Slough Creek Back-country
All is well after our first backcountry trip! Two nights in the famed Slough Creek backcountry was a memorable experience for all involved. After hiking in roughly 5 miles, we set up camp and got to fishing. Our campsite was located right on the creek and the kids were pulling in beautiful Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout left and right. We fished upstream and downstream for our campsite in perfect...
Rocky Mountain Update
What a trip! The last four days here in Rocky Mountain National Park have been absolutely amazing. Our first excursion into the backcountry saw us hike along the north boundary of RMNP all the way up to what is known as lost Lake. Due to the very wet spring we have had here in Colorado, the original trail we were supposed to hike was washed out and impassable. This forced us to hike a more...
Winding Down in Maine
This morning we paddled our canoes out of the backcountry for the last time. It is hard to believe, but our first ever Maine Woods Adventure is coming to an end. On Thursday morning we loaded up our canoes and ventured out for three nights of backcountry camping. The sun was shining but the wind was blowing hard in our faces. After paddling across Indian Pond we set up our camp at the junction of...
Maine Adventure Off to a Awesome Start
When I first introduced the Maine Adventure last fall I knew it was going to be an amazing trip. We are only a few days in and it has already surpassed my high expectations. Our trip started off with the concern of heavy rain. Not only in the forecast, but in the recent weeks. Maine has received an excessive amount of rain this June leaving rivers high and tough to fish. On the second day of the...
Time Flies When Your Having Fun
It is hard to believe it, but the Blue Ridge Adventure is coming to an end. Our trip could not have ended on a higher note. Yesterday we were scheduled to fish the upper Davidson River. Luckily for us we were giving the chance to fish some private water on the North Fork of the French Broad River. The weather could not have cooperated more perfectly with sun from 9am until we headed back into town...
Brook Trout and Water Falls.
We have returned from our first backcountry trip of the summer! Water break with a view." /> The NC Blue Ridge Adventure journeyed into the mountains early yesterday morning with Brook Trout on the mind. After a fast hike to our campsite we set up our tents right at the base of a beautiful waterfall. Our lines were in the water before lunch. Heavy rains the night before had the water flowing high...
Let the Adventures Begin
Greetings from NC, Our summer 2015 Adventures are officially under way! We are only two days into the Blue Ridge Adventure and everyone has caught some nice fish. Yesterday we started off with a refresher of knots and casting before lunch. After we Austin fighting a Davidson River trophy trout." /> fueled up on some sandwiches, we headed to meet our guides for an afternoon of fishing on the...
Lillard Fly Fishing Hits the Big Screen
Last summer film maker Harrison Buck started filming for a new project titled “The Tightest Line”. The film takes a deeper look into the life of fly fishing guides. Lillard Fly Fishing Expeditions and our head guides Charlie Parr and Will Lillard were honored to be a part of the project. During the last week of our 2014 adventures Harrison joined our Colorado Rocky Mountain Adventure for a journey...
Spring Break 2016 Saltwater Adventure
With our summer adventures as popular as ever, we are excited to announce that in March of 2016 LFFE will be offering our first ever spring break fly fishing adventures! LFFE will be partnering with all-inclusive Caribbean fishing lodge Fly Fish Guanaja to offer the trip of a lifetime! We will be heading down to the bay islands of Honduras to stalk bonefish, permit, tarpon, and many other species...
Summer ’14 Photo Highlights
It wasn’t easy but after sorting through thousands of photos I came up with what I think are the best photos for each trip in three different categories. Best Group Shot, Best Fish Picture, and best Scenic Picture. Enjoy… NC Blue Ridge Fish NC Rainbows will put a big smile on your face." /> Watching for “risers”" /> Scenic Young conservationists helped clean up campsites along a headwater stream."...
The Proof is in the Pictures
From the second our 2014 participants started to return home we started receiving emails. Everybody wants a copy of the trip pictures so they can prove to all their friends just how awesome their trip really was. Well it took us a while but we finally uploaded the thousands of photos from this summer to our Flickr page. Now you can look through all the photos that were taken by fellow participants...
Rocky Mountain Explorer – Wrapping up a Great Adventure
It is hard to believe that our final trip of the summer, the Rocky Mountain Explorer, is entering it’s final day. The last two weeks have been action packed and full of adventure. We earned the privilege of being able to say we caught Greenback Cutthroat in high alpine lakes. We volunteered with the Rocky Mountain National Parks Trail Crew to help preserve the areas we explored. We hiked deep into...
RMNP Fishing Update
This morning we hiked out from the Rocky Mountain National Park backcountry for the last time. We are all sad to see the backpacking sections of our adventure to come to an end but eager to report some absolutely amazing fishing. We woke up early on the morning of the 7th to make the drive from the east side of the park up and over the continental divide to the west side visitor center. Along the...
RMNP Greenback Cutthroat
Our Rocky Mountain Explorer trip returned from our first backcountry section. We were treated to some awesome fishing and great weather! Ready to hit the trail!" /> After a 4 mile hike in we set up camp for three nights on the banks of Fern Lake. After setting up our tents and a quick lunch we set out on the lake with our fly rods in hand. Within the first five minutes of fishing the lake we were...
Rocky Mountain Explorer #1
Greetings from Rocky Mountain National Park! After two days in the front country of the park we are all excited to hit the trail in search of some Greenback Cutthroat. We spent yesterday refining our fly fishing skills on the Big Thompson River. The meadow section of the river is just a short walk from our campsite and a perfect spot for our group of both first time and seasoned fly fishermen...
