Nate Carr - Biography

A native Buffalonian, Nate Carr was born and raised in western NY. For as long as he can remember, fishing has been a part of Nate’s soul, a pathway to connect with that which we so often lose touch – our natural surroundings, the present moment, and our primal core. His father introduced him to the sport as a small child; fishing for bass and walleye on Niagara River and trout on the many freestone streams in western New York’s Southern Tier. Growing up in Grand Island, NY Nate was literally surrounded by water, a detail that was never lost on him or the Shea boys (Ryan Shea and his brothers), with whom Nate was considered the 4th brother. Summers were spent probing the Niagara River from every patch of shoreline accessible by foot or bike, fishing ponds for bullhead and bass, and annual trips to Georgian Bay. In his early teens, Nate dabbled in fly fishing with his father while visiting family on the Miramachi River in New Brunswick but it wasn’t until his late teen years that the “bug” really took hold and fly fishing became his passion. This would begin a journey to learn and become proficient at what would later come to, in-part, define him as a man.

While earning a B.A. in Communication at the University at Buffalo and before life thrust “adult responsibilities” upon him, Nate took full advantage of his free time by honing his skills fishing for trout and steelhead in both NY and PA. Mostly a solitary angler, Nate was self-taught and always found it far more rewarding to figure things out for himself as opposed to being spoon fed. He contends that, in some cases, it is better to approach fishing without the contamination of the collective fishing community’s paradigm, being ignorant to what “can’t be done” allowed him find success in unorthodox techniques and locations. Through this, he came to learn his local waters well and an itch to explore began to develop.

Nate found himself travelling regionally to fish the hallowed waters he read about so many times in magazines and watched on TV shows: The Beaver Kill, Delaware, and Willoweemoc in NY’s Catskill mountains; the West Branch of the Ausable in the Adirondacks; Kettle Creek, Slate Run, and Spring Creek in Central PA just to name a few. This thirst for exploration grew with every trip to a new destination and when his childhood friend Ryan found the same passion for fly fishing and travel, the two began planning and executing trips across Canada and the US to experience many of the highest quality fisheries the continent has to offer. Amidst the travel to new and far-off places, Nate always kept his home waters close to heart and began to approach those waters with new techniques in favor of quality over quantity.

Finding and figuring out how to catch trophy trout and musky became Nate’s focus in his late twenties and early thirties. With his Sales career and family demanding more of his time, Nate felt it was more rewarding to spend his limited time chasing the “white whales” of his rivers and he soon became adept at it. Though he loves casting dainty dries to wary trout and the feel of a silky brookie in his palm, you are more likely to find him throwing big articulated streamers for top-of-the-food-chain predators. Be it big, buttery browns or menacing muskies, Nate has a knack for hunting these illusive beasts.

Through the years Nate and Ryan always talked about starting a fishing company and dreamed of turning their passion into a calling and career. With Ryan’s return home to western New York, the pieces aligned to make that dream a reality and Brookdog Fishing Company was born. Today Nate enjoys sharing his passion and knowledge for fly fishing along with his love for the outdoors with clients from all walks of life.