetime of knowledge in the various patterns he ties. After guiding us he will be busy replacing his inventory! A great personality and kind person with a permanent smile as he teaches someone the sport he loves. His English is good, and you will not be disappointed with his service!

Its always a great idea to find a guide for your first time fishing in a new and different country, and recently I had the pleasure of fishing with the humble Maki Caenis.
Being only a couple of hours outside of Tokyo city, it was an easy decision to include a visit to the Nagano Prefecture during our maiden trip to Japan.

It was our first time visiting the spectacular country of Japan and Maki san made every thing perfect and simple, tailoring a perfect day of fly fishing, exploring new crystal clear fast and slow flowing rivers to vastly contrasting and incredibly beautiful scenic impoundments.
It was a fantastic introduction to the fishing in Japan.

Japan is like a fantastic hidden gem, despite raining on the day, we had an awesome day with plenty of great quality fish landed!, with the trophy of the day, a spectacularly coloured 60cm FAT brown out of a tiny side stream.
His obvious passion for fly fishing along with his extensive local knowledge and excellent understanding of the English language makes him a perfect choice for your next Japan fishing trip.

I can not thank Maki san enough for one of the best experiences of a lifetime, I look forward to my next visit to Japan and fishing with my friend Maki san again in the future.

I highly recommend him, If your into fly fishing, I am confident you will have a great time!

I just recently returned from a trip to Japan and had the great pleasure in spending a day (albeit rainy) fly fishing with Maki-san. He is VERY patient and knowledgeable, especially with this beginner/novice! Maki-san was very welcoming and always receptive to my needs as a newer entrant to this wonderful sport! His english is very, very good and he makes you feel very relaxed and at home in his home country!

The scenery and countryside are beautiful and the people are fantastic.

I would highly recommend Maki-san for any fly fishing plans you have in the Nagano Prefecture.Thank you very much Maki-san for the great day of fishing and I look forward to seeing you on the west coast of Canada soon!

Maki provided an outstanding service for the two days I fished with him. He is certainly passionate about fly fishing and Japanese nature/wilderness,

He is patient, knowledgeable and has excellent equipment that's suited well for the fishing you are doing. His custom rods are really superbly crafted and perform really well!

He has a great demeanour and personality, is easy to get along with, fun to be around and his English is very good.

Would recommend 100%.

I went fly fishing with Maki-san in August 2014 and in short: it was an AMAZING experience. I cannot recommend Maki-san more highly. Fly fishing for native Yamame and Iwana is such a blast. I'm definitely going back again next year, it was that good! Maki-san is an incredible guide with a vast amount of invaluable local knowledge.

Had a great time in Nagano prefecture with Maki. He went out of his way to make my stay enjoyable. He is very enthusiastic about his craft and very knowlagable. I learnt a great deal while fishing with Maki. Great guy, great guy, highly recommended.

I had a great time fishing with Maki - he is dedicated to making your trip a memorable one. He was a big help during the planning process and when I arrived, he was ready to find fish! I wanted to see a variety of waters and types of fish, so we fished river/stream/lake and caught Haya, Yamame,and some nice Rainbows. I learned lots and have a better understanding of the fishing that Japan has to offer. I hope I have a chance to visit again someday. Thanks, Maki.

I fished with Maki a couple of years ago during a late winter ski trip to Hakuba. I've written before about the incredible and intricate river systems in Japan. You are not likely to find a better man to guide you on them. Easy-going. Patient. Fully dedicated to the client and his or her success . . .Fishing with him again, during a more appropriate season, is top on my list of angling priorities.

Fishing with Maki was great. He speaks English well and is really enthusiastic. We fished small rivers, more like streams and the countryside was amazing. He is extremely skilled in wading these flood waters and is very patient. We were fishing mostly alone but it did not phase him when another 5 people turned up who had never fly fished before. We went to a lake and everyone had fun though Maki was running around all the time undoing knots, replacing flies etc and was half dead at the end of the day.
Highly recommended, I will be going again

Maki was awesome! He really went out of his way to make sure my fishing trip was great. He is very friendly and knowledgable. I would recommend him to anyone... I look forward to going back....

We went to fly fish in Nagano prefecture which Maki.
We arrived very late but he was waiting for us at the hotel to welcome us.
The next morning we did a bit of leader preparation with very good japanese leaders and tippet that Maki is selling online and went to a Stillwater starter: We hooked a couple of nice rainbows and Maki made a beautiful ink print of it on Japanese paper.
The next day we went fishing in a river and missed a few fishes. The lunch in a tatami room overlooking the river was extraordinary.
The third day was spend on a lake in the mountains surrounded by a forest of beautiful straight, tall trees. The weather was wetter and we missed many fishes but enjoyed taking a few small ones anyway.
We invited Maki for very enjoyable dinner and ended the stay with a very relaxing Onsen in from of t