We provide top-quality teen and custom wilderness fly fishing expeditions at Lillard Fly Fishing Expeditions. Therefore, our guides must possess diverse skills not required of a typical fly fishing guide. This is why our team of Trip Directors and Guides are almost entirely returning staff and alums of our programs. Their LFFE experience had a lasting impact on their lives, and now they work to provide that same experience for the next generation of LFFE guides. Many of them have been a part of LFFE for over five years, and we are proud to call all of them a part of the Lillard Fly Fishing Family. They are excellent guides, great leaders, and, most importantly, great people.
Montana Regional Director / Head Guide
Pat Sheehy
Another NJ native, Pat Sheehy, first learned about LFFE when Will gave a presentation to his Boy Scout troop. Already an experienced angler Pat jumped at the opportunity to refine his skill on our 2012 Blue Ridge Adventure. Three trips later, he started working as a co-leader while attending Montana State. He earned a degree in Early Childhood Education in 2020, and we are lucky to have him direct our Montana and Yellowstone Expeditions. Pat's participants love his sense of humor, patience on and off the river, and knack for putting kids on big fish. When he is not on the water, you can find him hunting ducks and turkeys. Pat is a certified Wilderness First Responder and licensed Montana Guide.
Trip Director
Will Yantis
Born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, Will grew up fishing and hunting in the fields of Western Kansas and the Ozarks of South Missouri. After a trip with his father to Montana at the age of 8, he knew he would eventually move out west. He started with LFFE in 2015 as a participant in our Yellowstone Adventure. After a few more LFFE trips in Yellowstone, Maine, and the Winds, Will graduated high school and made his way west to the University of Denver, where he is majoring in business marketing with a minor in sustainability. When Will isn’t in class or at Pioneer hockey games, you will find him on local rivers or in search of the next storm. Will joined the LFFE team as a co-leader after his freshman year and is looking forward to his fourth guiding season and second as Director of the Thorofare and Yellowstone Expeditions.
Trip Director
Remi Bermingham
Remi’s love for fishing brought him to discover LFFE in 2016. It was his first introduction to fly fishing and the beautiful Colorado Rocky Mountains. After returning every summer for four years as a camper, Remi now eagerly helps guide the Colorado and Wind River expeditions. His passion for the Colorado mountains led him to attend Colorado College in Colorado Springs, where he graduated from in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Organismal Biology and Ecology. He has experience both fishing and guiding the Colorado Rocky Mountain Expedition, as well as the Colorado West Elk Expedition, the Yellowstone Expedition, and the Wind River Expedition. His home waters remain in and around the Shenandoah Valley near Washington DC, where he fly fishes for smallmouth and native brook trout.
Guide
Cole Hauswirth
Cole's first summer guiding was in '22. He did his first Yellowstone expedition as an eighth grader, and after that trip, he fell in love, doing three more Yellowstone expeditions in the years to come. He went on the first Thorofare trip as a camper and later returned to co-lead the second one. Cole grew up in San Francisco and is currently a Sophomore at Colorado College, where he is pursuing a major in Economics and a minor in Environmental Studies. He grew up fishing the native trout and steelhead rivers of California and exploring the bay and delta for striped bass and halibut. When he isn't fishing, he can be found on the ski slopes!
Guide
Hunt McClary
Hunt grew up in Nashville, Tennessee, but has since lived in a few different places, including Steamboat Springs. He is a student at Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, and is pursuing a degree in Health and Exercise Science. Hunt went on his first Lillard trip seven years ago and immediately fell in love. He knew he wanted to work for LFFE after his first trip to Maine; he hopes he can help ignite someone’s passion for fly fishing just like the Lillard guides did for him. When he’s not on the river, you can find him hunting ducks, trail running, skiing, or camping. Hunt is a certified Wilderness First Responder and loves throwing meat for buck nasty browns.
Guide
Connor Stanley
Born and raised in North Carolina. Connor grew up with the abundant small wild trout streams in Western NC and East TN. What started as a hobby turned into an obsession. Connor first started with Lillard on the Yellowstone expedition in 2018. He returned the following summers to do other Montana and Maine expeditions. Since then, Connor has guided the Montana Guide Schools and Road Trips. His time working for LFFE has assured him that guiding is a full time passion. Most recently, Connor is working at Trophy Water Guide Service in East TN back near his home waters doing float trips on the South Holston and Watauga rivers. Getting others on fish is definitely Connor's focus most of the time. You can find him skiing, hunting, and camping all throughout the East Coast the rest of the year.
Guide
Max Fishman
Originally from Sudbury, Massachusetts, Max has been fishing since age 14. Now a 20-year-old living in Montana, he still strives to get on the water as much as possible. After graduating high school and two LFFE trips, he knew moving out west was the right move. Even though he is an experienced fisherman, Max enjoys almost everything outdoors. From skiing after class on a Tuesday afternoon to camping in the backcountry, he demonstrates and carries the knowledge of an outdoorsman. On top of this, Max earned the rank of Eagle Scout in Troop 63 Sudbury, MA. Currently in school and working as a line cook, he is very excited for this summer and all that it has to bring!
Guide
Sean Swenson
Sean grew up in upstate New York in the small town of Saratoga Springs. Since he was young, he spent his summers in the Adirondacks chasing brook trout on the fly and on the coast catching stripers with his Dad, where he fell in love with fly fishing and knew it would always be his passion. Since then he has gone all over the world chasing fish with a fly rod and experiencing all that the sport has to offer. He heard about LFFE through his friend and fellow guide Hunt McClary while they both attended Roanoke College, where he graduated in 2024. He knew that he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to guide such amazing experiences in such beautiful places. Sean loves catching big fish on big dries and will never pass up an opportunity to get an eat on top.
Guide
Leo Sperry
Leo grew up in the hills of Connecticut. He learned to fish in small streams and on the famous Farmington River. He spent a summer guiding on the Farmington and has been going on Lillard trips since he was in 8th grade. In his free time, you can find him on the water hunting trophy fish or exploring new places. His love for photography (@Leos_Flicks on Instagram) has brought his adventures to life.
