What does a guide owe the public?

I got a semi scathing e-mail today after I posted a fishing report this morning. My previous report was April 2nd, when we were forecast to get 10-15 inches of rain. We got 17”at my house! I had mentioned then that a flood event like that would mess up fishing for a while.

My report today was based on guide trips from Tuesday thru Thursday. I was brutally honest in my reports, as I always am. I mentioned fishing a different tactic each day and our results.

A guy who fished this week disputed my report since his results were much different than those of my clients. He was upset that I had not taken to social media and warned him and his friends that fishing was bad and they should not come to our lakes! He essentially said they had done every tactic I reported but caught zero crappie. His tone almost attacked my credibility as a guide and accused me of them wasting their money and time. I don’t even fish the area they fished.

I thought my reply back to him over for several minutes. It would have been very easy to have used a different tone than I did.

I told him I am sorry they had a bad trip but it isn’t my place to go on a public forum like social media and warn people to stay away. I do reserve that warning for my clients who have booked during that time frame or those who personally reached out to me for guidance as to whether they were going to continue their plans.

I cancelled well over a week’s worth of bookings and refunded all deposits glad-fully. My wallet took a major hit! When my clients for Tuesday-Wednesday said we are coming regardless, I was obligated to take them and give them the best trip possible. The first day was tough with the lake falling almost 8 inches each day. The second day I changed tactics and we had a good day with one of the guys catching his new PB. Thursday I changed tactics again and we had a decent day given conditions.

I work closely with several marinas,resorts, and other guides. I feel it is my place to tell each of them of conditions but up to them to decide if they want to turn away their clients/customers. My gut tells me I might be run out of town on a rail if I made a blanket announcement on social media for folks to stay home! The local tourism industry would love me for that!

What are your thoughts? I know some don’t care for guides and that is your prerogative. I will say I fielded tons of calls, texts, and inquiries from folks curious about what I thought they should do. Most were not even clients. I actually felt sorry for some who had AirB&B and other rentals that would not refund deposits. I responded to each person honestly, but told them the final decision was theirs. Most all of them took my advice but it was private, between the two of us, not a public service announcement.

Let me know how you think this situation should be handled?


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Keep doing what you're doing Doug. You're an extremely honest guide, and a good guide. You're in touch with just about everyone in your area, and you readily share what you can. There are always gonna be haters, just ignore them. Seriously, just ignore them. Do not feed them. They live for the argument, ignore them and their power dies. Believe me, I've been in the online forum business for a long time, I've seen my share of haters. Just sayin', keep doin' what you're doin', and don't ever change. We love you Dougy.

You owe them NOTHING, especially if not paying you. :cheers2

You did good and replied honestly. Personally I think different people on the same lake at the same time can have different experiences. Carry on, I wouldn’t worry about it.

IMO, it’s just part of today’s society, most don’t want to take responsibility for their poor decisions. I wouldn’t sweat it.

Today’s society is a mess !
haters everywhere.
You are honest and a top notch guy !
You inform your clients up front .
Those that are not your clients are not owed anything.
Keep up the great work . As said haters gona hate!

Personally I think the Anglers were adults, made the decision to fish or not on their own, and own the results of "Their Trip" not you. Stay professional, polite, and helpful to your people, necessary contacts, & clients. I would suspect the Anglers complaining complain about everything that doesn't work out the way they visualized before hand. I catch fish. I tell people how I catch fish, had a bud tell me he fished all over in the bayou I told him was full of fish but he didn't get a bite. Not my problem. I did take him the next day, on the same bayou, we caught a pile of Crappie, and while fishing he informed me he didn't even fish where we were fishing. It's a short bayou. Some people has got the instinct to find Crappie and some have to have someone else show them. He's my friend I'm going to help. I don't think you owe the complainer the time to respond.

Reminds me of a funny childhood routine. My brother and I fished in all conditions and the little resort had a bait shack with candy sodas and a wood burning stove that the locals were always hovering around. One of the smarter ones made an agreement with my brother and I; he would buy us each a soda or candy provided we let him know immediately if we were catching, and at the end regardless, I thought it was fair.

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Just keep doing you—some people aren’t that good at catch fish in any condition and are looking at people to blame for “bad advice” because his/her method AND your method didn’t work. The thing is that not every technique works for everyone, even if you are fishing the same style in the same location because of a variable called the human factor.


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Another factor not mentioned, or at least if it was I missed it, the size of the lake that was fished. You all could have been real close to each other, or a long ways apart. Don't matter, Doug, Keep being you and don't worry about the hatters...Your customers are what mattered. They caught fish, had a good time, felt they got their money's worth. That's what's important.

Doug, I can not post what I thought you should have told them. But I know you just well enough that I know you thought about the same thing. Just keep being you, a good man. "D"

Too easy to be a keyboard critic these days.

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Originally Posted by Jamesdean

Another factor not mentioned, or at least if it was I missed it, the size of the lake that was fished. You all could have been real close to each other, or a long ways apart. Don't matter, Doug, Keep being you and don't worry about the hatters...Your customers are what mattered. They caught fish, had a good time, felt they got their money's worth. That's what's important.

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Ky Lake is 120,000 acres. We were 20 miles apart on the lake.


