How to choose a fishing guide

How To Choose A Fishing Guide
How to choose a fishing guide,despite a wage scale that is in tune with todays times,capable fishing guides are not standing around bunches any more.

When a confirmed angler establishes satisfactory contact with one,they usually hang on like glue.

There are thousands of fishermen lookin for guides all year,so they are sometimes hard to book.

An angler does't need a Lewis and Clark to show him hot spots in waters close to the roads.

As a matter of fact it might be better for an angler to hire a local,who doesn't live 50 miles up the road.Aperson who has grown up with a lake in his backyard knows more about where the fish are then a guide living far away.Thus,specific knowledge of fishing waters is one promary essential of hiring a guide.

Character is another situation as the human element is another factor in any fishing trip.There is the question of the sportsman's personality as well as that of his guide.

Broadly speaking there's the matter of guide costs.If a sportsman hires a fishing guide for less than he pays his plumber,he's either a financial wizard or admits to engaging his cousin in a backwoods capacity.

As always,price depends on services rendered.

This brings up the question of just what type of guide an angler should engage for specific services.Considering fishing guides as a general group is inaccurate.There are fellows who can show a sportsman where fish ordinarily lie in rivers,streams,lakes,or ponds just outside of town.

There are wilderness guides who go in by canoe or on foot to outlying waters,and those who fly in deeper yet.Those are outfitters in the West and Canada,who meet their customers with riding horses and packtrains..There are the slow moving guides who know where the best bass holes are.There are charter boat guides who know where the best salmon runs and rocky ledges are in the ocean.

Because fishing is a sport of enjoyment it lies in as much of the comfort,peace of mind and safety experienced by an angler,as it does in the thrill of a smashing strike,a sportsman can't be too particular in choosing his guide for other than local fishing.In the widerness with it;s hazards and on the sea where fog may close in quickly an angler not only needs a guide to show him where to fish but how to get back home.

Consider the case of hiring a guide to take me salmon fishing.The first thing that happened was the proppeller fell off the boat motor,so we had to be towed into boat dock by the Coast Guard.The guide had a new prop put on and we proceeded back out to sea and this time the guide ran upon a sand bar.He called the Coast Guard again and they came and towed us off the sand bar but checked the Guide for drinking,which they discovered he was drunk.

This tow went straight to the dock and they ordered his boat removed from the water.

I lost my money because I didn't hire a reputable guide for salmon fishing.

Therefore,experience and intelligence become further necessary requirements of a capable guide.

What to look for in a fishing guide
Knowledge of fishing waters

Character of guide

Guide costs

A specialist in his field

Experience as a guide

Ability to perform safe decisions

When an sportsman employs a guide he is starting out blind.He should go to a good source for help.Fishing camps that have been in operation for years and have a good reputation should have capable guides available.So the sporting camp leader is a good source for information on guides.

You may have freinds who employed a guide for the area you plan to visit,so you can ask them also.You can also check withgame wardens also,as they are the ones who check safety equipment and fish count,plus legal limits.


The Cost
Be prepared to pay anything from $300 to $500 per day for a fishing guide.Plus pay for a trophy fish.

Local guides can be hired for less,although wage standards are usually maintained in popular fishing hotspots.

Guides who use planes to fly their guests in to remote fishing waters must receive recompense for their wings.Perhaps this fee is not so prohibitive as one might assume,considering the advantages of flying into a remote fishing hole and not having to hike for miles.The number of waters within 1/2 hour of a fishing camp by plane is surprising.

Some pilots use their planes to drop off sportsmen with their camping essentials and pick them up at a later date.

There are several questions a person needs to ask a guide when hiring him.Otherwise you will most likely be caught up in misunderstandings of costs.Such as trips to the airport to pick you up or dropping you off at a remote camp and returning on a set day to bring you back to the airport or train.

You shall pay for the trip even if it is raining all day and you decide to stay in camp,as you are still using up the guides time in preparing meals and warmth.

Again you may fish the waters in front of camp and then inquire the guide to take you to another lake.Don't be surprised if you get a bill for this move also.

Usually the guides limit the sportsmen they take out fishing.If the anglers uncle,aunts,cousins want to go along,he will provide a launch for lake fishing.This might be a cost of $100 or more a day.

The sportsman who wants to use his own boat,his own fishing tackle,his own flys and his own outboard motor should definately so state before fishing begins under any guide.

Whether fishing with a guide on salt or fresh water,services come high.

However capable guides earn their wages through this is a specialized service.For instance a guide who fishs salt water for salmon can earn more by fishing for himself than guiding a sportsman.There is an added romance by fishing a solitude stream when someone else is paddling the canoe.

The last and most important advise to give here is never hire a guide who allows drinking in camp or drinks himself.I am not talking about one drink a dy I am talking about constant drinking in camp,which can cause arguments amongst sportsmen.Also if in an emergency,what is a drunk guide going to do for a wounded or sick person?