B.C. fly-tying, fishing expert Mo Bradley remembered for his helpful nature and unmatched expertise

Anyone who's gone fishing in and around Kamloops, B.C., has likely come across Mo Bradley.

Whether through his work at the local outdoor supplies store, his fly fishing television program or the advice he was happy to share out on the water, he made his mark as a master angler, and as someone who went out of his way to share his passion for fishing with others. 

Bradley died last week at the age of 86, according to his longtime friend and writer Mark Hume. 

Melody Gobkes, a member of the Kamloops Fish and Game Club, said Bradley's legacy in the community will not be forgotten. 

"We're losing a lot of knowledge with his passing," she said. 

"He's kind of the man of all seasons as far as tying."

Bradley arrived in Kamloops in 1965. 

It was a small town in B.C.'s Interior, with a population of about 10,000 people. He had read about the community in an article about fishing, Hume said. 

But before that, he had worked in a coal mine, in his hometown of Derbyshire — a county in the middle of England. 

"His dad was a shop steward or had some union position in the coal mine and it was understood that a Bradley boy was going down the mines," said Hume, who documented Bradley's life and expertise in his 2019 book Trout School: Lessons from a Fly-Fishing Master. 

But one day, he came up the shaft with several coworkers — a few Welsh ponies, Hume said. 

The ponies had been down the mine pulling carts so long that when they saw the sun again, they "went berserk," and one of them wound up dead, Hume said. 

"That kind of stuck in Mo's mind as a symbol of how hard the mines were."

Bradley was on his way home one night when he came across a broken down car on the side of the road. Having a natural talent for fixing things, he stopped to help. As it turned out, the car belonged to a local autobody shop owner, who offered Bradley a job, Hume said, giving him the chance to get out of the coal mine.