“We stopped the overfishing, I mean I can take my kid out here after school, and we can catch black sea bass, summer flounder, bluefish, where you really couldn’t have done that fifteen years ago. But it’s been a constant fight and I think we’d all lose a lot if we went back to the old days. We need to look at the long-term sustainability. We need to focus on having fish in the water, getting more people into the sport.”
Produced by Ocean Media Institute and the American Fly Fishing Trade Association, Tomorrow's Fish is an important and beautifully told story featuring two of the Northeast's hottest fly fishing guides: Abbie Schuster and John McMurray. Filmed off the southern coast of Long Island, NY, Tomorrow's Fish is a celebration of saltwater fly fishing, and the hunt for wild fish in our urban backyard. John and Abbie, through their perspectives as guides, contextualize the importance of engaging in saltwater fisheries conservation, because even though we’re enjoying some of the best fishing of our lives, it could all very easily go away again if we aren’t vigilant.
“Being part of something so much larger than yourself, you’re using the entire ecosystem. You’re always looking for the fish, or the bait, or the bird. It’s not just one dimension. Everything needs to be together for you to connect.”
For almost two decades, Captain John McMurray has worked as a professional fly fishing and light tackle guide for stripers, bluefish, blue and yellowfin tuna, and more in the waters off the southern coast of Long Island and Jamaica Bay. John is highly respected and widely known for his strong leadership in protecting fisheries resources from an ecosystem-wide perspective, and is heavily involved in state, regional, and federal fisheries management. In addition to being an AFFTA member, John is the President of the American Saltwater Guides Association, an organization he started in 2018 to promote sustainable business through marine conservation.
Captain Abbie Schuster is the owner and operator of Kismet Outfitters. She leads fly fishing trips in the waters of Martha's Vineyard and other locations throughout New England. Born and raised in New England, Abbie developed a lifelong passion and knowledge for fly fishing and conservation, which she strives to share with every client. She is very involved at the local and federal fisheries levels, fighting for conservation and change from The Derby on the Vineyard to Congressional offices in DC.