About us

All of the instructors at The Devon School of Fly Fishing are avid fly-fishers themselves, with years of experience under their belt. That’s why we’re as excited as you are when we see a fish bite your fly, and share your delight as you land it!

We’re qualified

We are fiercely proud of our qualifications, and holding the AAPGAI (Association of Advanced Professional Game Angling instructors) means we have been thoroughly examined to teach all the casts you will ever need for your fly fishing career.

So if you’re coming to The Devon School of Fly Fishing for casting lessons for the first time or you want to learn how to cast further, presentation casts for the river, or want to learn how to Spey cast, we are qualified to show you how to do so in a clear, concise and easy to understand manner.

We also have appropriate insurance, first aid and child safe guarding training. The AAPGAI qualification is the most sought after and hardest to attain fly fishing exam to pass. As a result the benchmark is high so there are not so many AAPGAI instructors in the UK, but those you do meet all maintain the very highest standards.

Gerald Spiers

I’ve been a fly fisherman for more than 40 years, I travelled to the US, Norway, BC, Canada and Scotland to fish but my heart belongs to our Southwest rivers.

I was born in Plymouth and raised only a few miles from the river Tamar in North Cornwall. A kindly local postman taught me to fly fish on the Torridge and Upper Tamar lake and today I’m keener than ever.

I caught my first salmon age 7 on the River Torridge in Devon and I’ve lost count of how many over the years. I’m a fully qualified AAPGAI fly casting instructor with a particular interest in single and doubled handed Spey casting.