GeneralCoarseSeaTackleFly

Irish

angler

Guide’s Diary

Extra Mile

Jim Hendrick

thinks that successful anglers are the oneswho put in the work and aren’t afraid to ask questions.

group o three Dutch y fshershave recently booked a week’sfshing here at South East AnglingIreland (SEAi). They expect fve days o goodbass fshing within a seven-night, six-daystay in Ireland. Arriving late on Saturday, wewill begin fshing on the Monday. This planhas already been discussed in detail with thegroup several times. These customers aremaximising their chances o good fshing orpeople, who have oten travelled very ar, andwhose ultimate objective is to catch a wild fshin a oreign country, you need to be at the topo your game. Visiting Irish anglers to SEAialso need equal attention; their demands andneeds are no dierent.During a guiding or instruction day somepeople readily ask questions on an almost-constant basis. Others never ask questions, butyou eel that you can comortably oer advice.Whereas others never ask any questions andsomehow you know they would never takeyour advice. Most people ask some questions,take on board the inormation and either use itor don’t! I am always learning about mysel,about people, about fshing and about ‘peopleand fshing’.During those fve days or so o the trip that Imentioned earlier, plans will be made initiallyor the week, and then oten remade as theweather and conditions dictate. Discussionsand decisions are made ater, and during, eachguided session. What I like to do during a longweek like this is to introduce people to venuesearly, between tides when we are not fshing.I walk themthroughlocationsshowingthem what tolook or anddiscussinglocationdevelopment,weather,currents andother inuences

Going the

bass. There’s a ull moon, and they’ve pickeda time when the conditions are normally good.We also have a plan to visit local areas o interest during our ree time.As a bass angling guide I am constantlyin situations where angling advice, help andsupport is available to my customers. Thishelp comes in many orms: casting distance,lure or y choice, retrieves, presentations andso on. When you are interacting closely with

The customers who catchfsh are the ones whowork hard and have un.