Okay, that’s a loaded headline, and I put it there to grab attention (not my first online “rodeo”). But I think it cuts to an important issue on the minds of many TU members, as well as would-be TU members. That is, “What role does the fishing guide play in ‘fostering’ the future of this sport?”
Those of you who know me and have read what I’ve written on this topic know where I stand. For those of you who do not, I’ll be perfectly blunt: I think that the world of fly fishing, and fishing for trout, rests in the hands of guides.
I think the sun rises and sets on the fly fishing world where guides collectively say it does. I’m a part-time guide myself, and all the best substance I have ever gleaned that makes its way into the stories I write about trout fishing inevitably comes through guides.
When all is said and done, it’s the guide who often dictates the quality of the experience, and influences whether or not that “dabbler” client becomes a lifelong aficianado of trout fishing, or a one-shot wonder. Guides are gatekeepers. They are stewards of their rivers. They are the innovators, and the teachers. And a good guide is, for fly fishing and trout conservation, worth his or her weight in gold.
But those who fall short of this ideal… those who merely scoop fish with a net, maybe take pictures, and interject commentary no more than “nice fish, dude,” are not what this sport needs. Dare I say, the “profiteer” guide is more a detrement to this sport than an asset.
In my book, a guide’s ultimate purpose is to make another angler smarter. If you go out with a guide and learn 10 great lessons, but catch few fish, that’s a fantastic day. If, on the other hand, you go out and land 30 trout, but leave that river with no more insights than what you showed up with… the guide has failed.
One of my missions with TROUT magazine is to involve great guides more–to help make you a better angler, and to inspire guides with the core goal of protecting and preserving the resources that make great trout fishing happen. The truly great guides already get that, in spades.
We, as anglers, should do more to help and respect guides, and in turn, guides need to understand and deliver on things that can make trout fishing even better in the future. And TU needs to play the pivotal role in making that connection. I can promise you now that TROUT magazine is going to do its best to make that happen.
-K. Deeter
By Ben April 25, 2012 - 8:47 pm
I couldn’t agree more, it’s all about teaching people and furthering the sport. A lot of people don’t get it. They just want to boat 100 fish and that’s it.
By Mr. Flo April 26, 2012 - 10:26 am
Well put. I agree; a guides duty is to not only help you catch fish, but teach about techniques, the river, conservation – all around education – while making you feel spectacular about your experience on the river.
By Ron April 26, 2012 - 11:24 am
I would say that I mostly agree with Mr. Deeter. Where I disagree is on the point of “must” do or be. A guides job is to give his customer the experience they purchase. If the customer wants to get out and have a quiet time catching as many fish as he can, then the guide should try to comply. This does not make the guide a profiteer, though. I understand Mr. Deeter is trying to distinguish between guides who solely go one way or the other, but to me a good guide will be both. He does have a business to run and a salary to pay himself and therefor on occasion he must wear the hat of a profiteer.
By Gordon April 26, 2012 - 11:42 am
Guides have their place, but the Ethos of fly fishing does not rest within those who take money to teach other to catch fish
By Michael Schierloh April 26, 2012 - 11:51 am
I’m certain most guides would like to think that future of the sport rests in their hands. In reality, Fly Fishing guides reach a very, very limited fishing audience, that audience being those priviledged enough to afford the staggering extra cost of hooking up with a guide. The rest of the world is happy just to afford to make it their fishing destination and afford the out of state license and steep cost of flys. The future of the sport rests in the hands of the cappably experienced, and enthusiastic veterans of the sport, who are willing to grab any willing and lawabbiding taker and share the love and knowledge of the sport, and the principals of the stewardship of the land. I’ve rarely recieved or witnessed guides sharing tips or advice with non-paying fisherman. I’ve often observed a lewd sense of entitlement, by fly fishing guides to the waters they fish, and the best holes on those rivers. I share my passion and experience with any law abiding and enthusiatic fisherman, Green or experienced, young or old, man or woman. The view point of this article is considerably self rightous.
By Alice April 26, 2012 - 11:58 am
Thank you. Great piece. This article needs to be shared with all rookie guides and those in guide school this season. Not that some seasoned guides don’t need to be reminded, too!
Thank you also to TU for your support through the OGB membership listing in the Trout magazine.
By KDT April 26, 2012 - 12:27 pm
I neither agree or disagree. Guides are just people. Some people are driven by money or ego, others may have more altruistic motivations.
Just like over-the-road truck drivers need highways paid for largely by the general motorist, guides make their living, or part of it, on waters largely protected and managed by agencies funded by sportsmen. But do you think truckers would complain if there weren’t any other vehicles on the road besides other trucks? Do you honestly think guides would regret the absence of other guides or fishermen on the water competing with them for a “money” fish? You don’t think they resent getting beat to a particularly sweet spot on the river by a clueless angler who just happened to blunder onto that pod of rising fish?
Like a lot of truckers, guides often develop an attitude of ownership, whether of roads or rivers, which conveys a certain privilege. That can be good if means better stewardship, bad if it leads to stinginess and resentment of others.
Since they are on the water almost every day of the guiding season, guides notice changes in water quality, flow conditions and fish habitat that might go unnoticed by the occasional or unobservant fisherman. Therefore, guides can be extremely helpful in protecting and improving the resource that all fishermen can enjoy.
