"Dave LaCourse" wrote

While in Chile, the other two guys on the trip encountered some Brits
who were doing a diy trip and had not hired a guide. They were
fishless and asked what the two guys (father/son with a guide) were
using. They could have saved themselves a couple of days of
"guessing" if they had hired a guide for 1/2 day.



I don't doubt the value of a guide as measured by fish to hand

and

I doubt the value of 'local knowledge" even less ... it is essential


IF I was on a rushed time frame, tight, schedule
OR
if I continued to struggle after a serious effort to figure things out on my
own
...... I would certainly seek and be willing to pay for help. It clearly
makes sense for a guy on an expensive, but short trip. If I was going to
Patagonia for a week, it would be a guided week.

One of the reasons I want to go to, say, Patagonia, for months instead of a
week or two is that I KNOW that my style will "waste" a lot of time before
"success" comes consistently. Same deal with my summers ... I
intentionally chose an "adopted home water," the HFork, that would take
me years to "learn" ... I WANT that struggle, thrive on it, it's one major
reason why I love the place, cause it's so damn hard ( not every day, of
course ) .... I'm not looking for instant, or constant success ... I'm
looking for constant challenge and the rare, but major extra cool, feeling
that comes with meeting that challenge.

On new waters, I usually manage to figure things out well enough to satisfy
myself with the result after a reasonable, to me, time frame.

For ME with large amounts of time available, my approach makes wonderful
sense, imho. Why? Because the 'feel good" of success after struggle
and effort feels better than without that struggle. The few times I've
had local experts introduce me to a new water with a, "Fish this pattern,
this way, in this type of water." approach ... I caught fish, but I very
quickly found myself wanting to try different patterns, different water
types and different techniques ... I just like doing the observing,
thinking, and learning by myself and make no apologies for that G
Note: asking other anglers "what ya using" does not mean the asker is always
dying from frustration over his own efforts, asking is part of the
observation that precedes the thinking :-)

However, I'm NOT suggesting my style to anyone else.
OR
in any way claiming it is superior, better, more efficient, more ethical,
cheaper, less fattening, healthier, or more glamorous :-)