CAPTAIN PIERCE
Born and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, Captain Pierce credits his passion for fishing to his father who put a rod in his hand as soon as he could walk. His love for the sport grew with each fish he caught, ranging from his home water in the Smoky Mountains, all across the western Rockies, and down the coast to southwest Florida. His love for the sport has consumed his life by constantly fixating on countless intricate details about fishing, both on the fly and conventional. Through college, Pierce spent summers guiding trout streams in Wyoming’s Wind River Range outside of Jackson Hole. Once graduated, he decided to make it his career.
Captain Pierce continues to guide for trout in Idaho, Montana, and Yellowstone National Park during the summers with Henrys Fork Anglers. As a registered USCG captain, Pierce is eager to bring things full circle and begin guiding in the Pine Island Sound, where he first found his love for saltwater fishing.
Pierce has a strong passion for building relationships and sharing his knowledge with anyone that stands alongside of him in a river or in the salt. You’ll find Pierce spending his free time tying flies, catching the latest movies, or on the water with his beloved lady, Dinah.
“ERNIE BIRD”
Clean and spunky, this sporty 17’ Ranger Ghost is your ride for exploring the magic of the Southwest Florida mangrove backcountry with Captain Pierce.
Growing up, Pierce spent summers, holidays, and every off-chance possible fishing the Pine Island Sound of Fort Myers, FL and the shores of Sanibel Island. His father routinely took him and his siblings to a local marina in Punta Rassa, FL for gas and snacks, appropriately naming it “The Goodie Dock”. This dock would later become a small but significant piece of Pierce’s childhood- the home of “Ernie Bird” the local Egret. Never once would Pierce leave that dock without making sure Ernie Bird had his fill of shrimp.
Ever since, no egret flies past Pierce without being called an Ernie Bird. Near and dear to Captain P’s heart, it only felt right to name his fish-finding vessel accordingly. Ernie Bird has “migrated” all across southwest Florida, poling into back channels and flats within the Pine Island sound, Matlacha, Estero Bay and Tampa Bay.