Our Guides

The youngest of five siblings, Skip Dixon has been fishing since he could walk and talk. Born and raised in Manassas, Va., with what he calls a “water-oriented family,” Skip joined the Marine Corps where he served in security forces.

Skip has been guiding at Lees Ferry since 1999, also and avid saltwater and accomplished bass angler.

Besides fishing, Skip has a worked for several years in the fishing retail business. He spent the summer of 2003 guiding in Alaska as a fly-out guide specializing in sight casting for trout. He has been featured in several magazines and is acknowledged for developing the “tease and switch” technique for fly fishing Lake Powell striped bass.

Skip loves to teach people the finer art of fly fishing. He feels that watching people develop their skills is the most rewarding aspect of his job. Skip has appeared on Fly Fish TV, filmed at Less Ferry with Terry and Wendy Gunn. Skip has also now been selected to represent Simms as a guide ambassador, hand-picked as one of the top guides in his field.

Natalie’s passion for fishing was born while spending summers with her grandparents in the mountains of northeastern Utah. Her dream to become a guide began when she got a job at the fly shop here at Lees Ferry in 1995.

Inspired by co-owner Wendy Gunn, Natalie jumped into a pair of waders and picked up the fly rod. Her journey to guiding began as she continued to work in the fly fishing industry with the Gunns and their dedicated guides. She was later hired on as a guide here at Lees Ferry in 2006.

Natalie has a pure love for the nature of it all; tying, casting, gear, the flies, the water, the sun, and the fish, of course. She has a strong desire for helping guests and fishers with the art of fly fishing at Lees Ferry.

Born and raised in Tucson, Ariz., Kevin grew up with a love for the outdoors, gems and minerals, nature and fishing. He continued his passion for fishing by joining a local bass club and later the Tucson chapter of Trout Unlimited. Through trips with his mentors, he fished many western trout waters including Lees Ferry. Kevin has spent over 2 decades guiding at Lees Ferry and started countless novices on the path to a lifelong pursuit of fly fishing.

He looks at fly fishing as an art form and truly enjoys sharing his art with his clients. Kevin loves the artistry of the cast and presentation, and has fished in many western states while chasing trout with the fly rod as well as many saltwater fly fishing destinations around North America.

An accomplished photographer, Kevin spends much of his free time chasing the light, Nikon in hand. For Kevin, Lees Ferry is a unique and remarkably beautiful place to not only fish but to experience. He has filmed 3 episodes of Jarrett Edwards Outdoors at Lees Ferry airing on World Fishing Network and Sportsman Channel. Kevin has 2 beautiful daughters born and raised in our beautiful northern AZ. Kevin enjoys lasting relationships with clients as they chase beautiful rainbow trout in Glen Canyon.

Jeff grew up in the Finger Lakes of Upstate NY and moved to Flagstaff in 1974 to attend NAU. He discovered Lees Ferry in 1978 and fished there regularly until becoming a full-time guide in 1990. Over his 35-year career so far, he has accumulated over 5,500 guide days.

Jeff was one of the original team of five that founded Lees Ferry Anglers. He has appeared in several TV shows and magazines, and his photos and articles have been featured in the most prestigious fly fishing publications. His guiding experience also includes four years chasing the legendary 30-inch rainbows from float planes throughout Alaska’s famous Bristol Bay area.

He still operates his original jet boat, which he purchased in 1999, and she still looks pretty good. Jeff has also owned live-aboard boats and spent months aboard them in the San Juan Islands of WA and the Florida Keys. He is a licensed USCG captain of 34 years.

His knowledge of this river and its fishing is apparent. Combine this with his proven talent for teaching the sport of fly fishing, and you’ll have a great experience on the water with Jeff.

Born in Idaho Falls and reared in Bozeman, Shane Spravzoff learned to fish with his father and grandfather. He learned his lessons well and comes to us with an angling history that includes chasing giant bluefin tuna off the coast of Nova Scotia and blue marlin off Venezuela. He took 8th place out of 255 teams in the Offshore World Championship in Costa Rica; and First Place in a recent San Carlos Dorado Derby.

From Bozeman, his dad’s job subsequently took him to Flagstaff and it was from there that he caught the Lees Ferry trout passion about 30 years ago. As Shane grew older – and hopefully wiser – a day on the river changed him from just trying to catch as many fish as possible, to enjoying the day and trying to soak in the beauty of the canyon and river. He learned to take more time to pause and enjoy the time spent with family friends. He makes every effort to impart those emotions to his guests.

Shane continues to live in Flagstaff where he serves his community as a fireman … his schedule allows him to guide on the river a few days a week plus vacation time. It’s a perfect melding of community service and leisure time recreation.

Shane summed up his emotional attachment to the Colorado River by concluding, “I love to teach beginners to fly fish and I enjoy sharing my love for the sport. I intend to be an ambassador of our sport and a great steward of the waters at Lees Ferry.”