Experience as a guide?

[ifsteve]

I agree that it seems like it. However, if there were too many for market conditions, wouldn't guide fees drop? My observation is that guide fees have risen more than CPI inflation over the last 15 years. Or maybe your metric for ". . . too many . . ." is something other than supply and demand.

There are loads and I mean loads of "guides" now who are not full time...they have other jobs. There are loads of them who show up and then disappear just as quickly.

Certainly supply and demand is a factor in now many can actually make a go of it. Shoot I had a guide tell me recently that he thinks that rec floaters (guys with their own drift boats) should have a limit on the number allowed on a river each day because they were too many of them and the guides we getting overcrowded!

Well eff you buddy. You are making money off a public resource. YOU are the ones that should be limited.

Now all that said you are spot on with the cost of a trip these days. Shoot I head down to my winter home next week and my way pricey skiff looks at LOT more reasonable when the daily rate now is $800. Hell that's way more than a monthly payment on a brand new skiff....for one day.....LOL

 

[DerekWhipple]

I agree that it seems like it. However, if there were too many for market conditions, wouldn't guide fees drop? My observation is that guide fees have risen more than CPI inflation over the last 15 years. Or maybe your metric for ". . . too many . . ." is something other than supply and demand.

Too many guides for the resource, not market conditions. Plenty of people willing to hire a guide, just not enough fish (and rivers) to go around.

 

[Chucker]

Too many guides for the resource, not market conditions. Plenty of people willing to hire a guide, just not enough fish (and rivers) to go around.

Is it the guides who are overusing the resource, or the people who hire the guides?

 

[Evan B]

Is it the guides who are overusing the resource, or the people who hire the guides?

Yes

 

[Mossback]

If they are on my rock, they are overusing the resource.
If they are on your rock, not an issue.

 

[jaredoconnor]

For most people, I don’t think guiding can be anything more than a side hustle. Better to think of it like driving Uber or DoorDash, not an actual career. The money looks good, but would be quickly eroded by equipment, insurance, gas, etc.

 

[Matt Paluch]

I guided for 20 years before moving on to public policy. Guiding trains you to learn 100 different ways to describe the same thing - which has been critical to the work I do now. The money sucks, the hours are long, and even if you plan perfectly, lots of times the fish just don't cooperate. After I feel like I have contributed enough to society to justify my place in it, I'll probably start guiding again. Having said all that, I haven't met many guides who love what they do after being uncertain that they wanted to be guides. Usually the really good ones who enjoy the work had no doubt in their minds.

 

[ifsteve]

For most people, I don’t think guiding can be anything more than a side hustle. Better to think of it like driving Uber or DoorDash, not an actual career. The money looks good, but would be quickly eroded by equipment, insurance, gas, etc.

This is just simply not correct. The costs of getting equipment and maintaining it is well covered compared to the daily rate guides charge these days. Not even including tips. The only reason they can't make a good enough living is they don't sell enough trips.

I have extensive data, for example, what it costs me to go run my skiff for a day. Tow vehicle fuel, boat fuel/payment/maintenance/launch fees, ice. And broken down based on which launch I am using. At $800/day I could make a good living. Damn good living. Now if you want to then factor in the actual working hours (phone calls, boat cleaning, weather watch, etc) its not near as sweet on a $/hr basis . I have no desire to guide, and have had the option, but if I did, if I guided 2 days a month I could fish several days a week on my own for free. Everything paid for and in fact I know a "guide" who does this very thing.