Is a Fishing Guide worth it?

Picture this, launching on a lake that your boat has never touched. Looking across the water all you see is stumps, standing timber and swamp land. Millwood Lake in southern Arkansas is over 30,000 acres and only averages 6.5 feet deep and is full of dead falls and other trees of which some are still standing and others are broke off at the water line. Up the river channel it is narrow in spots with off chutes and bays but all full of trees as well as hard to get into places.

Our first day on the lake in Arkansas we had a bass fishing guide, and yes it was well money spent.  We hired Mike Seifert from Millwood Guide Service. We may have not caught a lot of fish that day, but he showed us where to fish and how to navigate the lake.

                                                                          (Caught while fishing with Mide From Millwood Guide Service)

At first light he showed up at our cabin door with his truck and boat ready to rock. We loaded our gear and headed for the launch. Right away he took us onto the main lake, which you had to stay in the main channel, and running lanes in which stumps have been cut down for your lower unit to stay intact as you run.

As we cruised across the lake he took us to a honey hole in which wasn’t even on a Hot Spots map at all. One would of never even new this place existed. Not only did he take us there but showed us how to get into this tough to navigate area, told us which area to fish according to water levels and what lures to try.

Next we shot up the river channel off the main lake. He took a few short cuts in which he tried to explain how to run through. Believe me he knew every crook and cranny and stump of this lake.  Mike has been fishing this lake since 1967.

As we ran the channel and running lanes Mike explained on how to navigate the body of water and what to look for on the channel edges and on your depth finder.

Not only did he show us some spots to fish but also gave suggestions on what lures to try. He even gave some samples following our day trip to try later in the week. He also had other lures you could use while fishing with him if need be.

Mike was a great guy and very easy to talk to and answered any questions we had. Once our day trip was over he also marked areas to try on our lake map according to what the weather had to offer and gave us a phone number to see of the water level was rising or dropping.

Believe me we may not have caught that trophy of a lifetime but hiring a guide was well worth it. On this lake just learning how to navigate through the maze of trees was money well spent. He gave us enough info for us to have places to fish for the next three and a half days.

So if you ever go on a fishing trip miles away, think about hiring a guide, it’s worth every dime. If you ever get to Lake Millwood in southern Arkansas, look up Mike at www.MillwoodGuideService.com or call (870) 772-6840

Good Luck and Tight Lines!