EJ is an amazing guide. Whether you're new to fly fishing or adept at casting tiny dries to rising trout, EJ will show you a wonderful day on the water. We had great laughs, good conversation, and caught a bunch of fish.

Booked our float with EJ Stern and as always it was a wonderful day on the Smith River. EJ is a true professional who works to put us on trout while continuing to provide helpful guidance and tips to improve our overall experience. I highly recommend and will continue to book EJ for future experiences.

Perfect float trip on the Smith River. Easy drive from Winston-Salem. Easy put in and take out location. Great fishing with great gear. E.J. was very accommodating and as with any guided trip, I left having learned a few things to make me a better fly fisherman. Highly recommended. Fantastic fishing close to the Piedmont.

Had a good day on the water with E.J. Stern on the Smith River, with low and clear water conditions, we got into the more technical aspects of the sport (adding more tools to my tool box) which was beneficial to me. Good productive day with a good number of wild brown trout hooked along with a number of stocked rainbows. Which made my day especially fun was the late afternoon hatch making dry fly fishing awesome landing several nice fish.

Rhen, our guide, did an exceptional job with couple of rookies. It was very enjoyable experience. I highly recommend it.

I have to say great because as we all know fish are fish and fishing is fishing. Would I fish with EJ again? Absolutely yes. When the fishing is easy that speaks for itself, what's the big deal? But, end of October, cold breezy and drizzling rain are not the best conditions but EJ put it together and brought fish to the net, 8 as I recall. I plan to be back in May 2026, better conditions and more fish. Thx EJ

Another great day on the water with EJ. Landed some wild brown on a dry fly. Brought with me a beginner fly fisherman and EJ coached him all day so that he caught several browns on his own and had a blast doing so.

Rhen was awesome. He put us on fish and gave us cool tips along the way. Definitely will repeat!!

Super fun day on the Smith, caught a ton of fish.

My son had a great time floating the Smith with Rhen. He and his girlfriend caught over 50 trout. It was our 3rd float with Smith River Outfitters. Their guides know the river and how to fly fish. Prompt communicators and take care of their clients on the river.

Wonderful day, beautiful river and great weather. EJ Stern is a dedicated, energetic, extremely knowledgeable guide. He is congenial and supportive. He worked very hard to get us on smallmouth and stripers, changing flies and tactics constantly to get the right thing for feeding fish. It was a pleasure to fish with him. We will be back.

Our trip was great. Our level of experience is zero. EJ took the time to teach us how to use a fly rod. One of our party had never held a fly rod. By the end of the day he had caught a number of trout and is looking forward to the next trip. We could not asked for a better teacher. Thanks EJ

We had a fantastic day fly fishing with EJ on the Smith. Definitely my most productive day trout fishing ever, but he’s also a great teacher and provided tips and encouragement that made our fishing better. Highly recommended and I will definitely be booking future trips.

E.J. Stern knows the fish and the environment. He was our guide on the Smith River near Bassett, VA this past May. My husband and I had not previously fished there. It was sublime fishing with next-level guiding instruction, picturesque scenery, E.J.’s willingness to share knowledge, and great fun. Even our lunch was a gourmet meal! Whatever your level of skill, do yourselves a favor and book a two-day float trip with E.J. and his Smith River Outfitters. You will come away with new skills/techniques, knowledge, and a deeper appreciation for fly fishing.

Second time with Raleigh Fly Fishing and another great experience. We caught lots of fish, including trophy-sized bass. Our guides, Justin and Ren, were terrific and helpful. The instruction was first-class and tailored to our individual needs.

If you’ve never fished with EJ, stop reading this and go book yourself a trip. Or gift one to your people who are intrigued. Just know you won’t stop with just one trip, it’s too fun/good not to keep going back!

Lots of fun, first time fly fishing and our guide Matt was amazing! Caught some bass and blue gill in the Haw River!

Thoroughly enjoyable day on Smith River with Ej ~ caught a lot of beautiful trout ~ learned a lot and he showed tremendous patience with my brother in law and nephew during their first time on water. Could not recommend more highly 😎

Great experience with Raleigh Fly Fishing on the Smith. Guides were knowledgeable, enjoyable, and worked hard to provide our group the best experience, even with some rain. We will be back for sure. JP

EJ was awesome! He improved my skills and found the fish! Will be floating again with EJ soon.

Rhen is a great guide with lots of knowledge! He will help you improve your casting and learn new techniques all while landing great fish!

EJ, and his associates, always put us on the fish. He made sure we got some nice catches. I highly recommend EJ and his service and will continue to use them. I have used this service for 4-5 years now.

Rhen did a great job of getting us on the water and setting us up to catch some very nice trout! This was my first time fishing from a drift boat, so I especially appreciated his tips on casting and line management in that setting. Afterwards, my fishing buddy commented several times about how much that helped him, too. Rhen also worked really hard to find fish, even during times when weather had put them off feeding. He put in a hard day’s work for us. We’re looking forward to fishing with him again, whether for trout or smallmouth bass.

EJ was such a good guy to spend a day with ….learning about the river & every element of fly fishing . He was so patient with our snags in the trees lol . I am primarily a spin cast guy but learning enough to feel confident that I could go & catch trout with a fly rod on my own