Professional guiding

[Chris Shelton]

Hi guys, having given this a bit of thought, I have decided to enter into this arena. 40 years of experience on the streams has got to be worth something, so I have decided to capitalize on my accumulated strengths and offer something exclusive and different, and that is purely Cape stream dry fly fishing.

So, in the interest of providing the best possible service and giving a client the best personal experience that money can buy, my question to you guys is this; if you were paying for a professional guiding service, what ideally would you expect for your money?

[Deneys]

Hi guys, having given this a bit of thought, I have decided to enter into this arena. 40 years of experience on the streams have got to be worth something, so what I have decided to do is to capitalize on my strengths and offer something exclusive, and that is purely dry fly fishing.

My question to you guys is this, if you were paying for professional guiding, what ideally would you expect for your money?

Some one that actually new how to fish - jokes

[Chris Shelton]

Some one that actually new how to fish - jokes

Don't worry, I've organized a few lessons for myself first....kinda like a crash course It seems to work for the guides on the Vaal

[Deneys]

Don't worry, I've organized a few lessons for myself first....kinda like a crash course It seems to work for the guides on the Vaal

hahahaha - very funny -

[rols]

Having not done much stream fishing, so here is my input on what I've experienced so far. This is not a technical answer ito fishing style etc etc, it's what I as a newcomer to the game has experienced. These are the people who would be looking for assistence. Andre took me one day and i must say from the first minute he stopped his bakkie the atmosphere was relaxed and organised. (we wer'nt paying him) he rocked up with coffee,tea rusks, sarmies everything you could think of. The thing that sticks out for me most was the relaxed, fun, easy atmosphere to the day. yes we got fish, but you never felt, not even once that you were a newbie or wasting his time etc. When I would apologise for a k&k cast, he would quickly bring you back to the fact that's it's about enjoying the day and learning. I've had the pleasure of fishing with Darryl and the same easy, nice approach was amazing. He explains the lie ahead, what he suggests would be the best approach, and where to put the fly. Gee I'm getting long winded here. My point is the feeling that you came off the water, totally relaxed, free of any pressure that you did'nt perform, but that you learnt a heap of info and can't wait to book the guy again to show him that you have learnt something and this time you'll get a perfect drift and nail the mother because you read the water well.

[Chris Shelton]

Having not done much stream fishing, so here is my input on what I've experienced so far. This is not a technical answer ito fishing style etc etc, it's what I as a newcomer to the game has experienced. These are the people who would be looking for assistence. Andre took me one day and i must say from the first minute he stopped his bakkie the atmosphere was relaxed and organised. (we wer'nt paying him) he rocked up with coffee,tea rusks, sarmies everything you could think of. The thing that sticks out for me most was the relaxed, fun, easy atmosphere to the day. yes we got fish, but you never felt, not even once that you were a newbie or wasting his time etc. When I would apologise for a k&k cast, he would quickly bring you back to the fact that's it's about enjoying the day and learning. I've had the pleasure of fishing with Darryl and the same easy, nice approach was amazing. He explains the lie ahead, what he suggests would be the best approach, and where to put the fly. Gee I'm getting long winded here. My point is the feeling that you came off the water, totally relaxed, free of any pressure that you did'nt perform, but that you learnt a heap of info and can't wait to book the guy again to show him that you have learnt something and this time you'll get a perfect drift and nail the mother because you read the water well.

Thanks for your thoughts Roland. You are dead right, I think the key is to just be oneself, relaxed but at the same time confident. I have no doubt that when one has a paying customer things are slightly different in that the guide is under pressure to get his client into fish. The trick is obviously not to let that anxiety show and to be as relaxed as possible.

The word 'professional' alone can be a stressful thing, because it conjures up thoughts relating to 'performance', which in itself is a stressful thing. At the end of the day, experience should aleviate a lot of the anxiety and make for a nice relaxed atmosphere though. The last thing one would want on a day on any stream is any manner of formality. At the end of the day, we are all just simple fly fishermen who are passionate about what we do and love sharing it with others, I know i do.

[rols]

jea, i wish i could put down on paper as well as i think i want to say it. at the end of the day the guy could be a pretty comprehensive fly fisher, the streams are a totally different kettle of fish. the guy is now under pressure from himself to show he's not a poopall. the relaxed demeanour of the guide helps him overcome any self induced pressure, now he's all ears and sucking the knowledge in. your point about needing to get the client into fish is probably the biggest factor as yes i don't want to come off the water with nothing. it's how you package that so they walk off thinking damn hell that was amazing. i'm probably forgetting that it's not newcomers you going to be targetting so yes getting the overseas boys into some pristine cape waters and wonderfull fighting fish and combining it with a remarkable "complete" experience, is what counts.

[rols]

ok having read your question again, ......i want 40 years experience for my money and as nic says, good answers and explanations. we forget about the "why" too easily, and just take the "use this fly" as the gospel.

[nicholas]

Hi guys, having given this a bit of thought, I have decided to enter into this arena. 40 years of experience on the streams have got to be worth something, so what I have decided to do is to capitalize on my strengths and offer something exclusive, and that is purely dry fly fishing.

So, in the interest of providing the best possible service and experience, my question to you guys is this; if you were paying for professional guiding, what ideally would you expect for your money?

Hi C hris ,at what level would this be aimed or would yoou cover all skill levels..as a newbie to the streams i just want some understanding that when you say for example 'we will start with a RAB' i would want to understand the thought process of that desicion and not expect the guide to reply something along the lines 'i fished it here lots i caught fish'. I teach and the biggest mistake i made at the begining was assuming that the students knew what i was talking about

[Chris Shelton]

Hi C hris ,at what level would this be aimed or would yoou cover all skill levels..as a newbie to the streams i just want some understanding that when you say for example 'we will start with a RAB' i would want to understand the thought process of that desicion and not expect the guide to reply something along the lines 'i fished it here lots i caught fish'. I teach and the biggest mistake i made at the begining was assuming that the students knew what i was talking about

I would obviously like to cater to all skill levels, from absolute novice to high profile fly fishermen from abroad who would like to get to know some of our Cape streams. I doubt if there is much I could teach any of the local hotshots, so I am not focussing on them. Like myself, none of them would pay for a such a service anyway, when essentially they can do it on their own. I am also not interested in guiding experienced guys who's only intention is to test their skill levels against mine. That is not what this is about.

Being intimate with the history of most of our Cape streams, in some cases right from the initial stocking, I have obviously built up a storehouse of knowledge of what would work under certain conditions. I also know the history pertaining to some of our unique traditional Cape stream flies, so hopefully this knowledge will stand me in good stead to offer a bit more than a simple one sentence reply.