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Originally Posted by "D";[emoji640

[emoji6[emoji640][emoji637]][emoji[emoji6[emoji640][emoji638]][emoji640][emoji6[emoji640][emoji638]]][emoji637][emoji640][emoji[emoji6[emoji640][emoji638]][emoji640][emoji639]][emoji6[emoji640][emoji637]]]Doug, I can not post what I thought you should have told them. But I know you just well enough that I know you thought about the same thing. Just keep being you, a good man. "D"

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I’m getting softer in my old age Danny.


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I think you handled the situation perfectly and logically. Your response was spot on and your self-control was admirable.
Going on trips especially when you have to make advance reservations is always a crap shoot.
Once you pick the date and send your down payment You just have to hope it all works out.

PS, thanks for the reply on the "Another Ky Lake thread"

Keep up the good work

brother I totally get it , lots of lurkers out there , many lurk in hopes of finding them there "easy" to ketch locations and such . this is right common and many of the same types , will act like it's the person they trolled fault they didn't ketch well .
Some reports are real and some not so much and to be VERY sure ....just because today was all that somewhere , for sure quite often means about diddly when the sun rises the next day .
I get all types of sideways comments about lots of posts on lots of social media locations and they often ruffle me a bit when they basically call me a liar ...... it just is what it is bro , don't let it or them git to ya ....

I believe that you first responded in an honest and professional manner that we’ve all come to know and trust. Second, you responded better than I probably would’ve. My thought as I read the post was that you found fish on difficult conditions and you didn’t shout about it from the hilltop. The haters didn’t catch any and had to loudly shout FOUL!! Bad on them. No one told them to go and they depended on their own experience and knowledge that fell short of the mark. Bad on them. We all trust your judgement and sense of right and wrong. Chances are that had they contacted you before the fact they’d have had the straight scoop and might have found dinner in the process.

I sure wouldn’t worry about it. There are people that live to stir the pot. I’ve known you for a while now and you have always been very honest with me when we talk. Keep doing your thing. You don’t owe anyone anything.


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Well my brother, I surely wouldn’t let those other people dictate the way I feel. You keep on giving your reports as you see fit too. So many things change from day to day, hour to hour, that a report you gave this morning can change just a few hours later. Life goes on. Keep moving forward. Those guys are water flowing under the bridge.

I read your report every time I get the email saying it's out. I've used that report and caught plenty of fish. I've used that report and didn't have a good day. Never have I thought it was on you or any of the other things I hear or read. If those guys have fished here in the past surely, they understood our lakes a little bit. Ky and Barkley can change daily. Then they have to understand the weather we've had. Their bad luck is not on you. I appreciate your reports and am glad they are there.

High water events are tricky to fish if not impossible at times. Hard to see how that's your fault. Kudos for having patience.

I consider all fishing reports as a general idea of what the conditions are or were to some degree, just because some fella that hits the same water daily ,for sure don’t mean I can duplicate his success or lack of .
If or when I get somewhat serious and post particulars on a spot , location, water levels, depths and baits , it is only what I encountered that trip or trips and to be very sure that can change in a quick second.
I think it’s pretty nice of you to take your time to give out solid reports on the current conditions myself….good on you bro :highfive

What does a guide owe the public?

I'd say $350.00 for 1/2 my opinion and $500.00 for the full opinion. :Rofl

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Originally Posted by keeferfish

What does a guide owe the public?

I'd say $350.00 for 1/2 my opinion and $500.00 for the full opinion. :Rofl

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Think it runs $ 400 for 1/2 an opinion here and no clue for the entire enchilada :Rofl

Nothing other than to be a responsible user of the resource and facilities just like everyone else owes the public.

Fishing reports are a good advertising mechanism that helps a lot of us. I use them to catch up and then try to figure out how to use the information to figure out how to start fishing.

I figure any information I get is worth more than what I pay for it.

From what I read in your post you owe nothing to the general public. Your response was a good one. I personally would take note of this e-mail and record the name of sender. I would not book a trip with guy in the future.

I don't post often and my thoughts are worth what you paid for them. But, I would not let this guy live in my head rent free. I work in the fishing industry, sales and marketing, and do not deal with the public but I deal with a lot of wholesalers and retailers and the retailers all have a bunch of similar experiences. "bought this gear from your store and didn't catch nothing" type of deals.

You are a guide not a miracle worker. I'm sure you post pics of your clients and their catch . Seems to me you are running your business in a responsible manner and it sounds like it's appreciated by you clients.

I do not know you but I would have no problem recommending you.

Doug first off I enjoy reading all of your post. Just by reading your post I know you are a very honest man. I am coming to Kentucky Lake Friday for my very first time. I’m staying on Jonathan Creek. I posted for some help and information on Kentucky Lake And you was one of the first guys to tried to help me so I could have an enjoyable trip. I love to Croppie fish I don’t get to fish much because I work so much. I do not keep fish and everyone tells me here in Ohio why fish if you’re not going to keep them. I enjoy catching and it’s only me and my wife. So I’ll be coming to Kentucky Lake going to enjoy my time there whether I catch fish or not, but it’s always fun to catch fish. So I would say you handled everything correctly you got more satisfied people than unsatisfied. Keep being you. Praying for a safe trip and an enjoyable trip to Kentucky Lake. Maybe I will see you on the water.🙏🏻🎣

These days there are too many people that just want to be a trouble maker whether the info given is good or bad. No matter what you do, tell or just explaining things to them they will always do the opposite and making trouble. Your posts and info have always been good and to the point. DO NOT let those type of people get to you!!!! Thanks for your post as many have said pretty much the same to you.