Grand Fishing Adventures Fly Fishing Guides
At Grand Fishing, we hold our guides to the highest standards in the industry. Safety is our number one priority when taking guests on the water, which is why each of our guides holds at a minimum, Wilderness First Aid and Swift Water Rescue certifications. Each of our guides spends close to 100 days on the water around Jackson Hole, whether guiding guests, or fishing with their family and friends. Our entire staff, including our office crew, is passionate and knowledgeable about fly fishing. Read below to learn about the individuals who make our team so strong!
Mike Rheam: Owner/Guide
Mike has been a resident of Jackson Hole since 1989. He began his lifelong guiding career taking rafts down the whitewater section of The Snake River. Mike’s focus soon switched from whitewater, to fly fishing, which eventually lead him to start his own guiding company. Mike created Grand Fishing Adventures with the highest angling, customer service, and environmental standards as its foundation. His passion for The Snake River also lead him to help found The Snake River Fund, a non-profit dedicated to the preservation of The Snake River. Mike’s love for fishing is only rivaled by his love for skiing. In the winter, Mike is an avalanche forecaster for both Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and the Bridger Teton Avalanche Center. Although Jackson Hole is Mike’s home, he also is a partner and guide at Tordrillo Mountain Lodge in Alaska. There he works primarily as a heli-ski guide, but also guides fly fishing trips for salmon and rainbow trout.
Grant Leffel: Lead Guide
Grant went to Colorado State University where he studied philosophy. It was there where he found his love for fly fishing. Since then he has guided whitewater rafting and fly fishing trips in Colorado and Wyoming. Grant loves to be on the water and prides himself on being a patient teacher. He has lived in Jackson for 11 years and spends most of his time fishing the waters of Wyoming and Idaho. Grant is an avid outdoorsman who loves to share experiences in this beautiful hole in the west.
Mitch Luedloff: Lead Guide
Mitch came to ski Jackson Hole in 1998, after earning a degree in Geography from Southern Oregon University. With fishing in his blood and a background in whitewater, it didn’t take him long to begin exploring rivers of the Yellowstone region. He quickly realized the uniqueness of dry fly fishing for Snake River Cutthroat out of a drift boat, and began guiding. Whether taking experienced anglers to his favorite spots in Grand Teton National Park, or simply teaching a beginner how to cast, becoming a fishing guide was a childhood dream come true. Working with Grand Fishing Adventures since 2004 has given him the opportunity to work with some of the valley’s best guides and to share the river with so many guests. Mitch believes a day of fishing has three parts…the water you’re on, the people you’re with, and of course the fish you catch!
Clay Moorhead
Clay first visited Jackson Hole in 1996 after his parents purchased a home in the valley, and he immediately fell in love with all the amazing fly fishing opportunities this area has to offer. While he finished his education, Clay spent as many summer vacations as he could, visiting his parents and spending time on the river. After attending Middlebury College and earning a J.D. from Vanderbilt Law School, Clay spent two years working in New York City, all the while wishing he was back in Jackson. By the summer of 2007, he had enough of the city lifestyle, so he packed up and moved west. Now a full-time resident of Jackson Hole, Clay cherishes every day he gets to spend on the river, whether stalking big trout with his clients or spending a day with his buddies getting some fishing in himself. In 2012, Clay joined the board of The Snake River Fund in order to fulfill his commitment to preserving the Snake River watershed so that others can enjoy the same experiences he has so treasured.
Thad Stavn
Thad grew up in Minot, North Dakota fishing the Missouri River. After college, he fled the coop and headed to the Tetons, chasing mountains and snow. He has lived here since 1996, but began his guiding career on the Selway and the Middle Fork of the Salmon, running white water and fly fishing trips. After many summers in Idaho running multi day trips, Thad settled back into life in Jackson Hole, and brought his wealth of fly fishing knowledge to the Snake River. Thad has run more rivers around the West than most will in any lifetime, yet his favorite section is from Moose to Wilson for its scenic beauty and potential for a large cutthroat!
Andy Christensen
Andy has lived in Jackson for more than 20 years. Although he first came to the valley to work as a firefighter for the U.S. Forest Service, the majority of Andy’s years have been spent guiding horseback trips and winter snowmobile trips in the Jackson Hole region. Andy’s passion for fly fishing eventually lead him to Grand Fishing Adventures, where he has been a guide for nearly a decade now. On his days off, he fishes the same water that he guides and will often travel to Montana and Idaho to explore their rivers as well. Andy’s love for guiding comes from years of friendships and memories that have been created on the river.
John Carpenter
John grew up in the water and woods of Maine. Spending his time skiing, boating, hiking, and of course, fishing he grew a love for the outdoors from an early age. Moving to Jackson in 2011 his passion for fishing only grew when he first walked down to the Snake River to cast to a group of big, rising Cutthroat Trout. Whether he is on the waters of the Snake River close to town, wading in a local spring creek, or stalking big trout near the headwaters of the Green River, John feels at home. He started guiding at Grand Fishing Adventures to share that passion with clients. While his guiding and instructional background is diverse –including rafting, skeet shooting, and horseback rides- he now spends his winters guiding snowmobile trips for Scenic Safaris in Yellowstone National Park and the surrounding National Forests. On the river, John focuses on enjoying the time on the river and teaching clients how to be better anglers.
