Ambassadors… just what does that mean in the fly fishing world? Is it people who are great stewards of the sport, who set good examples as anglers? People who enjoy fishing and who catch some amazing fish, all while making it look easy? Anglers that love to travel and take the time to experience new cultures, new customs, and new fish species because they love it as much as we do?
The answer to all of those questions is a resounding YES. District Angling ambassadors love to fish for everything with fins. They enjoy trout in the mountains and bass in a pond just as much as stripers on the coast and redfish in the marsh and bonefish on the flats. And we want to share their adventures with you. We encourage their fishing journeys and try to open doors for them, and we don’t ask them to do anything other than keep doing what they’re doing . We encourage you to check out what each one of our talented ambassadors is doing, follow them on social media, and live vicariously through the windows into their fishing worlds.
Ben Sittig is a HUGE fly fisherman who lives in Colorado. He doesn’t fish the South Platte River, ever. His favorite boat snack is fried chicken. Ben fishes a lot, guides a little, and consistently overshares on social media.
You’ve seen him all over Facebook, InstaGram, Twitter, and maybe on the wall in your local post office, but he’s most widely seen on his YouTube Channel.
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’ve seen these 2 brothers fishing in the Washington DC metro area, camera in hand and catching more fish than you can shake a stick at. Meet the Draugelis Brothers.
Lukas and Ignas have had a passion for fishing and the outdoors for years. While living overseas, they had some pretty interesting fishing experiences - from hand lining grouper off the side of a Filipino outrigger to casting bamboo rods into moldy swimming pools for tilapia in China. After moving back to the DC area, their spark for fishing exploded again, leading the brothers to teach themselves how to fly fish.
Lukas is an avid photographer & videographer, and never leaves his camera at home, documenting his experiences and sharing them, while also trying to catch a fish every now and then. Next year he will be attending the University of Vermont where he plans on exploring and feeding his passion for fly fishing and the outdoors.
Ignas spends his free time on the water studying stream and river ecosystems, trying to find fish, invertebrates, and bugs that live in the water to learn more about how these systems operate. With his passion of the outdoors, it shouldn’t be a surprise that he’s exploring a career in freshwater biology and conservation, and would like to work to restore and reestablish brook trout populations that were once lost or declining. He loves to fish for smallmouth on the Shenandoah River more than anything else.
The Draugelis Brothers team up when they fish, and together they take photos, make videos, and enjoy the outdoors. Once they are on the water, it’s difficult for their parents to get them home for dinner.
The boys together have a good start to their InstaGram feed, and Lukas’ InstaGram feed for his photography is spectacular.
Jet was raised in Fairfax County and began fishing at an early age after reading a children's fishing book in grammar school, and taught himself how to fly fish by spending all his free time fishing for bass and sunfish. Once bitten by the trout bug, he spent his formidable college years waist deep in trout rivers and mastering European-style nymphing. A true local, he spends all his free time chasing fish in the DMV area, as well as Pennsylvania.
Follow his monster catching escapades on InstaGram and be amazed.
Wray first showed up in our shop in 2009 as a young kid wanting to intern, and after some shocking and entertaining events in our shop, he eventually grew (and grew!) into one of our most favorite people on the planet. Wray hosted the first Project Healing Waters Fly Tying Marathon, an event that has grown into a nationwide event, is an Eagle Scout, and is a graduate of the University of Utah and one of the finest outdoor photographers we know.
Wray lives in Los Angeles, CA now and when he’s not partying with the Kardashians or playing stunt double to Lebron James, he is traveling the world with a fly rod in one hand and his camera in the other.
Fans of great photography will love his InstaGram feed.
Braden Miller is our youngest brand ambassador at 13 years old. He taught himself by watching videos on YouTube and Instagram, and has been fly fishing and tying since he was just 8 years old. Since then he has traveled the world chasing fish with his fly rod and own-tied flies, though he prefers trout and largemouth bass,
Braden has made fly tying appearances throughout the country, including the Fly Fishing Show in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, at Lefty Kreh's Tie Fest, and at the Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing 2-Fly Tournament. He also continues to volunteer at charitable events, and even convinced his family he needed to attend iCast in Orlando where he participated in the Iron Fly Competition as the youngest competitor to attend the event.
