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Southern Appalachian Anglers: Book Your Guided Fishing Trip This Spring

Paul Kisielewski and Ethan Hollifield

The foundation of Southern Appalachian Anglers has always been trusted guides and exceptional service. “Our guides are personable, polite, professional and encompass a wealth of knowledge for teaching young and old generations the art of fly fishing,” says founder Paul Kisielewski. “Our goal is to make you and your family’s experience a success when choosing our fly fishing guide service; from the first time you call in to schedule a trip, to the pre-trip call from the guide, to the on-the-water experience and future interactions with our company.”

Paul Kisielewski and Ethan Hollifield

This year, a growing team and expanded guide staff ensure that legacy of excellence will continue. “I have always wanted to keep our company small enough to provide exceptional service to every client that books a trip with us, but also to grow our company large enough to keep up with demand in our area,” says Kisielewski. “We have achieved this and I am excited for our team and the new and existing clients to experience it as well.”

Many of the guides on staff at Southern Appalachian Anglers are native to the region, with a knowledge that goes beyond what they’ve been taught and might be more appropriately called ancestral instinct. “Our roots run deep here, with some of our guides’ ancestries going back over 200 years here in the mountains,” says head guide Ethan Hollifield. “We not only love teaching people how to fly fish for the sake of catching fish, but it also allows us to share the love we have for our home and all its natural and cultural beauty and why both are important to preserve for the future.”

Matt Michel and Mitch Carter with a CMC intern

Whether you’re an accomplished angler or brand new to the sport, our region offers premium fly fishing experiences. “The Southern Appalachians harbor some of the highest levels of biodiversity found anywhere on earth,” says Hollifield, “in addition to being a part of the oldest mountains in the world. Many of the rivers and streams we guide on are also some of the oldest found anywhere on earth.”

The biological diversity offered by the region allows for a diversity of trips offered by SAA, in pursuit of smallmouth bass, musky and speckled trout. The company offers private wade trips, bachelor/bachelorette party trips, backcountry fly fishing and fly fishing classes.

Jack Murdock has been fly fishing since he was 10 and, as an adult, he’s been on a dozen trips with Southern Appalachian Anglers. “Each time, it has been easy to set up the trips through a phone call or text,” says Murdock. “What sold me on Ethan was how knowledgeable he was and the patience he showed my son, son-in-law and friend as they learned to fly fish for the first time. Lunch is always provided by the company on our trips, and Ethan knows all of the best fishing spots. Every trip we have been out, we have always had good luck catching plenty of trout and smallmouth. At this point, I wouldn’t go out with another guide other than Ethan.”

Learn more and schedule your trip at SouthernAppalachianAnglers.com.

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