I have been  fascinated by aquatic ecosystems - especially those shaped by flowing water - since I was a kid poking around the Chicago River near my boyhood home in Illinois.  Today, I am drawn to rivers both professionally and for recreation.  In addition to being an outdoor writer and photographer, I am an ecosystem restoration engineer and fluvial geomorphologist with B.S. and M.S. degrees in Environmental Engineering from the University of Illinois. As a masters student, I did research on aquatic habitat and fish populations in small streams.  More recently, as a consulting engineer and fluvial geomorphologist based in Northern California, I have assessed and restored impaired stream and wetland ecosystems throughout North America.  I am also currently completing a Ph.D. in the College of Environmental Design at the University of California, Berkeley, where I am researching the role of floodplains in the complex field of stream restoration.

I am also constantly planning my next trip to new water.  For over 10 years I have been energized by the connection I feel to rivers as I wade or paddle through them with a fly rod at the ready.  When combined with my academic background and professional experience, this deep personal affinity for aquatic ecosystems has allowed me to develop a unique approach to outdoor writing and photography.  I have written and taken photographs for a wide range of publications including Outdoor Life, TROUT, Wild Outdoor World,  Patagonia, Sacramento Magazine, EarthWatch, Fly Rod and Reel,  Fly Fishing in Salt Waters, Northwest Fly Fishing, Southwest Fly Fishing, and California Fly Fisher.  My writing and photography focuses on aquatic ecology, ecosystem conservation and restoration, and fly fishing.  In all of my assignments I have always been determined to tell the whole interconnected story of the ecosystem I am helping others to experience.  Recent writing and photography assignments have taken me across North America and to international locations including Costa Rica, Belize, Guatemala, the Cayman Islands, the Bahamas, New Zealand, Australia, and Kenya.

Home    Words    Pictures     Research    Bio    Contact