Yellowstone Update – Looking Back on a Great Adventure
It is hard to believe it but our 2014 Yellowstone Adventure has come to an end. The last 15 days have been full of great fishing, new friendships, and memories that will last a lifetime. After our arrival in Jackson Hole, WY we waisted no time, heading strait into Yellowstone first thing the next morning. Our first stop was the Grant Village backcountry office where we picked up our fishing...
West Elk Update #6
Well, it’s been a good trip and now we are on the home stretch! The guys spent the morning float fishing the Arkansas River with Ark Anglers of Salida. I’m proud to report that the guys put their newfound skills to great use and everybody caught fish! It was so much fun watching the guys come back from the float all jazzed up about the great morning of fishing. After the float we packed up and...
Yellowstone Backcountry Wrap-Up
Yesterday afternoon our group of anglers exited the Yellowstone backcountry for the last time. It was a bittersweet feeling. We were all excited to head back to Jackson Hole, WY, but sad to leave behind lots of biting fish. For our last backcountry section our group took the divide and concur approach. Half of the group joined me up Slough Creek. After a steep initial climb our hike mellowed out...
West Elk Update – Out of the Wilderness
Boy is it good to be back into civilization after five great days on the trail! We hiked out of the wilderness this afternoon and are looking forward to enjoying the comforts of the front country for the next few days before heading home. The trip up into the high country was an absolute success. I am very proud to report that for the first time in LFFE history every single member of the trip...
Yellowstone Adventure Returns to the Backcountry
For the last three nights our group has been camped out at Mammoth Hot Springs, and just a short walk from the Gardner River. Out timing was perfect as we enjoyed some of the best fishing I have ever seen on this river. Several fish over 16inches fell for our huge flies that imitated the hatching salmon flies. The salmon fly is the largest of stone flies and a favorite for trout. Luckily for us...
West Elk Update #4
The gang working on our service project along the Slate River" /> Hello again from the Colorado Rockies! We just wrapped up our second day of service and are preparing to head into the backcountry once again. It sure has been a rewarding several days here in Colorado. Three days ago we started our first service project right outside Crested Butte on the Slate River. We were helping out the Crested...
Yellowstone Mission Accomplished
We woke up early this morning to start our hike out of our first backcountry section along Strait Creek. We are proud to announce we accomplished our ambitious group goal was to catch 500 fish! Some of the group taking the hike up and over a ridge to fish Winter Creek." /> For two days we spread out along Strait and Winter Creeks catching wild and eager Brook Trout. It was a perfect opportunity...
West Elk Update #3
Well, our first backcountry stint is over and we are now in town to do laundry, shower, and re-supply for the next week. This first backcountry section did not go quite as planned. We reached the Crystal River high up in the West Elks and set about trying to catch some elusive native cutthroats. Unfortunately the banner winter these mountains experienced this year was still lingering. As a result...
Into the Woods
The Yellowstone Adventure is off to a great start. After Wednesdays arrival we enjoyed some hamburgers and got to know each other around the campfire. Early the next morning we packed our bags and started our drive into Yellowstone. We had not been on the road for ten minutes when we spotted our first Buffalo, grazing beneath the Grand Teton. On our way into the park we stopped to take in the...
West Elk Update #2
Greetings from the Colorado High Country! Our first full day in Colorado is now under our belt and it feels good. We drove over the Continental Divide yesterday and descended upon the wonderful town of Crested Butte. After this winter’s solid snow pack, the mountains here are brimming with wildflowers and the streams are full of hungry trout. We set up camp this morning at the Oh Be Joyful...
Blue Ridge Final Days
It is official, the 2014 Blue Ridge Adventure is in the books! From catching wild brookies beneath breathtaking waterfalls to making new friends, the amazing adventure was full of highlights. After staying persistent through almost constant rain and some tough fishing during our second backcountry we ended the trip with probably the greatest highlight of them all. We spent all of our final day of...
Wrapping up in the Blue Ridge Mountains
Well our final backcountry has come to an end. The fishing started off great with several fish being caught within the first few minutes of being at camp. Unfortunately an hour or two later the rain came and didn’t go away. The group stayed at it as the rain fell and we managed to catch a few more fish before dinner. The next morning the rain kept falling. It rained so hard this time that the...
The Final Countdown
The Blue Ridge Adventure is flying by! We spent yesterday volunteering with Trout Unlimited to help clean up some of the campsites along a stretch of small mountain streams that support native brook trout. After we built up a good sweat we rewarded ourselves with a swim at “sliding rock”, a natural waterslide that ends in a 8ft deep hole. Just a fraction of the trash we helped clean up from some...
We’re Back
Our group ready to hit the trail." /> We’re back! We spent the last two nights in the backcountry of Panthertown Valley in search of wild brook trout. The three mile hike was well worth the effort. We set up our camp at the base of a waterfall. From our camp we had a short hike to some of the best fishing on the river. Everybody in the group caught some of the small but beautiful native Southern...
Blue Ridge Adventure Hits the Trail
The North Carolina Blue Ridge Adventure is about to enter the backcountry for the first time after yesterdays action packed day. The trip got off to a quick start. On the first morning everybody was up and ready to go by 7. Llewyn and Will helped cook up some pancakes and bacon before we spent the rest of the morning building on our wide range of fly fishing skills. In the afternoon we put all we...
