1. Always try to maintain an upbeat attitude and present a demeanor that you appear interested in the clients and day with you on the water.

(Unfortunately, I with guides who start day dreaming, as the boat haplessely drifts off structure and the guide is using his knife to clean his nails, not even paying attention to his clients.)

2. If you see the clients are getting hot, perhaps losing their patience with each other, are very sluggish, take them for a refreshing 5 or 10 minute run, especially in the mid day Amazon heat, to revive them, so to speak. The guide needs to suggest this, not the client.

(This is in contrast to the guide that will fish a stifling hot lagoon for 2 hours, without a strike, the clients are dripping wet, are sitting down for long periods and not fishing and the guide and the two clients look at each other like "ok what do we do now?"

3. The best guides know when the fish are biting, or are present in a location, and when they are not. So, if you, as a guide, have confidence in an area and the fish are not cooperating for 30-45 minutes, or perhaps much less time, run to your other high confidence spots.

(This, again, is in contrast to the guide that will take you down a river bank, fishing the same unproductive cover for 2 hours, catching only two butterflies and, like the scenario above, the clients start to lose interest).

4. Understand patterns. Meaning, that if you catch a few nice fish on sandbars, but do not have good success on points, wood or standing timber, realize that the pattern is probably sandbars and go hunt some of your prime sandbars until that pattern ceases.

(In contrast to not understanding that where you caught them last month is not necessarily where they will be this month. I have had guides take me to a lagoon in three inches of water, where I could see bottom for a mile around the boat. Since I speak decent enough Spanish, I will ask, why I are we fishing here. They will say "we caught them here last month." Sure when the water was three feet higher!)

5. Help novice and inexperienced peacock bass anglers out with lure selection and rod balancing. If, the day before, the guide was out with two clients who hammered them on, let's say a jig or Peacock Minnow, and the two clients in the boat today are not getting a sniff on topwater baits, the guide needs to be aggressive enough to have them change lures to increase their chances of success.

(In contrast, I have observed novice anglers trying to throw a Woodchopper on a light action spinning rod and the guide, knowing that this is not properly balanced tackle, does not say anything. Or, the clients is constantly breaking off fish and the guide does not help he or she with knot tying.)

6. The guide needs to ask the client if they want water, at least once every half an hour, even if the client is not drinking or asking for it. They need to say something like "Gary, es muy caliente, agua por favor?" The sharpest guides will open the water, soft drinks, etc. and hand to the client.

(In contrast to the guide who might be timid about this communication skills and not bother trying to ask about drinking. This is smore for the health and welfare of the client and should be stressed by the lodge owners. I like the fact that some lodge owners will put a "soft" limit on how many beers clients will take out. Many do not understand dehydration and the heat of the Amazon and will get sick, of course blaming it on tourista!)

7. I think it is important for the guide to remember their client's names. I am not asking them to understand an English dictionary (although the best guides go out of their way to learn English), but it is better to call clients by their names during the day.

(As opposed to Mr. big fish here!! Make cast!)

8. Help clients with backlashes and tackle malfunctions. Again, the best guides are at the client's side within seconds after the clients experiences a major tackle malfunction, helping to clear it.

(As opposed to the guide daydreaming as the clients wastes 10 minutes trying to pick out a backlash. This is especially important for novice anglers or first timers casting the unique peacock plugs.)

9. Showing clients proper techniques if they are fishing incorrectly. Meaning, if the client has never fished a woodchopper, and they are skimming it across the surface in a steady fashion like a buzzbait, the guide should politely ask for the rod and demonstrate the proper technique.

(Obviously, as opposed to sitting there, knowing that the technique is not going to produce and not saying anything about it.)



Fishing Guides Amazon Fishing Guide Etiquette