Experienced Fly Fishing Guide

ROW Fishing Adventures is looking for a full time fly fishing guide who will be responsible for guiding fly fishing trips, maintaining all fishing equipment and gear, making travel arrangements, working to book additional fishing guests and providing exceptional guest service throughout the course of our fishing season. An expert knowledge of fly fishing is a must. Comparable fishing experience on rivers and streams that would closely parallel the rivers of North Idaho and Montana is preferred. If you’re looking for an exciting job opportunity, ROW Fishing Adventures could be the place for you.

While ROW enjoys a high return rate among its staff, we often have one or two openings for experienced Fishing Guides. If you are considering a change from the company you currently work for be sure to read through all our information carefully to make sure that ROW is a good fit for you. To learn more about our trips and philosophy, go to ROW’s home page and to the ROW Fishing page. You might also enjoy reading about other ROW staff at Meet the ROW Team .

How we do things: We run our trips conservatively with utmost concern for our guests’ safety. Our motto in this arena is Safety before ego.

ROW has certain ways of doing things and we like to standardize our procedures as much as possible so that when you're working with different combinations of guides you are concentrating on having fun instead of re-inventing the wheel on every trip. We also want our guides to enjoy a supportive atmosphere. We want guides who are outgoing, supportive team players with good communication skills.

Basic Fishing Skills
Guide candidate must display a proficiency in the basic skills necessary to fly fish in a wide range of venues. These venues may include streams, rivers, spring creeks and lakes. Although there is no minimum length of time that a candidate must have been fly fishing, they must meet several specific criteria before being considered for a guide position with ROW Adventures, this includes all areas of fly fishing equipment, entomology and western river knowledge.

Interpretation at ROW
ROW guides pride themselves on their knowledge of the fly fishing, cultural and natural history of the rivers we run and have found that sharing this knowledge increases our guests’ enjoyment. Because we expect our guides to be good interpreters and teachers, an educational background in wild land interpretation, earth sciences, biology, archaeology, etc., is highly desirable.

Benefits
As a company, ROW seeks to identify and employ professional, career guides. While we do have some seasonal turnover, our goal is to maintain a large percentage of our guides and other staff. Toward this end, we offer a number of benefits including:

• Free guest activities, on a space-available basis such as rafting and canoeing.
• Complimentary and/or discounted trips for family and friends
• Training and skills development in the recreation industry
• Leadership opportunities
• Competitive Pay
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA’s allow employees to pay for medical expenses with pre-tax income providing a +20% savings)
• 401(k) plan
• Pro-deal program to help you purchase outdoor gear at deeply discounted rates
• Free staff clothing

Policies

Drug/Alcohol Free Workplace
ROW Inc. is committed to a safe environment for its Adventure Staff and Guests. We have a zero tolerance policy for drugs on our property or impairment at work. If you can't do without drugs or heavy consumption of alcohol, don't apply. Random drug testing is required for all ROW employees. Pre-employment and random drug/alcohol testing is required for CDL drivers. Post-accident drug/alcohol testing is required of all employees filing a workman’s compensation claim. Any employee allowing drugs or alcohol to affect their work may be terminated.

Tobacco-Free Policy
ROW Inc. is a tobacco-free company. Smoking and chewing tobacco is not permitted on ROW property or in any ROW vehicle. Guides are not permitted to smoke or chew tobacco on any ROW trip. This includes all overnight trips. Any employee found in violation of this policy will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.

Personal Appearance
A professional and well-groomed appearance is an essential ingredient in ROW’s success. Facial piercing such as nose rings, eye rings, and chin studs are not acceptable. We rely on your good judgment and commitment to ROW Inc. to accept this basic condition of employment.

Pet Policy
In consideration of and for the safety of our guests, employees and your pets; please leave your pets at home.

Requirements
The following techniques must be displayed;

• A basic fly cast both to targets within 60 feet, and a distance of at least 60 feet.
• A single haul and a double haul and be able to explain the difference and how to perform each one
• A roll cast and the advantage of it.
• A reach cast, and explain when and where this is advantageous.
• A mend, and an explanation of the importance of line management.
• The basic formation of a loop in the standard fly cast. How to form one, how and why to change the size of the loop.
• Display the tailing loop and explain how and why it happens and how to correct it.

