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Mike & Cathy Wheatley operate as your premier host for guided hunting & fishing trips. With over 40 years experience as fishing & hunting guides offering Crappie, White Bass & Black Bass trips on Sam Rayburn, Sabine River and Toledo Bend. Mexico Deer, Javelina and Turkey hunts with a bow.

Guides & Rates

Some basic information on booking a Guide...

The fishing world is full of guides. Most are legitimate but, unfortunately, some are not. Before hiring Mike, Cathy or another fishing guide, the Wheatleys suggest asking these following questions:

Make sure insurance is intact.

1. Is the guide insured? Accidents do happen. Any guide you choose to book should have the proper GUIDE insurance, NOT just boat insurance.

Make sure you know what comes with your charter.

2. What does the guide furnish? A professional guide will furnish the boat, gas and oil. With proper notification, most will be happy to provide rods, reels and lures. (Some may charge extra for this, so make sure that you ask!)

Guides should be licensed.

3. Is the guide licensed? Depending on the state and bodies of water fished, a guide may be required to be licensed with: a professional guide license and/or a Coast Guard Captain's license.

What does your trip include?

4. What does the day include? A half day trip should be five hours - no less. And a full day should be at least eight hours. If you are keeping fish, find out if your day ends when you reach your limit.

Check your guide's experience.

5. How long has he or she been guiding? Most of the time, the more experience a guide has the better your trip will be. However, some newer guides will work harder to satisfy you as the customer.

Ask the right questions.

6. What should you cover in your initial conversation? Length of trip (full or half day), species of fish, techniques on instruction trips, or the type of group (corporate, friends or entertaining clients). After discussing these questions with your potential guide you may then want to ask for references.

There is no better way to find out what a guide is really like than by asking some of his or her customers. If you are satisfied with the answers the guide provided and with his or her customer comments, go ahead and book the guide. He or she is a professional and will do their best to make sure you have an enjoyable day on the water.

 
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