Durango Fly Fishing Guides
Meet Our Team of Guides at Heads Up Fly Fishing
Our professional, hard working Durango fly fishing guides ensure a memorable experience in some of the most breathtaking landscapes the southwest has to offer. Whether you’re a seasoned angler, or a first timer, Heads Up Fly Fishing has the right guide to fit your specific needs. We look forward to hosting you on our legendary waters. These dedicated professionals have chosen to pursue their passion of fly fishing and to share their knowledge with anglers just like you.
All Heads Up guides have a minimum of 5 years guiding under their belt. Our guide team is made up of a close knit group of friends who each have their own personal touches that make your time on the water with them something to remember. We’re also proud to be an Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing guide service which also speaks to the quality of our guided experiences and our dedication to clients. We value the experience, adventure, and fun of fly fishing, and look forward to sharing that enthusiasm with you as well.
Jeremy Nolan
Jeremy moved to Durango in 1998 to attend Fort Lewis College. Guiding was the next step for Jeremy after graduating in 2003, and he’s been at it ever since!
Jeremy loves to fish, from chucking huge streamers for angry trout to sneaking around high country creeks chasing brookies and cuttroat. Jeremy also travels to Honduras every year in search of his ultimate quarry, permit.
Wherever it is, from the mountains of Colorado to the flats of the Caribbean, Jeremy will do what it takes to leave you feeling as passionate about the sport as he does!
Chris Egan
A native New Yorker, Chris grew up with a rod in his hand. Whether dunking worms for panfish, down-rigging for salmon on Lake Ontario with his dad, or chasing after the legendary fall run browns of the Northeast on the fly, he’s always been fishing.
Machinist by trade, fishing guide by accident, Chris came to Durango with his family in 2009 for the wide-open spaces – and endless fishing opportunities – quickly finding himself right at home.
As easy going as they come; he is one fishy fool.
Madison Scarborough
Madison Scarborough, from Dallas, Texas, grew up fly fishing with her dad, fostering a deep love for the sport. After college and working in a fly shop, she moved to Durango to pursue her dream of becoming a fly fishing guide.
Madison delights in sharing the joy of fishing with families, passing on the special moments she treasures with her dad. Her favorite sight? Watching a trout snatch a big hopper!
With her warm personality and expertise, a day on the water with Madison feels like fishing with a lifelong friend.
John Callihan
Josh grew up at the base of the Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee. He groomed his fly fishing skills in area freestones and tailwaters for trout, smallmouth, and striper. After college, he decided to join the navy. He took his fly rods with him on many adventures and became obsessed with traveling to fish until an unfortunate injury forced him to retire from service. This is when he began his career in the fly fishing industry.
Guiding in seven states from Alaska to North Carolina, Josh brings experience in not only fly fishing but luxury travel as well. You will find him volunteering for nonprofit organizations for disabled veterans when he is not in the office.
Brad Miller
Brad Miller grew up in Arvada Colorado and learned to fly fish under the instruction of his father Dennis, a professional guide and fly fishing outfitter.
He moved to Durango in 1999, and his easy going personality and expertise on the water made him perfect guide material.
A day on the water with Brad will leave you feeling like you just spent the day fishing with a lifelong friend.
If you’re interested in learning a little more about tying, Brad is a Umpqua Pro Tyer and his innovative techniques and patterns bring the big ones to the net on a regular basis!
Rob Peper
Rob is a super-talented artist and fishing guide that makes everyone feel right at home when they step into his boat; something about that “southern charm” he brought with him from North Carolina.
When he paints the surface of the water with a fly, fish are almost certain to bite! Whether it’s chasing large fish from a boat or stalking native trout in the high country Rob is ready to put you on hungry fish.
Michael Mote
Born in Oklahoma. Grew up bass fishing lakes and hunting whitetail deer, quail and turkey. Just a good ol boy from Oklahoma.
I came to Colorado to River Guide the Royal Gorge of the Arkansas river 10 years ago. Which led to guiding the Eagle River, upper Colorado River, upper Arkansas River in Buena Vista and eventually the Rivers of Southwest Colorado and northern New Mexico. As well as 3 trips through Grand Canyon.
Ski instructing in the Vail Valley, Telluride, and Durango along the way has connected me to the cycles and seasons of the Rockies.
My favorite fishing is exploring high country creeks and lakes for brook trout and cutthroat when the snow melts away and allows us to access the High Country.