Required entomology knowledge
A guide candidate will display above average knowledge in fly angling entomology. Upon request, candidate must be able to identify the following natural insects accurately, and effective flies to match them.

• Mayfly
• Caddis fly
• Stonefly
• Terrestrials

Along with the proper identification of species candidate must be able to speak competently about the insect life cycle as it pertains to fly fishing.

A knowledgeable guide candidate will know that base entomology at this level is transferable from stream to stream with some variations.

Required watercraft skills
A guide candidate must display a proficiency in the use and execution of specific watercraft as it pertains to fly fishing, namely drift boats and/or rafts. Candidate would be familiar in safety regulations and be committed to abiding by those regulations at all times. Guide candidate will perform a check ride with a ROW lead guide on any and all rivers that a candidate wishes to guide on, as per Idaho law, and be deemed satisfactory by the lead guide before guiding any float trip as an employee guide for ROW.

Candidates not able to complete a satisfactory check float can still guide but will be limited to a recreational license from which a guide can only participate in walk and wade trips on each licensed river.

COSTS

Idaho Guides: There are several costs for guides who will be working in Idaho for ROW. An Idaho Guide license costs $150 for the first year and $105 in subsequent years. From the fourth year of employment on, ROW pays a partial to full reimbursement for this annual guide licensing fee.

Idaho Licensing Requirements: If you are new to Idaho, licensing requirements can be very confusing. We do our best to explain these to you through written material we've developed. After you've studied this we are happy to answer questions. It is typical that new guides have many questions about licensing during their first year, and we count on you to study the material we give you carefully.

Idaho law specifies that only licensed guides may transport paying customers down rivers. In order to be licensed, a guide must do the following:

1. Have a current first aid card
2. Have a licensed Idaho outfitter who offers you employment
3. Submit an application for licensing to ROW for outfitter Peter Grubb's signature and for forwarding to the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Licensing Board (IOGLB). A check payable to ROW for $150, must be included. (This fee must be paid each year in order to be licensed. Amendments are made as additional river experience is documented by sending in a fee of $20.)

In addition, the following is required: Have at least one trip down each specified section of a non-classified river.

Please note that although you may satisfy the letter of the law described above, it does not mean that ROW will consider you qualified to guide on a particular stretch of river. Until we feel you are up to our professional and safety standards, guides will not be allowed to commercially guide.

ROW Policies Related to Hiring and Licensing

- Note that these are all more stringent than the Idaho requirements

1. All guides must have CPR and basic first aid certification
2. Preferred a 36-hour advanced first aid class (FR, WEC, WAFA, WFR, WEMT or EMT)
3. Guides are NOT paid for training trips. The number of training trips required by each guide varies from one to three per river and is dependent on the following:
   1. Proficiency/experience with oar boats (guides without prior rowing experience can expect at least two trips)
   2. Professionalism in working with guests
   3. Idaho licensing status

Becoming licensed in Idaho and trained to ROW's level of excellence is a lengthy process and may require a new guide to spend 3-4 weeks in training before becoming a paid guide. Outfitter Peter Grubb or the Fly Fishing manager will make the final decision regarding when you are qualified to guide on a section of river.

Applying For A Position

• Study everything carefully at our website, see the detailed Job Description
• Make sure your goals and ours match.
• Fill out our Application or call us at (208) 765-0841 to request a guide application packet.
• Mail all First Aid cards, etc. to our office at PO Box 579, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816.
• Get reference letters completed and submitted as requested.
• Depending on the position, various starting and ending dates may be accommodated.
• Pets are not allowed.
• Most positions are physically demanding and require lifting, bending, standing and kneeling.
• We usually try to wrap up our hiring by early March, but feel free to check with us if you discover ROW after that date. Also, please use the Letters of Recommendation forms and have these returned by this deadline.
• Once your application has been received, you will be notified if you have been selected for a telephone interview. Generally interviews are conducted from January through March.

Application

To download an application that you can print off, complete and mail in. Application in PDF

Thank you for your interest in ROW!