Advice on hiring a Guide please

After living in the Heartland of America for five years and fishing for Bluegills and LMBs I have been thinking of looking for some of the Small Mouth Streams that I have read about. Not having a FF buddy, I am considering finding a Guide to show me the When/Where/Why & How's of Small Mouth Bass Stream Fishing in Central Tennessee. Now here is the rub?. I have only fished once with a Professional Guide and that was a Bass Guide complete with a 200 HP Merc on a 20-foot Ranger on Lake Fork. The list of things I don't know about this subject could fill a large volume, but what I NEED to know is what can I expect of a guide and what does he/she expect of me. I have my own gear and while it is not Top Shelf it works for me. I can cast but I am far from an expert.

What I'm looking for is an open forum of what I should ask/tell a guide and what should I expect to give and get in the whole circumstance.


Clint

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Wise men still seek HIM...

I think you should also recognize that guides have expectations of themselves. They expect to be able to put you onto fish, but they also want you to catch those fish when they do. Some guides can get frustrated and show it if you aren't able to do that.

In my opinion, the best guides are good teachers, and that's what I'm looking for in a guide. Some guys might want a hot fishing day. Maybe some want to have a chance for the big one. But when I'm out there, I want to learn something. I fully recognize that there are good days and bad days in fishing, so it doesn't bother me if I'm out with a guide and we don't catch a lot of fish. But if I don't learn something, then I'm disappointed.

At least that's the way I am right now. It may partly be the stage of fly fishing I'm in -- still a learner!

It will help if you have a clear notion about what it is *you* want, and then be upfront about it.

Check out this guys link. He is a guide in the area you speak of and if you scroll down he can answer your guide question.
[url=http://www.fishingtennessee.com/Ducktrail/default.htm:e49bb]http://www.fishingtennessee.com/Ducktrail/default.htm[/url:e49bb]

Randy Ratliff
Troutfishers Guide Service
browns, bows, brookies, and bronzebacks

[This message has been edited by easttenntroutin (edited 06 September 2005).]

You are hiring someone to provide a service. That sevice usually includes where to fish, how to fish and what to fish. They usually have equipment that you can use. If you are a mediocre fisherman or a novice, they should take that into account and place you in an area that you can catch, and instruct you on what to do so that you do catch. That's there job.

That being said, sometimes the fish don't cooperate. Its not their fault so always be prepared for that possibility. They should be friendly and courteous. That is not the same thing as being your best buddy and laughing at all your jokes.

I went out with my daughter on a guided trip in the salt. She is a 100% novice. He gave her a quick lesson, put her near fish she could catch. When the fish were too far away he would teese them in with a lure to bring them within her range. Sometimes he would cast if they were too far away and then she would strip in, hook up and play the fish. For me, he gave more advanced instruction and put more pressure on me when I made the same mistake too many times. He did not even consider casting for me. He did his job and though we did not see the target species I had hoped for, we fished, we caught and we learned. I would not invite him to my 30th wedding anniversary or my birthday, but I will certainly enjoy fishing with him again.

jed

This is a great topic to discuss. Often we talk about supporting our local fly shops (which is good) we should also talk about supporting our guides (it's like supporting the education system). I hire a guide at least once a year and more often than not, twice a year.

My main goal in hiring a guide is to speed up my learning curve on a piece of water, on a specie of fish or on a specific technique.

Last year I hired a bass gear guide to learn about NW Smallmouths on my home water and it was time well spent. In the end I had some great information to apply towards fly fishing (yes you can "walk the dog" in fly fishing).

When hiring a guide and before reaching the water, there are three statements that I communicate very clearly: "My skill level is intermediate I can cast "x" feet accurately", "I'm interested in learning "insert specific technique or fishing here", and I care/don't care about catching # of fish.

Word of mouth is a great advertiser for finding a guide. So, when you find a good one spread the word.

I'm interested to see the Guide's answers to your post.

Royce

Clint,


For a bit of a laugh and a bit of a lesson:
Fishing Horror Story - Or How to Choose a Guide [url=http://flyanglersonline.com/features/canada/can301.html:8e4b0]http://flyanglersonline.com/features/canada/can301.html[/url:8e4b0]

Remember, .. you ARE the client, ... then again, ... you have to be realistic in your expectations.



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Christopher Chin, Jonquiere Quebec
[url=http://pages.videotron.com/fcch/:8e4b0]Fishing the Ste-Marguerite[/url:8e4b0]

Some of the best money I ever spent was in h iring guides. I learned early on to be honest of my capabilities and not be afraid to shop around.

When I fished Colorado, I hired a guide after phone interviewing over 10 guides. It wasn't until that "magical moment" occured on the phone that I knew this fellow fit my style and would teach me, not just guide me to fish, tie on a fly, point to the water, and then stand back. I learned a lot from that fellow.

Then, I came back east and hired a local guide for myself and my sons for 2 days (1 day spring 1 day fall) for 3 consecutive years. Talk about a learning curve. He helped us learn how to fish under vastly different conditions, and gave us confidence that we could go out on our own.

Now I'm sure quite a few will disagree with me, but now 10 years later, my sons and I still discuss a technique or an idea that the local guide showed us.

As for me and my sons, it was money well spent (that and taking casting lessons from an FFF instructor). But that's a whole other email.

Bottomline - shop around - ask questions of the locals. They know these guys personally and professionally. Then, make the phone calls, talk to the guide and be honest, but most important: listen to what they say. You'll know when you've found the right guide.