WHAT YOU WILL LEARN IN OUR FISHING GUIDE CLASSES

Fishing Class Curriculum example -

Introduction (classroom instruction) 

What is fly fishing and why do my clients like it?
Catch and Release Ethic
Catch and Kill Ethic
Stream Ethics 

Where do I start? 

Fly Rod Identification (Reel seat, stripping guide, snake guides, tip top)
Reel and Line Identification (Reel, Backing, Fly line-types, leader, tippet)
Grip Placement (various styles)
Casting Discussion. Do I need a specific casting style? 

What are these furry things? 

Artificial fly identification (dries, wets, nymphs, streamers)
Dry fly types (Catskill, Parachute, Compara-duns)
Nymph types (bead head, traditional)
Streamer types (feather wing, hair wing, synthetic) 

What the Hell are all these bugs? 

Fly type identification. (Mayfly, Stonefly, Caddis)
Entomology (life cycle explanation, no need to be a scientist)
Aquatic life habitat (stream location of mayflies, caddis and stoneflies)
Other trout food (baitfish, crayfish, terrestrials) Practical Application
    (Outside Instruction) 

Casting 

Stance
Rod Grip (make it your own)
Basic overhead casting demonstration (Mine, Alex, Robert, Matt, all different, all effective)
Student practice 

Let’s go Fishing
(local water, Jacobs Creek, Laurel Hill, Indian Creek, etc.)

Reading the Water (Structure, Habitat, Cover and Food Source)
Nymph fishing instruction (Shot, indicator placement, attractor vs. hatch matching upstream, on the swing)
Dry fly instruction (dry fly selection, cast placement, drag free drift, upstream, across stream, dry fly as an indicator with nymph dropper)
Wet Fly instruction (fly selection, tandem flies, wet fly swing, Leisenring Lift)
Streamer Instruction (swinging, stripping) 

Practical Application (or shut up and fish)

Students apply instruction to practical practice by fishing using the days lesson as a guide. Instructor guidance.

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CPR and First Aid
CPR and First Aid is a must have Certification for any Guide Job. You will be trained to handle Emergency situations, keep a cool head and know what to do for someone who has been injured. This training is invaluable to you as a Professional Guide and also in your own personal life.
 
National/ International Safe Boating Certificate
You will learn Safe Boating for the purpose to operate all Types of water craft safely on National and International waters. First part of your training at Bear Rocks Guide School is how to utilize all forms of boating crafts from canoes, kayaks then move up to Powered Boats. Your Safe Boating Certificate meets Coast Guard requirements to operate a Charter Boat for Guide Services in National and International waters.

All Tackle Fishing/Fly-Fishing
Our highly motivated staff of Professional Instructors will teach you all forms of fishing for all game species. We will do our best to train you for all aspects of fishing from Fresh Water to Salt Water from Fly Fishing in Alaska to Tarpon fishing in the Key’s to Trout in Penn, Colorado, Montana!  Additional classes will be available in 2009 for you, who want to learn about Packing Mules/Horses to Alpine Lakes and Streams in The Rocky Mountains. Learn how to saddle, make loads to place and tie down on the Pack Mules and then go 12,000 ft to an Alpine Lake or Stream that may only get fished 2 months out of the year by only a handful of people who have the skill or determination to get there. Are You one of those people? Want to be? We will give you the skills needed to obtain your Dream Job in the Guiding Industry!
 
Fly Tying/Making Lures
You will receive knowledge of how to make your own special Fly or Lure for the waters you are working on. You will receive  a beginners fly tying kit and a some lure making kits to learn to put together the most popular flies/lures in any ones box. In addition to that we will want you to be able put something together in a pinch or just experimenting with different stuff to make something the fish have not seen from other anglers. Your own signature fly or lure that is catching fish when others aren't because the fish have seen the same thing over and over again and again. You will have the knowledge how to tweak a fly that is OK and make it to work better on the waters you are Guiding on!
 
On the Water Training       
You will need to learn the skills of fly casting. Fishing strategies in small streams to large bodies of water, fresh water and salt water, fishing theories in class and then on the water. Then you will have hands on application in float boats and the advanced classes will pertain to Jet Boat Training, Charter Boat Training.

As a Professional Guide you are as much a teacher as you are an angler. In your career, we want to prepare you for all aspects of fishing. For example you may want to Guide for Tarpon but your first job is Guiding for Grayling’s in Alaska! You want to be prepared,  you never know who may be your very First Employer of your Dream Job! Be prepared!
 
Guide’s Code Of Conduct
A Guide’s income is greatly dependent on Tips. A large part of a Guides income comes from the gratuity in the form of a tip at the end of the trip by the Client you have just Guided for the last 7 days straight. We will teach you what to do and how to handle difficult clients so all will have a great time together. Not all peoples personality mesh together and you as a Professional Guide need to know how to make everyone’s adventure a fun rewarding experience.

There are certain guide lines that all Professional Guides follow that create tips for your pocket and also makes you look good to your employer when the client leaves happy whether they caught a lot of fish or just few. We will teach you how to meet and great your client. This first meeting is very important because within the first few minutes of the Clients meeting you that Person or Client has already made their decision about you! We will teach you how to be a Professional Guide.