Hiring a fishing guide can be a great learning experience or a complete disappointment. Therefore, from my experience, this is what I recommend. First select the location, the type of fish and the way of fishing that you would like to do. What you are doing is surfing the Internet and searching for guides in the area in which you will fish and collect all 5 that will be best for you. You can also find lists of online books on the Internet. Then email each and see who responds faster. Choose the first 3 and call these guides and ask who will take you fishing. This is a guide that is the namesake or hired guide. Frequently, hired guides only caught the area for a short time, if at all. What you want is a guide who knows the area and all the local stunts. Ask them for at least 3 links that are out of state (not his neighbor), a good guide has no problems with questions or links. Always listen to your behavior, you do not want to spend your money and your time with a snag. Of course, you do not like grumpy people. I prefer fun, energetic guides who not only learn about fishing techniques, but also offer knowledge of the terrain. The next question to ask a prospective guide is what you get for your money and what is required of you. Most guides will supply all the necessary equipment, bait sticks, etc. Some of them also include lunch, so be sure to ask. I have a very good collection of rods, and I like to use my own equipment, but I always ask if the manual does it. If they are not, I will try them on my equipment, for example, in the production of rods and coils, lines, etc. If they do not use high-quality equipment, go to another place! And always ask what you should be prepared for in terms of the weather, better be prepared than unhappy. It is better to take too many warm clothes, snacks, drinks, than to be wet, cold, hungry and thirsty. If you have any special needs, always let your guide know before booking a trip so that they can meet your needs. This is your trip and your money in the end. Therefore, when you have spoken with at least three fishing attire, use your own intuition and with whom you feel most comfortable. I can usually tell who I hired after the first telephone conversation, but I still always check the links if I was not recommended by a friend or another guide in the area.
Call a couple of weeks before the planned trip to make sure everything is still good, and confirm the time and place of the meeting. If they say that they cannot do it, but they have built another guide, demand a return of their deposit! I had it, and I had a guide who had no experience, and it was a $ 400 boat trip in Alaska. Therefore, if you follow my recommendations, I can almost guarantee that you will have a good time, meet a new friend or two, and tell us about the fish. A few years ago, I learned in Alaska to hire a guide on the first day when I would fish. Learn all the tips, bait, which rod to use, etc. And go back to the gear shop and get the right terminal to grab and go back to the same area and fish the next day. It works fine, caught almost as many fish without a guide, but saved a lot of money. Hiring a guide is very worth it, and I always love to hire a guide first when fishing a new pond, be it a river or a lake. Dense lines and good fishing.