Braden is Jr. Pro-Staff for Norvise and Temple Fork Outfitters, and we can't be more excited to share his fly tying and fly fishing adventures and accomplishments.
Check out Braden's InstaGram feed
Born and raised in the District of Columbia, Remick really likes fishing with a fly pole… . like a lot. You may know him from “FlyTimesDC” where he and his buddies traversed the DMV in pursuit of just about anything that swims, or as the dude who got fined for fishing a local outflow at very odd hours near a national airport, or as the guy who threw jigs on a fly rod for monster catfish and other critters.
As a former and current degenerate on our Nation’s River, he now finds himself in the mountainous West plying local waters for all sorts of trout - ironic considering he rarely fished for trout back home. With over 20 years of local experience fishing in and around Washington, DC, his mind never strays too far from our Nation’s River and the unique fly fishing community and fishery that he will always calls home.
Remick is the outdoor marketing manager for Traeger Grills and loves food as much as fishing. Check his Instagram for photos of fishing and food, glorious food.
Chris has been an avid adventurer since she was young, engaging in backpacking, climbing and snowboarding adventures all around the world. Her passion for fly fishing started with her first lesson on the Brooks River in Katmai National Park, Alaska. Her passion has since taken her everywhere to fish, from the remote rivers of Alaska to the tropical waters of Belize to the small streams in the Shenandoah National Park. Chris’ love for Alaska’s wild places has prompted numerous adventures throughout the state, traveling by foot and by raft. Chris currently splits her time between Washington, DC and Haines, Alaska, where her partner lives.
We love Chris’ Instagram posts.
Kevin is a thoroughbred Yinzr, born and raised in Pittsburgh. He is self-taught in all things fly fishing, with strong roots in farm-pond bass and stocked trout. Always up for an adventure and a good story with new friends, fishing has led Kevin around the lower 48 and many other far off places. Just like his varied pursuits on the water, Kevin’s time at the fly tying vise is spread wide across many styles…. Great Lakes Steelhead, west coast steelhead, trout, bass, salmon, carp, bluegill, or whatever the next trip that he is scheming.
Kevin is the Content Director for HatchesMagazine.com, pro tier for Regal, Partridge, & Lagartun, and is the proud father of 3 fun loving kids and husband to an amazing woman.
Charlie currently resides in Virginia Beach after transplanting from Northern Virginia two years ago. Most of his early 20s were spent figuring out ways to fish various destinations. Through these endeavors, Charlie has ended up in some incredible fishing destinations including: Alaska working at a fly fishing lodge, Mexico hobbling after roosters, on the bow of a Jon Boat looking for tarpon and of course burning tons of gas chasing after most of the species Virginia has to offer.
He currently serves on the board of Legends of the Fly, an organization whose aim is to expand saltwater fly fishing in Virginia Beach. He is also one of the top taggers for the Virginia Game Fish Tagging Program. Charlie mainly focuses on tagging large speckled trout and younger red drum that can be found prowling the flats of Virginia’s coastal waters. Charlie lives close to the water, which offers him the opportunity to get out quite often -- you can be sure Charlie takes full advantage of this.
Visit Charlie’s InstaGram profile and prepare to get jealous.
Mike is a Rust Belt resident that started fly fishing before The Movie. He cut his teeth on the warm water fisheries in Ohio before moving east. His home river is the Upper Delaware, and in 2017 he founded the Upper Delaware River Native Fish Society, which raises awareness and respect for the native shad, chub, sucker, and black bass of this fabled fishery. He can also be found swinging muddlers for lake run fish on Great Lakes tributaries, and learning more about salt any chance he gets.
Mike prefers medium-fast action 5-weights with clean lines, sharp knives, meats cooked over fire, real Neapolitan pizza, and a well stocked & organized drift boat.
Check out Mike’s InstaGram profile.
Let’s face it - you’ve seen Chris’ photos of big fish all over social media in the last few years. As a multi-species angler, he strives to learn the seasonal patterns of fish feeding and migration in open, tidal systems and free-flowing rivers alike. He likes to chase a wide variety of local species, and takes pride in promoting the excellent fishing opportunities Washington, DC has to offer.
Chris’ InstaGram is pretty wicked.