Two thousand flies in the box, expensive waders, fly rod with nano-technology and a reel made of NASA-grade aluminium. But a fishing guide? We argue that spending a day or two with a fishing guide, will enhance your fishing experience a lot more than you would expect. 

Today, with the amount knowledge at the tips of your fingers, many might think they have all the answers. And it’s easy to assume you are at a better skill level than you actually are. Something easily identified when you see the amount of focus that are being made on secondary factors like equipment and technology. Before the days of the internet, with all the tips and tutorials, a novise fly fisherman would have to spend years on the banks, with a tedious learning curve of trial and error. Now days, with a bit of effort, most people can acquire this knowledge in a couple of years. However they rarely have the hours at the water necessary to become seasoned and skillful fishermen. Of course, there is a way around that too.

Who needs a guide?
This is not a poke in the eye for the ones with fancy equipment and the ability to recognize may flies with their latin names, nor is it an article about how things where better before. It’s a good thing that the internet have made the door into fishing wide and accessible to everyone. But a guide? Many people feel like that its not necessary, and are only useful to the novice angler. In many ways that is actually true, but the problem being that all too few fishermen actually consider themselves novice anglers. On the other hand, if you are new to an area, you’d be better off with a day getting guided, regardless your skill-set.

All rivers and waters have unique factors that play into the fishing conditions. This can be wind direction, water temperature, water level or season factors like insect hatches. With a local fishing guide, all these factors can be learned that first day at the river. It could even be something as simple as getting to know what spots to choose from.

Is guided fishing expensive?
Many who come to Norway for a fishing holiday, spend a fair sum of money on the journey, on accommodation and equipment. For most people, they are entering an area they have never been before. Imagine how much you will benefit from getting to know an area the first day of your stay. Not having to spend the first half of your holiday wondering around, barking up the wrong tree, you will have a much better experience of your hard earned trip to Norway. For many, trial and error is the essence of fishing in it self, but if you are limited to a short window of time to express your passion, getting guided might be the key to success.

This our guides

The price for a half day guiding usually starts at around 1000 NOK. With a full day guiding, usually from 2000 NOK up to 3000 NOK, but remember that most prices include two fishermen. Considering the amount of money you most likely have spent all ready, spending a half day getting guided can prove useful.

What do you want to achieve?
Before contacting a guide, make sure you know what you want, and relay your desires to the guide when making a inquiry. It’t might be that you are not the best caster, but is correcting your casting skills the time best spent when getting guided? If reading the river better is the goal for your day, let him know, and have him not focus on your casting errors. It’s all up to you.

In the area covered by Fishspot, there are a number of good local fishing guides. Have a look at our guiding page, and have your pick dependent on where you are going. When you find a fishing area that you are planning to visit, local guides will usually be listed further down on the page, next to accommodation and other services.

Welcome to Norway and Fishspot this summer
Editor / Anders Dahl Eriksen