As a full time Florida Keys Fly Fishing Guide for the past 27 years, my story as a father begins with my personal love for fly fishing and being on the water. I think every father is born with a slight hope that their children just might consider a career following their footsteps.

Sharing my love for fly fishing and the outdoors with my only child BJ (Bruce Jr) for the past 21 years is one of the best and favorite parts of my life. From watching BJ catch his first tarpon on fly when he was 4 years old to taking him on father son fly fishing trips all around the world, I can’t beat the happiness I have gained in my life with my son.

As BJ has grown into a great young man and Florida Keys Captain himself, I couldn’t be prouder working with him for the past 3 tarpon seasons. Our love for fly fishing has and will continue to take us around the world in search for greater father son experiences.

My passion for the water really began because of all the effort my dad made to make it accessible. He loved to RV, and I have enjoyed doing that with my kids. It gets us to beautiful places, helps us all stay connected to nature, and usually puts us near beautiful rivers and lakes.

I’m now passing along my love for the outdoors by talking a lot with my kids about the forest and ocean ecosystems, and what we need to do to leave them better than we found it. Science and practical management is what they need to focus on in the future when it’s their turn to become our planet’s guardians.

Fishing, exploring, tubing, and laughing until they run out of breath are some of our favorite things to do together on the water. The unconditional love that comes from kids, sharing experiences to help them grow, and being in nature with them is the best part about being a dad.

The year I was born my dad bought what we now call “The Green Boat”, an aluminum Mirrorcraft johnboat with a little V in the bow. The boat came in an Old Florida Seafoam green and still sports the original paint job today.

My first fishing trips with my dad were in that old green boat, the first fish I ever caught, and most importantly, my first tarpon. My father took me along on his adventures as soon as I could stand and that green boat became home on the water. Some of my earliest finds became the foundation for my guide career.

As I became an adult the old green boat fell back into the hands of my dad after I had outgrown her, but that wasn’t the end of her story. My own daughter was born in July 2008, and now at 10, the green heirloom sits in wait for her today. The old boat is weathered and tattered and I doubt the engine will start, but her soul is there and I can’t wait for Marin to meet her!

There are rumors, that I was already born with a fly rod, but I know that all the passion I have for fly fishing and the outdoors was given to me by my dad. He grew up in a fishing family. His dad, mum, and grandad were all fishermen, and I always love to hear his stories from when he was a little boy.

Every year for more then 10 years now, we go fishing in Croatia. No matter what, I can’t ever miss that trip, because chasing mahi on fly from the beach with my dad is just so special. Years have gone by and we are still the best fishing buddies, but with only one difference. He is not the one who is fixing the tangled tippet, and he is not taking me to fish.

My dad is my mentor and fishing partner in crime. All those years running the river with me, trying to catch whatever is possible, he taught me to be the person I should be. He taught me to show respect to everyone around, treat the fish and nature with respect, and never give up my dreams.

Aside from the usual “you have your dad’s nose” or “you got your height from your dad”, my dad and I both have a great love for wild places because a large portion of our lives were shaped around them. Neither of us care for being in big cities, being around large amounts of people or having to continuously be reachable in this technological world we live in.

Growing up my dad allowed nature to be my playground and as a result I grew to love and appreciate these wilds places in ways many people never do. Some of the most memorable times were when we would go lake hopping in Alaska in his Cessna 185. On a calm, sunny evening we’d fly to various different lakes where we’d find northern pike.

We’d land and fish shallow weed beds right off the float of the plane. Those quiet evenings spent on a remote lake in the middle of Alaska with my dad were the highlights of my summers. When we find ourselves completely off the grid or back in the middle of Alaska’s wilderness, we both feel as though we’re back home.