No offense intended here jcoastie, but if you want to be a guide then invest in licenses, advertising etc....

I was raised that if you invite someone into your house then you offer then food and drink, and your only expectation is a thank you and for them to be a good guest.

I extend that to my boat too, if I invited them to the boat then it's my responsibility to be a good host, and part of that is to not get online and cry that they didn't offer up money or anything else.

You invited them, be a good host and stop crying about the cost, if you could not afford the trip then maybe you shouldn't have offered. If the anchor is your gripe, then perhaps you should have instructed your passengers on how to propperly assist you.

If your expectation was to get on here and cry and get sympathy from others, then you've accomplished that with the other posters here.

Facts are it's your boat, if you invited them without telling them there was an expectation that they pay then you screwed up, not them.

I usually offer to help with costs for fishing, but will usually turn down a so called friend that tells me he expects me to pay.

Glad to see most had a good weekend of fishing. This weekend I took two friends to the jetties to finally catch some fish. One friend has very little experience with fishing and operating a boat. The other friend is suppose to be the fishing expert. Within five minutes of arriving at the jetties we managed to get our anchor stuck. I quickly learned that I was on my own this trip. I was unable to get clear directions on where the line was as I manuvered the boat. I made the decision to cut the anchor line to avoid getting it caught in the prop. As you can imagine the rest of the day I spent at the helm attempting to keep the boat off the rocks so my friends could fish. Neither friend managed to real in one fish all day. To top off my experience, I got a couple "thanks mans" for the day out on the water. I don't take friends fishing to make money, just wanted to make that clear. But all that have a boat understand how expensive it is to get out on the water. Simply buying a bag of ice or a bucket of shrimp does not even put a dent in the cost. Its time to start taking people out that offer more than an appetite to fish. Last year I paid $250 for a day of fishing on another persons boat. It that unreasonable? Of course fuel prices were higher, but I feel $100 or $150 is very fair if that is all you have invested. The anchor alone will cost $150 to replace. Just wanted to vent and hear your thoughts. I didn't buy a boat to make friends, I bought it to go fishing!

Thanks for all the good comments! Yeah if I would have not lost the anchor and caught a boat load of fish it may have been different. Both people that went asked to go. I rarely invite people because there are plenty of askers. I guess I am not so generous as other. I guess the best boat is a friends boats plays true. Learning lessons for sure. The good news is that the anchor cost less than expected. Bought a cheap one so when I lose it again it doesn't ruin the day Actually bought two!!!! Thanks all for letting me vent and setting me straight.

Best way to do it is to handle it all up front. Here's how the conversation goes:

" Hey Charlie....I'm thinking about taking the boat down to Lake Charles next weekend for some speck fishing. You want to go and split the expenses with me ?"

Charlie says: " Sure ....what do you think it 'll cost us ?"

Me: "Depends how well we eat and you know me...I'm GOING to eat well....but my guess is about $200-250 each...including hotel, meals, gas and bait."

At that point, Charlie is either in or out.

But if I simply invite him without discussing costs, I dont expect anything. But all of my friends will ante up anyway...without asking.