And yes, guides can be a wonderful, sometimes jovial companion that can help a neophyte or even a veteran learn more about the water and environment they are fishing. They most certainly will help improve the client’s casting and fishing technique. By their actions and attitudes, a guide might inject some element of ethics and manners into the outting. All that will hopefully translate into a more successful, meaningful experience for the guided angler who might then become an advocate, an assett even, for the resource and the future of the sport.
At least that’s what I’d like to believe in my idealistic world. Even though one of my best friends is a guide, my real-life experience with other guides while on the water is generally a lot different than my ideal.
By Andrew S April 26, 2012 - 3:33 pm
Clearly Gordon did not get the message that you are trying to deliver. Gordon, no one is “taking” money. Guides provide a service. A service that should better the experience for any angler. New or expert. You missed Kirk’s point by a mile.
By VDA April 26, 2012 - 7:55 pm
The future of fly fishing rests with those of us who have a passion for protecting the rivers and streams we fish. That can include guides but they are part of the whole fly fishing community. I would agree with Michael above, my experience on many of the “name ” rivers of the west has been confronting a sense of arrogance on the part of many guides in occupying portions of the river with their clients. The public’s access to quality rivers and fishing experiences is the key to survival of the habitat and the fish. Private water and limited access, often promoted by fly shops to their clients, prevent the public advocacy for clean water and protection of these valuable assets. Tight lines!
By KDT April 26, 2012 - 10:21 pm
VDA,
Well stated. Yours is the final word as far as I’m concerned. Thanks.
By Cuttslammer April 27, 2012 - 9:31 am
Well put, Deeter. I’m with you on this 100%. It’s necessary for guides to treat clients with professionalism and show them a great time – it’s just not sufficient. Guides have a vested interest in TU’s mission of protecting, reconnecting, restoring and sustaining. They know their waters better than anyone, and they know the importance of conservation to sustain both the fisheries and the businesses that depend on those fisheries.I’d use the Green as an example. The support of the guide/oufitter community is absolutely critical to killing the Million Pipeline proposal. We all need to be working together on issues like this, not whining about guides as profiteers or anglers who might have the audacity to kill a fish and eat it.
By Cuttslammer April 27, 2012 - 9:33 am
PS – If you’re a guide or outfitter and you aren’t a member of TU’s Outfitters Guides and Businesses program, you ought to be!
By Steve Z April 27, 2012 - 12:49 pm
I have to agree with VDA — guides are an important factor in the equation — but there is a broader community that has to align to make things work and grow.
By Y-Pooler April 27, 2012 - 12:51 pm
If “. . .the world of fly-fishing, and fishing for trout.” does indeed rest in the hands of guides, that’s news to me – and most I know – who’ve never paid a guide a dime and fish more days of the year than not. Fly-fishing began long before these critters known as ‘guides’ and ‘clients’ came into being, and will remain long after they’re gone.
By KirkDeeter April 27, 2012 - 1:32 pm
I’m glad we’re having this conversation, and I appreciate your comments. The issue isn’t whether guides control the destiny of the sport… the issue is that guides do indeed have an influence over how fly fishing is presented to those interested in the sport (and trout… and clean rivers). Whether that happens on a 1-10 scale, or a 1-1000 scale, the point I was trying to make (and I’m sorry Michael if you think this is self-righteous), is that the conservation ethic, and the teaching ethic, should be part of any “complete” guide’s approach. In my experience, the best guides already get that. We need to bring the others along. As Steve Z. says, it’s ultimately on all of us to do this. I am sorry to hear some of your negative opinions on guides, but for better or worse, they are ambassadors. And isn’t it in all of our best interests that guides embrace and convey the messages that keep fisheries vibrant?
By Red Desert Fox April 28, 2012 - 10:42 pm
One of our local outfitters brags in his brochure that he has now locked up the fishing rights to several large ranches and has exclusive rights. These were waters that were previously open to the public with the landowners permission. Now the locals are effectively locked out of these waters unless they can pony up 300 dollars a day. You can see how this can cause resentment and animosity. Fly fishing is rapidly becoming a rich mans sport.
By What is the Guide’s Real Role? | MidCurrent May 7, 2012 - 4:14 am
[...] What is the Guide’s Real Role? Posted on May 7, 2012 by Benjamin Clary var addthis_product = 'wpp-262'; var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true,"data_track_addressbar":false};var addthis_options = "facebook,twitter,stumbleupon,email,addthismenu";if (typeof(addthis_share) == "undefined"){ addthis_share = [];}Kirk Deeter, now editor of Trout Unlimited’s TROUT magazine, brought up an interesting topic on a recent blog post: “What role does the fishing guide play in ‘fostering’ the future of this sport?” It’s perhaps a bit more than many guides would like to ponder when getting up at dawn for another day on the water but Kirk suggests that there is more to guiding than putting a client on to fish; there is a duty to introduce the sport in a responsible way. [...]
By Dos and Don'ts For Guided Fishing | Gink and Gasoline, The Blog home of Kent Klewein and Louis Cahill-Fly Fishing photography, video, tips and news. May 28, 2012 - 4:01 am
[...] friend Kirk Deeter, writing on the Trout Unlimited blog April 25th, threw out the bold headline: “Guides: Gatekeepers or Profiteers”. There’s no mystery where Kirk stands on the subject. He goes on to write, “I think the [...]