Make a few casts to demonstrate to the guide how far you can ACCURATELY cast. This information is vital. A fish may be 60 feet away on a flat. The guide may be able to pole the boat to the edge of the flat. If you are capable of making a long cast he may set you up for a shot. If there is a breeze and you are not a long caster, he may never try to pole upwind to give you a chance. The guide needs to know your capabilities, so he can position the boat accordingly.

Ask the guide to tell you how far are several targets. Many anglers don’t have any idea how far is 70 feet. The guide and you need to understand about distance. If he tells you a fish is at 60 feet, you need to know what he considers to be 60 feet.

You have to assume when you book a guide that he knows how best to fish an area. I have seen many fly fishermen who have never been in the area before suggest or tell the guide what to do. There are some guides who will say nothing, change their reliable game plan and do exactly as the client suggests. Of course, the result is usually a failure. But, the guide is there to please you and for you to have a nice day. If you enjoy telling the guide what to do; smart guides will say nothing, and follow your suggestions.

If you are not familiar with the concept, the layout of the boat is similar to a clock face. Noon or 12 o’clock is the bow, and the stern of the boat is considered to be 6 o’clock. There is a good reason for this. Many fish in the shallows are hard to see. Bonefish, tarpon and permit all have silvery sides so that their bodies act like a mirror and reflect the bottom they are swimming over. Most guides now pole flats-type boats from an elevated polling platform that sits above the motor. Because they are much higher than you they can see farther and better. When they see a fish they will use the clock position of the boat to help you locate it. For example, if the fish is on your left and slightly forward of the boat, the guide may say, “Fish at 11 o’clock.” Remember, the guide is at least 14 feet farther back in the boat than you. So 11 o’clock is slightly different than it is for you.

There is an easy way to locate the fish quickly using the clock system. Point your rod at what you think is 11 o’clock. The guide will be watching and he will say left, left as you move the rod to your left. If you move it too far he will tell you right. When he thinks you are pointing in the right direction, he may also say lower or higher to get you to point the rod at the fish that is closer or farther away. Using this method, the guide can usually help the angler find the fish within seconds.

NEVER CAST DIRECTLY AHEAD OF THE BOAT AT 12 O’CLOCK! This is the quickest way to end a pleasant trip. A backcast has to travel opposite the direction of the target. If you cast directly ahead of the boat, the backcast very likely is going to impale the guide or wrap on his pole. If there is a fish at 12 o’clock, give the guide time to swing the back of the boat at a near right angle to the fish. He will tell you when to cast, since you should be intently looking at the fish. This gets him out of the way and allows you a clear cast. One reason the guide needs to know if you are right or left handed is so he can swing the boat in the proper direction.

If you are having trouble locating fish, don’t get frustrated. Many fly fishermen can’t believe how sensational is the guide’s eyesight. Remember, he does this every day. More importantly, realize that you are searching ALL the water for fish. The guide knows that on a certain tide the fish will usually be coming from a particular direction. Or, the fish may be inclined to feed on a particular area of bottom and avoid other places. In other words, he is selectively looking in specific places, while you must search everywhere. Ask the guide to alert you to where to look.

When you have seen a fish, don’t start false casting. I once was bonefishing with a fly fisherman from Maine who was a very fine caster for striped bass. When it was his turn to catch a fish he ruined presentation after presentation. As soon as he saw a distant bonefish he started false casting. We were using a fly with lead eyes. During the false casting, the fly line would sometimes droop on the backcast. This caused the weighted fly to tick the water—alerting the bonefish. When we finally got him to wait until the guide said to begin casting, he false casted less and began hooking fish. The lesson here is to wait until the guide says for you to cast. He has pre-determined your ability. The more you false cast the more likely you are to spoil the presentation.

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