John lives in Chewelah Washington, located in the northeastern corner of the state. He has been fishing the area’s waters since he was a kid. John has tied flies the past 38 years to fish the numerous still waters of the area and the upper reaches of the mighty Columbia River, which he refers to as his “home waters.” In 2012, the Washington St. Federation of Fly fishers awarded John its Conservation Award for his conservation efforts regarding wild spawning Red Banded Rainbow of the upper Columbia River. He was also spent considerable time fishing the waters of nearby British Columbia, Canada for trout and steelhead. Many, many of his still water patterns and steel head flies have been published in many books and magazines, by several different authors over the years. In 2007, John was the inaugural inductee into the F.F.F. Washington State Fly tying Hall of Fame. In 2008, the Federation of Flyfishers recognized John’s many contributions to the F.F.F., honoring him with the Lew Jewett Award. Then in 2009, he was presented the prestigious Buz Buszek Memorial Award, the highest honor a fly tier can receive, for his significant contributions to the art of fly tying. It is now his dream to share his passion for fly fishing andtying with as many young adult H.S. students as possible to ensure a new generation of stewards to protect our waters and to continue sharing fly fishing with others.