Joe Irby
Joe grew up fishing for native brook trout, bass and catfish in the streams and rivers of the Appalachian mountains. In 2013, he graduated from Sewanee with a degree in natural resources. Joe’s love for world class trout rivers and huge mountains brought him out west in 2014, when he moved to Jackson. In 2015, however, he couldn’t pass up a job opportunity to guide at Tordrillo Mountain Lodge in Alaska, where his trout fishing skills transferred over to target trophy rainbows and pacific salmon. Now back at Grand Fishing, Joe is passionate about getting his clients opportunities at catching native cutthroat trout on dry flies. Joe’s high spirits are contagious, as is his love for Jackson and all of its outdoor opportunities. When Joe isn’t in his drift boat, he’s either riding a mountain bike, rafting whitewater, or rock climbing. If there is snow in the mountains, you better believe he’s got two skis on his feet!
Amy Jimmerson
Since learning to fly fish in her backyard on the Blackfoot River, Amy has been crazy for fishing. She fell in love with rivers at a young age and started raft guiding as a freshman at the University of Montana. The same year, she learned how to kayak and spent much of her 20’s traveling and competing at an international level. Amy moved to Jackson in the summer of 2006 and became enamored with the beauty of the area and its endless outdoor opportunities. When she’s not shooting photos or snowboarding in the Tetons, she is exploring the wild, beautiful rivers of the Northern Rockies with a fly rod in hand. Amy’s favorite days ore on the water, sharing her love for rivers and trout with others.
Josh Pope
Josh was born and raised on the coast of Washington, where he developed his passion for fishing. For 17 years Josh was a commercial fisherman, working off the coast of Washington and Alaska. He fished for mostly black cod and halibut in the deep waters of the Pacific. In 2001, Josh moved to Jackson Hole, which is where his passion for fly fishing began. Now, Josh spends his summers rowing our local rivers, in search of large trout. During the winter, Josh is an avalanche forecaster and ski patroller for Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, and in the spring, he is a heli-ski guide in the Chugach Mountains of Alaska. On his days off, you can find Josh riding his mountain bike, or floating the river with his wife Merril and son George.
Ian Leinbach
Ian was introduced to fishing as a young boy by his grandfather, who taught him to fish for pike and walleye in northern Minnesota. Always most comfortable on the water, he joined the Navy out of high school and spent four years on an aircraft carrier off the coast of Florida. After leaving the service, Ian moved to Utah where he fell in love with fly fishing for trout. He worked as a river guide in Park City for six years before moving to Jackson in 2015. To Ian, there is no river quite like the Snake. With the Tetons to anchor the landscape, he never has to choose between the water and a view. To Ian, a bad day on the Snake is still better than a good day at the office. River trips are always sweetened by the company of his dog, Brodo— an 8lb terrier mix often dwarfed by the fish Ian catches. Together, they’re always on the hunt for the next big cutty!
Brian Schmidt
Randy Kalicki
Randy has been an avid angler his entire life. He grew up in Northern Indiana fishing the St. Joseph River, Lake Michigan’s Coho/Chinook salmon runs, and chasing bass and pike in the area’s many lakes. His first memory of catching a fish was sitting on his grandfather’s pier with an ice fishing pole, when a 12-inch Blue Channel Catfish swallowed his worm. He knew then that he was hooked to the sport. Randy moved from Indiana to Colorado 20 years ago. He began fly fishing shortly after. He has been guiding overnight fly fishing trips for the last 15 years in the Rocky Mountain backcountry. Recently, he transitioned to drift boat guiding and still gets the same thrill seeing clients catch their first fish as if it was his own. Randy currently lives in Alpine, Wyoming, or wherever the water takes him.
Matt Doherty: Manager
Matt grew up in southwest Michigan but moved west immediately after college to pursue a life in the mountains. Matt first came to Jackson in 2012, picked up a fly rod, and immediately became addicted to the sport. He eventually wanted to take his passion for the sport and evolve it into a career, so in 2017 Matt became the manager of Grand Fishing Adventures. We are extremely fortunate to have Matt on our team. When you call our shop to book a trip, Matt is very knowledgeable about all of our local rivers and can answer any question you might have. Or, if you have questions about what flies are working on our local rivers, chances are Matt has current, firsthand tips and tricks he’d be happy to share. Whether it’s his day off, or any day after 6pm, chances are Matt is floating the river or wading a local spring creek in search of big trout.
Josh Casteen: Assistant Manager
Josh grew up in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in Charlottesville, Virginia. He grew fond of the outdoors at a young age, where he spent his time fishing, hiking, and skiing in the rolling hills of the east coast range. Since moving to Jackson in 2019, Josh has gained a great obsession with the sport of fishing, spending most of his free time on local rivers and creeks. His love for the outdoors has continued to grow over the years, and will continue to grow as he spends more and more time in the mountains.
