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Guide and Avid's new managing owner, Ryan Smith brings a background in biology, conservation and photography. Since he can remember, fly fishing and appreciating the outdoors has been a way of life.
When fishing our saltwater beaches, you will be instructed on how to increase distance and power in the wind, so you can reach our cruising sea-run quarry. On the river, you will find Ryan chasing steelhead and searching for the next piece of holding water.
Growing up in Oregon and a few years in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming prepared him for our challenging Puget Sound fishing. Ryan is a certified casting instructor through the FFF.
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Brita Fordice is a native to Washington state and has been fly fishing since she was eight years old. She has fished in Idaho, Washington and Alaska for both trout and salmon. After 2 ½ years in Idaho and 1 year in Alaska, she has settled down in her home state and fishes local waters intensely. She ties her own flies and enjoys fishing local lakes and the beaches in the north sound. Brita works full-time at the shop Sunday through Thursday. |
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John Paine - A Washington native, I have been fishing all my life since the house I grew up in sat only a block away from Lake Washington. Growing up, I would fish the lake as much as I possibly could with my quarry consisting of yellow perch, trout and catfish landed on a Zebco rod/reel combo. My life would be changed forever however, when in 1993 I was introduced to fly fishing. Immediately I fell in love with the purity of the sport, its stripped-down approach and the never ending challenge of trying to fool a trout with a dry fly. Since then, I have met numerous friends that have left a mark on me forever. I’ve enjoyed countless trips all around the state along with excursions to Oregon and Montana, fishing some of the most beautiful water in the world. Stillwater fishing is another new aspect of the sport that I am enjoying, along with plying the waters of Puget Sound for true “gems of the salt” - Sea-run Cutthroat, and salmon. I am very excited about being part of th e staff at The Avid Angler and look forward to sharing stories and experiences, along with information that will hopefully enhance our customers’ knowledge and enjoyment of this incredible pastime. I will be working the shop on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
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Joel Oerter grew up in Denver, Colorado, where he learned to fish on the waters of the South Platte and the Blue. Going to college in New York state afforded him the opportunity to explore creeks around Syracuse, and his summers were spent guiding on a small ranch on the Rio Grande near Durango. After teaching English in Normandy and waiting tables on the French Riviera, Joel moved to the Pacific Northwest in pursuit of the good life (and learning to catch steelhead!). When not working part-time in the shop or at REI, Joel is combing local beaches for sea-run cutts, practicing his double-handed casts, or composing a philosophical treatise on the merits of fish on the fly (and steelhead!). Stop by and introduce yourself to Joel. He teaches the Trout Rivers, Trout Tactics class and is also a certified casting instructor through the FFF. |
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Ben Waldschmidt grew up fishing with his dad and grandma for panfish, walleye, and bass in the lakes and rivers of northern and eastern Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada. Along the way, Ben started fly-fishing and not long after, started tying his own flies. Fly-fishing throughout Wisconsin, Michigan’s Upper Penninsula, and Ontario allowed him to fish for panfish, walleye, smallmouth bass, pike, Chinook salmon, and steelhead. In the summer of 2008, Ben moved to Washington and started exploring local rivers in search of steelhead. In his free-time he's likely to be on the river with his dog, Chromer, swinging a fly through a given run or sitting down at his vise tying steelhead flies. |
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