A week in the life of a River guide

A week in the life of a River guide

Quick fishing report: water temp on pool 9 has warmed to 54 degrees today. Bass are stupid on rocks & wood with a variety of presentations , ‘eyes also in about 14 fow on blades & cranks. 48 fish on the clicker in 3 hrs. Biggest 5 bass would weigh 15+. 2 walleyes bigger than 20″ slot,5 more eaters.

Then the day got interesting. Trolling motor quit. Trip prematurely over. Returned to dock to load boat & get her to jamie Melcher my trolling motor guy.

When backing trailer in I noticed the left bunk had fallen out of its bracket. Pulled trailer out to replace the 2 screws which hold the front left bunk in place. Replaced one. Bracket on the other side of the bunk was busted. Retrieved a length of paracord from the truck and lashed the bunk in place with a figure 8 knot.

a 40 minute drive later, it only took jamie minutes to diagnose/fix a faulty plug. On the way home $50 light a few minutes later, profoundly thankful that this MinnKota tech goes above & beyond in taking care of pros.

On yesterday’s trip nothing went wrong. Lee & his brother jim caught a pile of nice fish. 2 days before that I told client Bob I was gonna be a little late due to trailer tire issues. When I pulled out of the pole barn an hour prior to trip time i noticed a strange wad on one of the tires. About 10″ tread had separated, revealing the belts.

When removing the spare, the first lug nut got jammed in my T wrench. Had to go to a breaker bar & 4 lb. maul to get the nuts off. An impact wrench is not enough! mechanic who rotated the tires last spring must have used loctite AND superglue before tightening down the nuts.

I was 23 minutes late for the trip. To atone, I kept the clients out an extra TWO HOURS…so the one client could fill his limit of eyes. These clients lost 5 crankbaits in the process. They paid my basic half day wage, PLUS $20 for the lost lures. Last time they’ll see the inside of my boat!

On the trip 2 days before that Scott & his buddy gave me a nice tip AND some cash for lost lures. Somewhere between the boat ramp and the truck The Franklin brothers flew out of my pocket.

Bottom line, it was a good week for fishin’. Totalled up, I only lost a grand (not counting boat gas) I should work for the government!


Comments are closed.