Fishing guides

I value my time. And when I don't have access to aguessing game.
boat and don't want to fish from shore, I don't hesitateStan informed me that the fish would start biting at
to hire a guide. I especially like using a guide when I'm inWashita Point at sun-up and travel up "the wall,"
a place I've never fished before and/or the location isacross the lake and down the east side. A good guide
especially good. But finding a good guide is important.knows the movements of fish, according to the time
And here is where you need to ask some importantof year and conditions.
questions.I should have taken that to the bank. Sure enough just
When looking for a guide, a few important questionsas the sun came up the fish started biting. We made a
will help you distinguish between the good and the bad.couple of moves along the wall ( a stretch of the west
I usually do my homework first by getting a fishingside of Lake Texoma) until we marked a big bunch of
report for the area I plan to fish. Then I ask myfish. The screen was literally black from 30 feet down.
prospective guide how good the fishing has been. TheAnd sure enough we had found the mother lode.
good ones will give you the straight story. I've evenJust as I was looking at the screen I heard Stan say
had some tell me it's not worth coming because thein his normally calm tone "Hey Norm look at that."
fishing is so slow. Yes they are giving up someWith that I spun around to see one of the rods bent
potential income. But they are so passionate aboutover in the rod holder!
giving you a good trip that they would rather have you"Cool!" I exclaimed.
go another day when the fishing is better. That is theAfter boating a feisty striper another rod went off, and
mark of a good guide.then another. We ended up with about 5 fish from that
The bad ones however will generally try to paint theschool. One right after another!
best picture. They may even lie and tell you the fishingWe would make a few more moves to try and get in
is great. Stay away from those guides. You will befront of the school as it moved along it's normal
surprised how many times the fishing has "suddenlysummer-time pattern. A few more stops produced a
changed" once you leave the dock.total of 20 stripers for the morning. This was not bad
You can also get a good idea of how good a guide isconsidering it is August, typically a slower time of the
from their attitude. Once I asked a guide what I canyear.
expect from a trip. She told me that we would fish untilAs we continued to follow the fish we found a school
I caught my limit or until noon and that would be it. Sheof fish surfacing near shore, chasing bait. We ran in
didn't seem very enthusiastic.there and fired some bait into the area on a light
On the other hand, the guide I did hire said he wasspinning rod. My first cast was timed poorly. But the
going to go out and catch bait before light and welive shad was literally pounced on by a school of
would fish until we caught a limit, no matter how long itsmallmouth bass! I caught one fish that jumped at least
takes. Now that's what I wanted to hear!5 feet into the air! The smallies were mixed with
A few other tips to help you distinguish the good fromlargemouths and kentucky bass, all in one spot! We
the bad. See if they have a web-site. If so look at theirproceded to catch a mixed variety of the bass.
reports and pictures. See if you can contact otherThen Stan announced we were going to try for more
customers. Some guides will give you references.bait. We made a quick run to a creek nearby, where
Another great question to ask is how many days ahe knew the bait would b. And sure enough they were
year he fishes. If a guide is not fishing 200 days orthere. A few throws of the net later and we were
more, he probably isn't worth your time.gone.
So now you've done your homework and hired aWhen we arrived back at the spot where the bass
good guide (hopefully). The real reason you want ahad been we found a school of white bass had joined
good guide is because he/she will know how best tothe party! This provided us with another hour of great
put you on fish. Rather than blather on about how theyfishing as Stan would throw a handful of live chum into
do that, I will just illustrate a trip I recently made.the area where I threw my bait. It didn't take long! I
I've been fishing with Stan Constant (Lake Texomacaught a few more fish and jumped off a really nice
Guide Service 800-567-FISH)for two years. Every tripsmallie.
with Stan is enjoyable if it's nothing else. He is aBy 1:30 we had elected to go to Alberta Creek Marina
personable guy with a real passion for fishing. And thefor lunch. After that we were back at the dock. Never
trip I took on August 26, 2002 was no different.being the one to give up fishing, Stan suggested that I
I met Stan at Catfish Bay Marina and helped himwet a line for a catfish or big drum at the dock. Three
launch the boat. Normally Stan already has the boat inlarge drum later I was ready to start heading for home.
the water and is loaded up with bait by the time I
show up. But this day I was very early. So I gave himStan had expertly filleted out my catch. I had pictures in
a hand. He was more than happy to have me help out.the camera. We settled up and shook hands.
Another fine trip in the books! Again, if you value your
By 6:45am we had all the bait we needed and weretime as I do, don't hesitate to find a guide. A good one
heading out of Catfish Bay. A good guide knowsis a wise investment.
where and when to catch bait. It's almost never a