By Ryan Wilson
“It’s too expensive.” “I’ve been fishing for twenty years.” “My buddy really knows what he’s doing – he’s got, like, all the gear.” “I don’t need a guide.”
There are plenty of excuses you can use to talk yourself out of booking a guided fly fishing trip, but if you’d really like to step up your game and build your skill set, you’re short changing yourself by trying to go it alone. While a guided day comes with a price tag, so does everything in fly fishing – and that money spent on a guided day will almost certainly have a more efficient payoff than any particular piece of gear or gadget.
An experienced guide will not only put together an excellent day on the water, he or she will help equip you with the tools and knowledge to improve your skill set. Regardless of your experience level, you can and will learn something new every time you fish with a professional. For anglers who are just starting out, it’s essential to fish with someone who knows what they’re doing and can help cut through some of the more frustrating parts of trial and error. However, even experienced anglers can benefit from a second set of eyes and some local expertise. That’s one reason why so many guides choose to hire one, when traveling outside of their home region.
Now that you’re sold on booking a trip, you need to think about how to get the most out of your experience. You should set some expectations for yourself and communicate with your guide ahead of time. What do you want to get out of the day? Do you want to focus on a particular skill or technique? Do you want to learn the basics or improve in a specific area? Do you want to fish a river or section that you’ve never seen before? Do you want to target bigger fish or are you more interested in numbers? Do you not really care about either and just want to focus on the scenery and relative solitude? If you communicate your preferences ahead of time, your guide will know how best to plan your day.
You should also be up front with your guide about your experience level and any physical limitations that might come into play. Your guide wants to make this the best trip possible and will plan the day according to the information you provide. You and your guide should cover logistics, gear needs, lunch preferences, weather considerations and payment. In case you’re wondering, yes you do need to tip your guide. It’s important to have all of the questions squared away before the trip, so that you guys can focus on the fishing!
A good guide will help you manage expectations. He or she should have a good working knowledge of the water and should have an idea of how the day will flow. However, it is fishing and crazy things can happen. Your guide should have a solid backup plan for when things aren’t falling into place. You’ll get the most out the day by letting the guide take charge and trusting his or her expertise. However, remember that this is your trip and you’re paying for a service. If your guide isn’t meeting an expectation, it’s completely acceptable to verbalize that, so it can be corrected.
When you spend your day with a guide, you are investing in your fly fishing skill set. If you follow up on what you learn, that day will pay dividends throughout your fishing career. You should also have a great day of fishing with an interesting person. Fly fishing is one of those things that no one can ever really learn completely. Frankly, if there was nothing left to surprise or challenge us, there really would be no point in the venture. Spring is here and the fishing is good, so it’s time to stop making excuses and instead make the most out of the season with a guided fly fishing trip.
Ryan Wilson is the Owner and Operator of Madison River Fly Fishing Outfitters in Cornelius, NC. If you’d like to hear about our guided trip options, please contact him at madisonriverflyfishing@gmail.com or call at (704) 896-3676. Check us out on Facebook: Madison River Fly Fishing Outfitters or on the Web: www.carolinaflyfishing.com