EJ Stern: Exploring the Southeast on the Fly

EJ’s father was an accomplished shad fisherman; from their home in New Jersey, the two would frequently fish the Delaware River in Dingmans Ferry and journey to Raritan Bay, both just an hour’s drive away. Between these trips, there was a great deal of trout fishing to do in nearby Flat Brook, a 16-mile long tributary of the Delaware. “I started fly fishing at 12 years old,” EJ recalls. “From 17 on, it was my preferred way of catching trout. I went to Alaska for my high school graduation, and I saw how good it can be.” Today, EJ guides anglers targeting shad, trout, and many other game fish between his two locations in Raleigh, North Carolina and Basset, Virginia.

After attending college in New Hampshire, EJ relocated to Raleigh to pursue another passion of his: coaching ice hockey. As with his guiding career, he pursued this passion at an extremely high level. EJ coached with the Carolina Junior Hurricanes for 12 seasons, and he worked with USA Hockey for 4 years as the Director of Player Development in North and South Carolina. 

When he wasn’t coaching, EJ found a new way to stay in touch with his fly fishing roots. “I saw a niche – we have this really good local warm water fishery to catch bass, shad, crappie, white bass and more. I saw an opportunity where I could use my passion for teaching and training people and combine it with my love for fishing. Between coaching and guiding, the transfer was natural.” EJ began to dedicate more of his time to his guiding business 5 years ago, and he hasn’t looked back since. Since then, he has become an Orvis-Endorsed guide and has expanded his original Raleigh operation to a new location on the Smith River in Basset, offering his clients exceptional fishing opportunities in a variety of warm and cold water environments. 

As his business has grown, EJ has added three guides to his team, all dedicated to the same mission. “We focus on giving people a really good experience. Our guides are really good at delivering that –  whether you want to get out on the river, listen to the water and learn a little fly fishing or you want to focus on a specific technique, whether that's streamer fishing or dry fly fishing.” 

EJ himself is passionate about working with beginner anglers. “I get tremendous enjoyment out of teaching beginners and getting to be a part of their first experience fly fishing. The most rewarding thing for me is when it all comes together – they present the fly, get the hook set, manage their line, and get the fish to the net. Sometimes that comes in stages, but teaching the basics and being a part of that feeling of accomplishment is something I truly enjoy.” Of all the first-time fly fishing experiences one could have, fishing with EJ is a pretty good one. 

EJ’s influence in North Carolina and Virginia goes beyond the work he does on a drift boat. “We're on a weekly call with the Army Corps of Engineers, which manages both of the fisheries that we fish the most – the Neuse River in Raleigh and the Smith River in Basset. The Neuse is a major migratory route for a lot of anadromous species like American shad, Hickory shad, herring, so I’m always in their ear trying to work out how we can best manage it.”

EJ is passionate about managing and protecting the waters that he spends countless hours guiding and fishing, and he’s seen significant improvements over the years. “On the Smith River, the brown trout population is off the charts. There are over 2,000 brown trout per mile, and they make up 75% of the entire fish population in the river. Their reproductive success has been really good, and that has a lot to do with controlling the flows from the dam at Philpott Lake.”

Over the years, EJ has developed and refined an approach to guiding that is impressive to witness. “When I worked with USA Hockey, it was all about getting the best response out of athletes. I’ve taken that coaching approach and applied my own guiding style, and I try to do the best I can every day; that’s what I demand from myself.” EJ has tremendous knowledge of fly fishing in the Southeast, and he’s found a way to channel it to bring out the very best in his clients. Click here to read about the guided trips that Raleigh Flyfishing offers. Getting out on the water with EJ Stern is an experience you don’t want to miss.