Mark with a Channel Catfish that grabbed a Clouser

Mark Blauvelt, owner and operator of Flatwater Guide Service, is a fishing guide in the Miami Valley. To some, this may seem like an unlikely location for a fishing guide, but not to Mark. During an interview at his farm West of Dayton, Mark decried the problems of guiding in the more popular areas. He said that guides in the Western states that are more popular with fly anglers often must buy guide licenses for their states and federal licenses for the national parks that the rivers pass through. In addition, Western guides need to replace their driftboats every year to two years due to the wear and tear at a cost of $2,000 per boat if they are in a guide program from a major manufacturer and much more if they are not.
Lake Erie guides must obtain a Federal Guide License from the Coast Guard.
Because of these factors and the fact that Mark was born and raised here, Mark Blauvelt chose to guide anglers in the Miami Valley.

Qualifications
Mark is a former president of the local chapter of Trout Unlimited, known as the
Ohio Madmen. In that role, he worked relentlessly to improve fishing conditions
on the upper Mad River by promoting work parties to clean parts of the river and
to build structure that would provide good resting and ambush points for the fish.
Mark is also the Creek and Rivers Editor for Flyfishohio.com and president of the
Southwest Ohio Catfish Club.

1. How long have you been a guide?
"About 15 or 16 years." Mark went on to say that his guiding fits in well with the
other things he does since he sets his own schedule and he is selective in regard
to his clientele. He also said that he sees his job in guiding as that of a mentor or
teacher. He said, "I try to make people think about what they're doing."

2. Is there any special training or licensing involved in becoming a guide?
"Not in Ohio, if you're an inland guide." As mentioned above, Mark said that the
only place any special licensing is required for guides in Ohio is on Lake Erie,
due to Coast Guard regulations. He said he has talked to ODNR personnel who
said that a guide license for inland waters has been discussed as a means to
raise revenue, but it has not been implemented so far.

3. What types of fishing do you provide guide service for?
Mark said he currently guides for smallmouth bass, trout, and longnose gar. He
hopes to start guiding for catfish in the near future. He said he is doing his best to
learn more about the wily catfish before he starts because he says, "Cats are very
hard to pattern."

4. Which type of fishing is your favorite to guide for?
"Smallmouth, if I have a good angler." Mark likes the challenge inherent in guiding
for smallmouth. "Guiding for smallmouth is hard to do", he said pointing out that
smallmouth bass are notoriously hot or cold fish meaning that they are either
biting or they are not and if they are not, an area that was running at the rate of a
fish per cast yesterday may be devoid of fish today.

5. What skill levels tend to use your services the most?
"Ranking flyfishermen on a scale of 1 to 10, most of my clients are about a 3 or 4."
Mark said that most of his clients can cast out to about 25 or 30 feet with an
overhead stroke but they are incapable of a roll cast or bow and arrow cast.
"They know just enough to be dangerous", says Mark. Mark is phlegmatic about
the need for long casts. He readily commented on several occasions that he
could make very long casts, but he rarely found any need to do so. He says most
of his casting is done with roll casts or sidearm casts and very few anglers
practice these casts nearly as much as they should. He said that besides casting
in tight quarters, most of his clients have no clue where the fish are. "It's learning
how to the read the water", Mark says of the most important skill he passes along
to his clients.

6. About gear, do you that most of your clients are outfitted correctly when they
first come to you?
Mark indicated that some of his clients have an abundance of gear, perhaps more
than they need or are ready to handle. He said that a most of his trips are what he
calls "tune-up trips" for local businessmen who haven't done any flyfishing for a
year or so and feel they are in need of some practice before going on a big ticket
trip out West.

7. Does being a guide ever get on your nerves?
"Absolutely!" Mark said that the number one thing that sets his teeth on edge
when guiding is a client who won't listen to him and then gets angry when they fail
to catch fish. Mark would rather go fishing on his own than attempt to guide a
person who thinks they know more than him.

8. What type of fishing do you prefer to do when you aren't guiding?
"Right now, I'm on a catfish kick." Mark talked at length about his fascination with
catfish, how hard they are to pattern and how sensitive they are to variations in the
barometer or water levels. Mark stated the opinion that one can be catching
catfish at an alarming rate and have the bite quit instantaneously due to a quick
drop in the barometric pressure. At other times, that same drop will signal the
beginning of the feeding frenzy. He did say that he had found that abrupt changes
in barometric pressure had the worst effect on the feeding activity of catfish. Mark
also pointed out that he likes all kinds of fishing.

9. How do you set your prices?
Without giving away any of his trade secrets, it will have to suffice to say that Mark
figures in the mileage, expenses, gear and time involved in a given trip.

After the interview, Mark invited the author to sample the fishing on Mark's farm
pond. Look for the results of that trip here.

Mark Blauvelt is an extremely knowledgeable guide with a wealth of experience to
impart to clients who will listen to him. If you are interested in catching
smallmouth bass, trout or longnose gar on the fly in the Miami Valley, book a trip
with Mark!

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