Best known for the steaks he has served up in restaurants for decades, George McKerrow Jr., 59, is an avid, even rabid, fisherman. He founded LongHorn Steakhouse Inc. more than 20 years ago and sold it after building the company into a chain of “casual dining” restaurants. Now he’s chief executive officer of Ted’s Montana Grill, founded in 2002 with partner Ted Turner. He’s also a co-founder of We’re Cookin’ Inc., which owns the fine dining Atlanta restaurants Aria and Canoe.
Fishing has been a special part of my life since I was 8 years old. I remember going muskie fishing with my dad and all the great moments we shared. I also remember one day, while zealously casting away, I hooked my father in the face. Dad didn’t take me fishing for a lot of years after that.
As an adult, I started fishing with my dad again — wild spring salmon, tarpon, dorado and more. By the time I was in my 30s I was hooked on saltwater sea fishing. The Florida Keys, Baja, Costa Rica, Central and South America, even Tahiti. I loved the thrill of riding out on the open water in a big boat in pursuit of big fish.
Then, as I approached 40, I became an avid bass fisherman. Largemouth bass in Georgia and California. Smallmouth bass in Kentucky. I loved the sport and going real fast on my Ranger Bass Boat.
But by my mid-40s sailing had become my main hobby, and I sailed the Lesser Antilles and Central and South America, but never made it through the Panama Canal. I sailed halfway around the world in those years, from the U.S. to Greece and back. I still hope to sail the other half.
It was around 1990 that I learned to fly fish, which changed my fishing forever. It was in Aspen, and we were fishing for rainbow and brown trout. From that point forward I knew that fly fishing would become the ultimate fishing experience for me. It’s just completely different. It’s quieter and more delicate. It’s harder. You see some of the loveliest places in the world from a fly fishing stream. Hiking out, standing waist-deep in water, it’s just so beautiful.
The art of this type of fishing is also what appeals to me the most because it seems like a fairer matchup. You’re basically fishing with a line that’s equivalent to a thread, trying to land a 4- to 6-pound trout. And trout are ferocious, let me tell you. Pound for pound, they’re strong, vibrant and hard to fish. It’s you with your light tackle and the fish. That’s all. So the fish has a much better chance of getting off the hook and certainly surviving. But we also catch and release most of our fish, just like in a lot of saltwater fishing.
Among my most memorable moments was fishing in a Montana river where I made 18 casts and caught 18 brown trout. For me, the grand slam would be catching a brown trout, a rainbow trout and a native trout (such as cutthroat or brook) in one day.
I prefer the one-on-one experience of fishing in a stream and consider myself primarily a stream and river fisherman, but I’m learning how to saltwater fly fish. This year I’ve been saltwater fly fishing for bonefish, and also redfish and tarpon. You can catch almost any fish on a fly, and people are beginning to discover that. This summer, we’re going after Coho salmon in Canada’s Queen Charlotte Islands.
Fishing with my partner Ted Turner is always a memorable experience. First of all, Ted is the ultimate fisherman and he’s incredibly good. He’s very patient and has taught me a lot just by watching and listening to him. The opportunity to fish on his ranches has allowed me to fish in some of the finest rivers and streams in the world.
Ted is the ultimate steward of the land. He cares for his properties in a way that makes the rivers and streams healthy. They have natural food sources. The riparian zones (banks, trees and other natural elements near the river) are healthy as well. Bugs, food sources, they’re all there and the whole ecosystem works.
As CEO of Ted’s Montana Grill, I often draw lessons from my days spent fly fishing on a river. The sport has helped me immensely. First and foremost, fly fishing lets you get away, unwind and clear your head. You can’t think about work and fly fish. It’s too complicated. Your concentration has to be on that. I find that after time spent fishing I come back to work clear and open minded. It’s also helped me learn patience. Being patient on the river, ocean, or anywhere else you’re fishing is important and the secret to success. Impatience will cause you to lose a fish every time.
As I write this, I’m sailing in the Bahamas, where we’re fishing for bonefish. I still love sailing out on the open sea. But my real passion is to be in a beautiful stream in the mountains with — in the words of Norman Maclean in “A River Runs Through It”— “the hope that a fish will rise.”
As told to Bill Hendrick, for the AJC
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