Pros

Bio

Stu has had the good fortune of fishing the waters surrounding Hayward, WI his whole life, and has been guiding for Hayward Fly Fishing Company since 2013. He finds joy and energy in teaching his clients a new skill, or pursuing a favorite species in a new and different way. There’s always something new for the fish to teach the angler! He guides for smallmouth bass and musky on the historic river systems of northwest WI, and makes his home on the Namekagon River. Even at the end of a long day of guiding, he’s still got one eye on the water.

He happily gives back to the rivers by serving on the board of directors at the St. Croix River Association, and helping out with the annual Namekagon River cleanup. Stu believes that a healthy river starts with a healthy watershed and an engaged, caring river community.

Fly fishing has offered Stu opportunities to build relationships that have added greatly to his life, and he feels grateful to have such genuine friends and peers within the Wisconsin fly fishing community, and beyond. Sharing a day on the water with pals and making a memory or two is one of his favorite parts of the sport.

In the cold winter off-season, he teaches fly tying classes and occasionally escapes to warmer destinations to pursue saltwater species and help keep his sanity. Fishing a new body of water stirs a feeling in every angler, whether it’s a little creek they’ve driven past a thousand times, or a remote atoll they’ve always dreamed of visiting, and Stu loves to chase that feeling.