Well, a good place would be to start at the beginning; My brother and I (Matthew Benson) were born in Yuba City Hospital while living in a double wide mobile home on 160 Acres of Almonds in the Sutter Buttes. For close to six years we were set loose on the land finding rattlesnakes, coyotes, and anything else we thought interesting as a child. My father owned and operated a Bean Mill as well as tended to our almond Orchard while my older sister and Mother provided eyes to watch over us, to which we are in their debt. Attending local public schools we had the good fortune of living in a house my Grandfather built on the Mokelumnne River lagoon. Needless to say with a river flowing behind our house we spent most hours mud walking and blazing trails in the wilderness to our favorite fishing spots, which always happened to be private property but produced a good amount of Bass. After spending my childhood and teen years on the Mokelumne River My brother and I decided to attend San Diego State University. 5 years later we found ourselves working for the family business in dry edible Beans. After a short stint back in Lodi we decided to try our luck in San Diego again and moved to pacific Beach where we lived for 3 years working odd jobs until settling on Water Distribution and Treatment. The San Diego Water Authority employed us and sent us to multiple districts where we found Vallecitos Water District to be our favorite. Working at a water District we learned very quickly that without water, there is no life. So, we than committed ourselves back into the family business and continued to work in agriculture. It seemed a good place to be given our background working in the Water/Wastewater industry. After 5 years pounding away w/ the family and developing a love for the art of fly fishing over the years we decided to take our passion to the next level and became guide certified through Sweetwater Travel Companies Fly Fishing Guide School in Montana. Of course by this time we had pulled up all our roots in Lodi CA and already moved to Redding CA while buying a beautiful drift boat to last for years. In short, after catching the fly fishing bug in Idaho at age 16 we pursued it heavily after our college years fishing the Ca Delta, American River, Sacramento River, Yuba River and of course our backyard, the Mokelumne River. After spending enough time driving back and forth each week to Redding Ca, it seemed a simple choice on where to relocate to hunt for these fish we call Trout. Also, due to our experience in agriculture and the Water Industry it became apparent to us that protecting our waters was a natural affect. While in San Diego we first started by volunteering on weekends at the San Diego Coast Keepers Foundation. Now, we find it vital to protect all waters while pursuing our love for Fly Fishing. We always fished with one simple concept in mind; while fishing is fun, being able to be on the water in General was the true gift, thus our motto: Fish are a Bonus. In closing, we are simply people who enjoy natures true beauty, which includes the precious rivers flowing through our lives. Rates: message or email
