About Us

My fly fishing journey began in what is now Oil Creek State Park at Columbia Farm, where I lived with my grandparents, adjacent to Oil Creek.

I started fly fishing around the age of 16 and attended college at Clarion University, where I graduated with a major in Biology. During this time, I concentrated on educating myself about the macroinvertebrates found in our local streams and their importance to fly fishers. As a result, I gained a vast knowledge of the insects important to fly fishing and the expertise to tie the flies that imitate them.
My number one passion since graduating from college has been fly fishing, with 55 years of fly fishing experience. I have also assisted with fly-tying classes through our local FFI Chapter, Keystone Fly Fishers. I was one of the founding members of the Oil Creek TU Chapter, and in 2002, I assisted in the formation of Keystone Fly Fishers, a local Fly Fishers International Charter Chapter based in Venango County, of which I am currently the president.

I assisted in various fly fishing 101 classes offered at Oil Creek State Park, which included fly fishing equipment set-up, entomology, and fly casting lessons. I completed the Pennsylvania Fish Commission Fishing Skills Instructor class in March of 2017.

Upon retirement in April 2015, I began a journey to become an FFI Certified Fly Casting Instructor. This certification requires the completion of 15 different casts, along with gaining the knowledge to recognize casting faults and how to correct them. Also included are six different teaching modules. With the assistance and expertise of Gary Kell, Master Certified Instructor, I tested at Roscoe, NY, in September 2017 and became certified. This rigorous testing includes approximately 2 hours of various types of casts, an hour of teaching, followed by a written exam.

I started to expand my fly fishing horizons by traveling with several friends from the Erie area to fish Cape Cod for blue fish and striped bass. I found the challenge of saltwater fly fishing to be a refreshing change after pursuing trout and bass in our local waters. Since then, I fished in Florida for sea trout, red fish, and snook. I also traveled to Belize to fish for bonefish, tarpon, snook, and jacks. On my last trip, I was very fortunate to hook and release an 80# tarpon on the fly rod using a fly that I tied.

I have been the Casting Director for the Eastern Water Council of Fly Fishers International, which encompasses the states of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and as a result, I sit on the board of the Eastern Waters Council. In the last few years, I attended a continuing education day for Certified and candidate instructors held in Monkton, MD.

I reside in the Oil City/Franklin area and offer fly casting instruction and fly tying instruction to interested individuals. One of my greatest joys is to make you a better fly fisher person or a better fly tier so you can enjoy to the fullest this tremendous hobby of fly fishing.