Thread: What would you guys do guide problem?

Need you guys opinion, last fall I went with a guide (not going to mention the name) on big sandy since I have been really wanting to learn that end of the lake. Not really that familiar with it at all. Booked the trip in August for October and sent in my deposit. The day we went the conditions were less than favorable hard north winds and a cold front only caught 6. He looks at me and says 4 hrs into the trip this is not working so I will rebook the trip and since I already paid my balance the morning of the trip this next trip would be free and to just keep in contact with him. Called about once a month and the conditions were just never right and of course this past winter was awful. so I call him in the First of March and he tells me he is booked all through April and to just to keep contact with him and he would try to get me in as soon as he has a cancellation. Since then he has not returned my phone calls. It kind of disappoints me since he is retired law enforcement and I am in the law enforcement field to that he has not kept his end of the deal. I do understand some guides stay really busy but just give me a call and let me know something. I would take a shellcracker trip since the crappie are done spawning since he guides for them to. What would you guys do in my situation. Thanks

First thing I would do is take him to small claims court, next I would report him to the better business bureau, I would report him to the TWRA and consult a lawyer to see what else could be done. This is a poor excuse for anyone who calls themselves a guide.

Well I don't agree with tenncrappie. Although the weather wasn't as good as you had hoped during the trip you have to fish what the conditions are. His promise to make it up to you is just that, a promise. Best thing to do is not recommend him to anyone else and chalk this up as a learning experience. You could have done just as well without him. But I would keep trying to reach him and maybe he will be a man of his word. Not sure if it would be worth the expense and aggravation to take it to court.

Has he offered you days that you thought were not ideal? I guide waterfowl hunts and run into weather issues often (ask tenncrappie about SEMO weather in Feb). I have written rules that I stick to for covering such occasions. If I offer another day as a make-up day for weather or other conditions, I have to expect the client to be willing to take that make-up date as settlement for the day lost. I've had folks who missed a hunt on say a Tuesday want to make it up on a Saturday. 99% of the time that would never work. Of course I don't expect a client to come the next day and have to drive a dozen hours to get there on short notice. There has to be consideration given on both sides. If he has offered dates that you felt were not good dates, I would say he has held up his end of the deal. If he is just blowing you off and hasn't tried to give make-up dates, he's in the wrong IMO. I would say he's probably not a bad guy if he offered concessions for weather, which is something we all absolutely have no control over.

Dux he has not even contacted me with an alternate date. I have contacted him since October, but now he is not returning my calls.

how far away is this for you? If you could catch him in person, it might be worth your time to drive up there and have a frank, but friendly chat with him and see if you can work something out.

If he told you that & now won't even return a phone call, that speaks volumes.

After all this time and "hard feelings" I guess you'd say, would you even want to spend another day in a boat with him if you could somehow get a hold of him? I personally would probably feel uncomfortable or awkward or whatever if I had to keep on and on with him and if you had to be kind of gruff with him to get him to do it. That's just me though and my wife says I give in too easily and fold like a lawn chair sometimes. I would probably chalk it up as a lesson learned, and try another guide if there is one.

I've been on several redfish trips. When the weather is bad, most of the time the guide will tell you in the morning " if the boat leaves the dock it counts as your trip". Now he did promise another trip, weather or not that counts as a new contract I don't know.

Yeah, I just offered an idea if you really want to get your trip, but if it were me...well I like to avoid confrontation where I can, so, personally, I would let it go and find somebody else to fish with. of course, my wife says I give in too easily, too :D