Bob Madgic

After growing up in New England and graduating from Amherst College in 1960, Bob Madgic and his wife, Diane, traveled to California so he could attend Stanford and get a teaching credential, she to pursue a master's degree in nutrition. They never left, attracted mainly by the beauty and grandeur of the west. He taught American history in Bay Area high schools in the early sixties, and then reenrolled at Stanford to acquire a PhD in education. After returning to public education, he became the principal of Los Altos High School in 1976, and later, an assistant superintendent for the district. Throughout this time, Diane was employed at Stanford Hospital as a dietitian.

Upon retirement in the early 1990s, with three grown children all on their own, he and Diane moved from the Bay Area to the banks of the Sacramento River in northern California. Here, along with a house in the June Lake Loop on the eastern Sierra, they live for the outdoors. His passion is fly fishing, Diane’s is hiking. Bob authored two books on fishing and related ventures: Pursuing Wild Trout: A Journey in Wilderness Values (River Bend Books, 1998) and A Guide to California’s Freshwater Fishes (Naturegraph Publications, 1999). He is a contributing editor at California Fly Fisher magazine, and has had many articles published in it as well as in other magazines. His newest book, Shattered Air: A True Account of Catastrophe and Courage on Yosemite’s Half Dome, was published in 2005 (Burford Books, Springfield, N.J.

In addition to giving presentations each year on fly fishing and conservation, Bob presents a program on Yosemite National Park and the story behind Shattered Air to outdoor and conservation groups, and at libraries, bookstores, and other like venues.