My saltwater guiding career began fifteen years ago in Key West, Florida. This was a really interesting time to get started as a guide.  The sport of shallow water flats fishing was exploding in popularity thanks to a lot of exposure on cable TV. It was also just before GPS and the internet transformed the sport so I spent a good deal of time pouring over a folded nautical chart and running my skiff aground.

During my first few years in Key West there were more anglers than guides, especially during the annual tarpon season.  Thanks to this I was lucky enough to build up a lot of time on the water with some great people. The Keys were a very competitive place to fish so I was also fortunate enough to earn the loyalty of a small group of repeat clients, many of whom were willing to follow me to more than one location.

After ten years of guiding in the Keys I was looking to explore some new and untouched waters. The island of Vieques, just a few miles off the west coast of Puerto Rico, was my next stop. Guiding in the Caribbean was something I’ve dreamed about doing for a long time and seeing miles of beaches and shallow flats without a single other boat sold me. I moved there in 2005, married my wife Amanda, and settled in for the next few years. As one of only two fishing guides on the whole island, life was great.

For many of these same years, the southwest coast of Florida has been a second home to me since my parents moved to Matlacha in 2001 and I would travel here often. This island became the spot where I really started focusing on fly fishing for redfish, snook, and sea trout on the beautiful flats of Pine Island Sound and Charlotte Harbor. I’ve been fortunate enough to spend many summers up here in Florida and my wife Amanda and I have relocated here full time.

Saltwater fly fishing is my true passion and introducing new anglers to this sport is the most rewarding part of my job.  If you’ve never tried it because you’ve been told that flats fishing is an incredibly difficult and takes years to master, please think again.  Anyone can learn to cast a fly rod in an afternoon and if your skills are limited to small freshwater streams I can quickly get you up to speed for the flats.  Don’t let the pros on TV or the magazines intimidate you.  Fly fishing is easier than you think and I’m very patient teacher.  Come give it a try.