Justin Karnes
Signature Tyer
When you think of Indiana, fly fishing probably isn’t anywhere on the list of things that come to mind. Corn? The Indy 500? Definitely…but fly fishing? Not so much. While we may not have the iconic rivers and streams of the West, we have some amazing waterways for trophy sized Smallmouth, Pike, Musky, and yes…we even have trout water too.
My fly fishing journey started at a very young age. I can remember going to see “The Movie” in the early 90’s with my grandfather, and telling him I want to learn how to do that!!
Shortly after, there we were chasing pond bluegill and largemouth with foam spiders and balsa poppers. From then on, I was enamored with the art of this thing we’ve all come to enjoy.
Fishing, in general, was ingrained into my life from day 1. From weekends spent at the family farm pond as a kid, to fishing local bass tournaments in my adult years. I never went anywhere that had water without wanting to see what swam below the surface.
Designing flies over the last several years has become my true passion along this journey. Whether it be for chasing the wary Brookies in the GSMNP, to my personal favorite, the Smallmouth bass of our local rivers and streams. Trying to crack the code that triggers those fish, is what it’s all about for me.
When you think of Indiana, fly fishing probably isn’t anywhere on the list of things that come to mind. Corn? The Indy 500? Definitely…but fly fishing? Not so much. While we may not have the iconic rivers and streams of the West, we have some amazing waterways for trophy sized Smallmouth, Pike, Musky, and yes…we even have trout water too.
My fly fishing journey started at a very young age. I can remember going to see “The Movie” in the early 90’s with my grandfather, and telling him I want to learn how to do that!!
Shortly after, there we were chasing pond bluegill and largemouth with foam spiders and balsa poppers. From then on, I was enamored with the art of this thing we’ve all come to enjoy.
Fishing, in general, was ingrained into my life from day 1. From weekends spent at the family farm pond as a kid, to fishing local bass tournaments in my adult years. I never went anywhere that had water without wanting to see what swam below the surface.
Designing flies over the last several years has become my true passion along this journey. Whether it be for chasing the wary Brookies in the GSMNP, to my personal favorite, the Smallmouth bass of our local rivers and streams. Trying to crack the code that triggers those fish, is what it’s all about for me.