Hiring a Fishing Guide

Why hire a guide? If you already know everything there is to know about fishing, don't read the rest of this article. But if you want to pick the brain of someone who takes fishing very seriously, someone who is on the water as many days in one year as you have been in your entire life, then hiring a guide makes a lot of sense.

You might very well be an accomplished angler. But can you double haul? Tie a Bimini Twist or Nail Knot without a hitch? Guides can teach you how to tie some of the local hot flies. Or clue you in on how to properly bump a plastic worm.

Say you want to hire one of these guides. You want an expert to take you on his (or her) home waters and put you onto more fish than you ever caught before. You want this expert to teach you how to unlock the mysteries of this body of water and perhaps, since you are paying around 200 smackeroos, catch a fish big enough to stuff and mount on the wall, a fish big enough to impress your circle of friends back home.

But how do you hire a guide? Where do you start? Most tackle shops and fly shops either have guide services or book for them. Most states have guide associations, and you can get those phone numbers from the state wildlife departments to find the guides in the area you want to fish. Many guides also advertise in sporting magazines, newspapers and club newsletters, and more and more even have their own web sites.

Say you've found a guide. Now what? Let's look at a list of things to consider before plunking your money down:

What are your expectations? Are you looking for a solid day on the water where the guide puts you in position to catch a lot of fish? Or are you in need of a beginner makeover with the guide teaching you how to cast, tie knots, unravel bird's nests and the like? Or do you just want to get out of the house, don't know the lay of the land, and need the expertise of a guide?

Let the guide know your skill level. Your actual skill level, not the level you sometimes reach on your best day. The guide needs to know how well you cast, how frequently you fish, if you've dropped a line in this fishery before, or even if you can take a fish off the hook. If the guide is equipped with an idea of your sets of skills, he can put you on the right kind of water and maximize your opportunities.

What are the duties and responsibilities of the guide? Most guides do not fish on these trips. If you are fishing by boat, you'll be amazed at how the guide processes so many things at once. Your guide is asking you questions about what you do for a living, watching the upcoming hazards, thinking about the weather, about what the fish will be feeding on at this time of day, whether he remember to pack the Grey Poupon for the sandwiches, and, if this hot spot holds no fish, where to fish next. Most guides provide lures and flies. Most guides feed you lunch. Many provide transportation, tippets, and usually have rod and reel outfits to use.

Don't be afraid to get what you want up front. Ask for references and to talk to your guide before you commit—$200 to $300 dollars is a lot of money. Make sure you know what all they will provide, what happens in an emergency, where you will be going. Ask the guide what kind of fish you'll catch and how big they average. But beware of any guide who promises you the best fishing haul of your life. Guarantees in fishing are for fools (except in Alaska, of course).

Money. Most guides give a price break to take out two people. Guides on trout streams usually charge $175 to $250 per person and the same for two. Taking along a fishing buddy is a no-brainer since it cuts the price in half. You had a good day on the water. You want to give the guide a little something. How much to tip? Consider this: Guides run a business. Three hundred dollars a day sounds like a lot of money just to take folks fishing. But guides don't work every day. They work only when someone wants to hire them. Guides who own their own business pay for liability and auto insurance, flies, lures and tippet, gear, rods, reels, lunches and gasoline. It all adds up. And those guides who work for someone else might only realize one-third of the money you plunk down. Did they act professionally? You can determine if they tried tactics and strategies to optimize your chances of catching fish. Did they give a darn? Ten to 20 percent is a common tip for a job well done. Anything less says you think the day was less than what you expected. Guides can't make the fish jump onto your hook. I never base the success of my day or days on how many fish I catch.

Article © Mark D. Willliams, 2000