A Guide to Trout and Their Environment

Hello Folks,

My name is Bill Bernhardt and I will be your instructor for the duration of this course.

For those who are not familiar with me, I was born in small town called Lenoir (named after Confederate General William Lenoir) which is located in western North Carolina in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. In addition, my father, who spent most of his life working for the U.S. Forest Service, was an avid outdoorsman and conservationist and he instilled in me from an early age his conservationist values and his love of the outdoors. Therefore, I often credit him for ruining me when I was little but, I am eternally grateful to him for doing so!

In addition, due to my father’s employment with the U.S. Forest Service, I have lived and fished in some of the most exotic locations the U.S. has to offer such as, Juneau, AK., Jackson Hole, WY., and Marathon, FL. (which is located in the Florida Keys). In fact, I started camping at age three and hunting and fly fishing at age eight and, I became fascinated with primitive skills at about that age as well and have been so ever since. Thus, I now have considerable expertise in firearms, reloading, hunting, fishing, archery, cutlery, wilderness survival, and herbal medicine in addition to camping and kayak touring which are my other passions.

Furthermore, I have been a professional fly fishing guide and instructor for over thirty years now and I am also a professional hunting guide. Therefore, in addition to my local fly fishing instruction and guide service, I presently guide bow hunting group trips for feral hogs and deer each winter on a privately owned barrier island located off of the coast of Georgia.

Plus, I am also a professional outdoor writer and author thus, not only am I intimately familiar with the outdoor lifestyle, I thoroughly enjoy writing about it; especially when it allows me to pass my knowledge along to others who find it useful. In addition, I am a member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association and I have been an official contributor to American Outdoors magazine, Surplus Today magazine and, Southern Trout fly fishing eazine. Plus, I have written over 1,800 outdoor related articles for various clients since starting my career as a professional outdoor writer over six years ago! In fact, the ability to pass my accumulated knowledge and experience on to a wider audience is what prompted me to start my online academy!

Bill Bernhardt

Professional Instructor

Harper Creek Outdoor Academy