The web site makes the whole experience look like it is a very professional well planned trip. IT IS BY FAR NOT... After making reservations for a afternoon trip the captain changed our outing to the morning since he said rain was in the forecast. There was no rain in the forecast why we planned the trip out then. He could not find shinners we drove a hour to pick them. We meet him at boat dock in a canal because he said this is where the fish are. We caught 2 bass apiece in 6 hours total 4 bass. The guide did try to put us on the fish he called every angler he knew on the lake to find out where the fish are as we fished. Seeing he “hadn’t fished the lake for sometime”.. The bass online boat we where on had 1/4 cracks in the fiberglass and appeared never to have been washed and very very old. The equipment was equivalent to the boat. Cheap reels, broken eyes, junk. We did have one chance to catch a descent fish. But the knot in the hook came apart when we lifted the fish up. You could tell by the leader. Of course no net, no cooler, no water, no knowledge. He fished right along side of us and never caught a fish. We both are avid fisherman and this was a bucket list for us. The $400.00 for the guide is not what makes me mad. As much the waste of time. We did pay for the trip in full seeing the guide definitely needed the money and he did try. If your planning a trip make sure to ask the guide last time he fished the lake , what his boat shape is, do you have good equipment. Do not expect.
Response from Host
Jun 2021
Hi Nick, thank you for your business and for leaving your review. As we always do, we have opened a research document on the items you mention to help us import and fix items for the next customer. At the same time, it helps us understand the expectations of our customers.
I want to address a few of your concerns for our readers and to hopefully provide you a better understanding as well. The first item booking an afternoon trip and the captain moving it to morning. That was done, only after the captain called you and explained at the current time the bite on Okeechobee is really tough. You booked the afternoon which even a tougher bite and di have rain in the forecast, he gave you the option NOT to go or suggested the morning would be best. You agreed and we changed it!
Regarding the shiner, the guides or BassOnline have no guaranty on shiners they are independently caught and sometimes hard to get. Every guide is in the same position, Capt Dave ran an hour out of his way to get them and THEN gave you an hour and a half extra of fishing time on the back end of your trip to make up for it.
Every good guide on Lake Okeechobee uses a network of guides, it's a 730 square mile lake. Not a single guide can stay on them all the time, that why our network of guides do better than normal. On this day, it was very tough on everyone, that was the reports he got back, you forgot to mention that.
Capt Dave fishes Okeechobee more days than 99% of the other guides on it period. No, he wasn't there in the last two or three days before your trip as he was fishing at a different lake with another customer. For anyone wanting to see his boat and get information on Capt Dave can search the website and read his profile, almost 250K in the tournament winning for a guy that can't fish is pretty good. Please read all his 5-star reviews as well.
Listen, we hate that Nich is upset and disappointed...but the fact of the matter is it was a really bad day of fishing and he wants to take that out on Capt Dave then okay. But we cannot control how the fish bite!