im thinking about starting a guiding service soon but just wanted to know what i would need to do to be legal and also if any of the other guides could give some in sight on the good and bad things about guiding?thanks

license,insurance & most important clients.when i started 14-15 years ago the saying about being a guide was "earn your fortune 1st then guide" lol. with that being said the overhead is high but i LOVE what i do and that is almost priceless. best of luck if you decide to pursue.

Chris is right.

Just like anything else it does have its high points and also low points. Keeping clients happy no matter what. Building a customer base ( repeats) And the pressure to produce even on the slow/bad days.

If you live bait at all keep in mind that a half day fishing trip ( usually 6 hrs) means that you will work atleast on average 10hrs.

If fishing is a hobby for you and the family, becareful not to turn the fun hobby into a bad job. Dont burn yourself out at all. Have fun and enjoy it. If it gets to where you dont enjoy it anymore then you need to cut back or pick another career.

I've thought about this for years as well. I am so burnt on corporate america. I love to fish & I'm afraid if it was my job than maybe I wouldn't feel the same way about it. These guys work hard but how rewarding would it be for your job to put smiles on peoples faces every day! I know my job doesn't do that:(.

I think Lakeguide is going to put together a seminar on guiding and related matters.

Guiding is the most expensive job I ever had!!!! It's a good thing mama has a good job!!!!

There's the key. Find a good woman with a good job. Then become a guide.

The thing that you should really think about is the look on those same people's faces, when the bite is in the tank and you pull into dock with three fish. Anglers don't remember the days when they didn't catch squat, but always remember the days they killed them. Guides are just the opposite, they remember the bad days way more than the good. I'm not a guide but I have friends that are and this is what I have observed. One day I plan on starting my own guide service, it will be called YELLOW BASS ADVENTURES!!

All you need is a license to be llegal. The rest is the hard part! Same as starting any business, getting customers is whats hard. Good Luck
Good versus bad things? Its expensive to have nice equipment. It beats fighting traffic and listening to your boss gripe at you all day. I love it!

I thought you were going to start guiding down there.

guiding on texoma has become vastly more complicated than just a license now that thw coast guard is involved

All of the above is right on target.

1st thing you have to realize � you do not make money at it. You have to do it because you just love it. You have to be real good at it and catch fish even when they are not at all on. You have to get real good at it � to begin with.

I only go with the best equipment � boat � tackle � electronics (the electronics alone can run you $8,000 � not including a $40,000 boat plus add-ons (ie. 36 volt TM � batteries, etc�etc�etc�).

2nd you have to be pretty well off � have every thing paid for � boats � trucks � house � etc (everything paid for) � because you are not going to make any money.

3rd � BostonBob is right � you will need help even still with having everything paid for � with a good wife that makes lots of money. I ran a lot of trips last year - only to end up with a Negitive $5,000 of net income. That is my contribution to our income - I'm a tax advantage - I'm a write off with my losses.

4th � you get tired fishing every day (you just get tried working everyday � it�s hard work) � you end up catching in your life � way more fish than you should and that thrill is gone.

5th � your only real purpose is to put a smile on your customers face � and have them say they have never caught fish like that before � That is what it�s all about for a guide. � That is what it all comes down too. If it makes you happy to make other folks happy � (and you are very good at it) � then that is what it all come down too.

Sno-cones will be 2 for a dollar in hell first.

Dude being a guide is easy as 1,2,4!!! Think Mark P is on the correct trail. The best thing to do is go hire one for 3-4 days and see how easy it is B4 u make the leeeeeeep.

Good luck and come see me when u get that license