About ADK Outdoors

I pride myself on being a third generation fly fishing and hunting guide. My father John, has been a guide on the Niagara River for many years. He has been host to most major fishing publications and outdoor TV shows.

It’s been more than 30 years since the DeLorenzo family set out to pursue their goal of providing for the family through an outdoor lifestyle and I am proud to carry on that tradition.

But the pursuit has become something far different than they ever could have imagined.  It’s the pursuit of the Ruffed Grouse that has transformed my version of the family dream and I have been blessed to do so.

I began my career as a guide on my fathers fishing boats on the Niagara River and Lake Ontario.

I spent my youth taking whatever jobs he would give me and I soaked up every tidbit of information I could. I’ve always been a passionate student of the outdoors. I didn’t know it than but this upbringing was priming me for a future as a guide despite my parents wishes for a more lucrative future for myself….

Voodoo was the first dog I ever bought solo. I bought Voodoo from a kennel in Oklahoma after speaking with what felt like somewhere around a million different breeders. You need to feel comfortable with your breeder, you have big decisions to make. If you take anything from this paragraph take that. I went with R.L. Dalrymple and have nothing but good things to say about him.

Along with Voodoo, my father purchased Vega, a black and white which to date was the best dog I’ve ever seen. Voodoo was retired early after being involved in a car accident that unfortunately took Vega’s life far too young. Fortunately lived a long happy life right up to the day father time took him.

Bertie came to me at an insane time in my life. My girlfriend was more than halfway through a pregnancy and I was just starting my solo guiding career. I had been dogless for several years due to some military assignments and I knew we were bringing a son into the world. Dogs were a huge part of my upbringing as a little fella. With that I knew I wanted there to be a dog around at all times for my boy.

I wasn’t looking for her but Bertie found me. I was in the early stages of a search for a breeder when I saw her picture online. She came from a family going through some very hard times and they were looking for someone to love her, hunt with her, and provide her a good home. We took Bertie in and I killed my first Adirondack grouse over her.

Louis (loo-E) is a special dog.

He’s a three year old rocket ship, a grouse and woodcock hunting machine. A tour in Afghanistan which forced me to re-home a dog. After that I had been dogless for several years and was waiting for the right time to get another. So, after retiring I knew I was in the perfect time in my life to dedicate my energy to another dog. I wanted to wait for the right litter, I waited a year and a half, and Louis is the result.

Louis is from L’Escarbot Kennel in Minnesota.

L’Escarbot is the birthplace of many of the great French Brittanys you will find across the country. I knew straightaway that I had something special with Louis. He was a maniac about birds right away and soaked up every bit of training I gave him…