I have booked many fishing guides across the US fishing everything from tarpon in Boca Grande to bass on Lake Chickamauga and I have to tip my hat to Chad for an amazing day on the Muskegon River. Since battling king salmon was on my to-do list, I contacted him in August to set up a date and we settled on October 17th. Chad thought that would be the height of the king salmon run and he was dead-on. As the date approached, he stayed in touch with me and offered a few suggestions for lodging in the area. On the big day, we split fishing between steelhead and king salmon. In the morning, we hooked up with 4 steelies and netted 2 in the 8-10 lb. range, along with a dozen or so fat rainbow trout. When the steelhead action cooled down, we switched gears and hooked 4 kings, netting two above 25 lbs. Chad clearly knows this river and was very helpful to me and my 19 year-old son. Since we rarely fish rivers, Chad clearly explained the tackle, the tactics and techniques. It took us awhile to catch on, but once we did we were on the fish! I'm not sure why some reviewers have complained about Chad's attitude. Our experience was that he is passionate about his business- teaching anglers and catching fish. He could be very direct in his instructions, but that only helped us learn more quickly. When we followed instructions, we caught fish. It's as simple as that. At the end of the day, Chad cleaned our catch and we left with two large Ziploc bags filled with steelhead and rainbow trout (along with Chad's cooking recommendations). More importantly, we left with memories of a tremendous day on the water. We are already looking forward to next year's trip and will definitely book it with Chad! read more

Betts Guide Service - Fishing Near Me - Newaygo, Michigan

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Sure, the fishing itself was good and we caught plenty, but that's where the positives end. Unfortunately, Chad's personality completely ruined a 14th birthday trip for my son. Completely unacceptable attitude from the moment we got on the boat. Knowing we were beginners, he complained he "prefers his clients be experienced anglers." Seriously, why am I hiring a guide in the first place if I'm already experienced in the sport? After putting up with his condescension, my dad finally got into it with him over his attitude. So much for a full day on the water; the vibe was so toxic we up left early. Save your money and book with a guide who knows how to treat people with respect. read more

Terrible, rude, belittling, caption Chad Betts. Constantly yelled at the 3 of us all day for using the equipment as designed, was told multiple times to stand in a certain area and not move ...I'm talking if you moved inches you were told to go back to your spot like in preschool. the 3 of us are avid fishermen for 30 years plus and could do nothing right for 7 growling hours of pain. was told how to catch the fish but the crankbait lures he provided did not go down to the depth where the fish were ever like 5 feet over them and when questioned about it, he kept saying he had 30 years' experience over and over and over needless to say none of us caught anything for 7 hours. There were only 2 seats in the boat for 4 people. we sat on the same hole for 2.5 hours and when asked if we should move, he said they will bite they didn't. he gave us a list of things to bring on his website and in text conversations and when we did, he tells us at the boat ramp um we don't have room for all that, which was a small cooler and 1 Aldi bag with ours snacks and rain gear for 3 of us. He did hook a couple with a fly rod which we had expressed to him we would rather not use then handed us the pool and yelled at us no matter what we did until the fish got off after like 2 min. needless to say we were done halfway through our time chartered. Then when our time was officially up, he took off for the boat ramp doing 30mph via gps on phones blowing past many many bank, wading, and other boats while they were throwing their hands in the air and yelling at us as we blew by. I will be contacting the BBB to see if anything can be done. I would strongly urge you to never book Betts Guide service!!!!! read more

Chad got me into some pretty sweet water last year when I was back home. He had a great way of fine tuning his direction and I had a great day for so late in the season...while everyone else was looking for steelhead, I stuck out for some nice trout! He's my guy the next time I get back out to Michigan. read more

Very unprofessional. Caught plenty of fish, not a good mix with his abrasive personality toward me and my family members who accompanied me. Shady outfit - Although his business is named "Betts fishing and guide service in Newago, Michigan, he later claimed it was under new ownership and gave me another name to deal with our issue. A true run-around. The experience wasn't worth it. I was later warned to "not associated with him in any manner". I wish I had that advice beforehand. Now you do. read more

Had a great time this evening with Gabe. He was extremely friendly and patient as I had never river fished before. We caught several fish and enjoyed our evening on the river with him. read more

Betts Guide Service - Fishing Near Me - Newaygo, Michigan

Fished with Betts for two days on the Muskegon River and he put us on fish. Chad is an excellent guide and uses first class equipment. He is an excellent teacher in that he watches you fish and recommends subtle changes in your technique. I primarily fish salt water and wanted to cover as much water as possible and he had to remind me not to cast too far. We have used Chad for several years and will definitely book him again for spring steelhead as well as for fall salmon. read more

I reserved a guided trip online within the website and communicated via text the day before the trip on and off with Chad. He told us to be at Bonser's market in Custer at 3:15pm. I received 2 confirmation emails, one reserving the time and one confirming paypal payment of $100. I texted him 20 minutes before we arrived at Bonser's and no reply. We waited 15 minutes past our scheduled time at the Market and called Chad. He said he didn't have a record of our trip and that someone would be there in 20 minutes. We waited 30 minutes and nobody showed up. There was another group of guys waiting at the Market that had also been stood up by Chad as well for the same scheduled time. I then called Chad and he said he was still waiting to here from his guide. The other guys ended up getting another guide service last minute through Indigo guide service and were picked up around 4:30pm. We would have done the same thing if Chad hadn't strung us along for so long. He was texting and staying in communication throughout the afternoon as we waited, becoming more and more impatient. The worse part about this trip is that I had planned this trip for my German Colleague who is only in the states for the week. We drove an hour and a half from Zeeand, MI to Custer only to wait 2.5 hours before he said he couldn't do anything for us. When the other guys left with Indigo, the guide Steve gave me his card and said he might have another guide available. Well we waited another 30 minutes for Chad because he was still indicating he would have someone and when we called Steve, he tried to find somebody but because it was so late(after 5pm by this point) that it wouldn't be worth our time and money or his guides time. :( We ended up wasting 3 hours total drive time plus 2 and half hours waiting. Only thing Chad had done right was refund the $100 deposit by the morning. I cant speak for the actual Guide service because he never showed up and strung us along. Very disappointed, as I had wasted not only my time but also my German colleague who is only here for a short number of days. I cant believe this guide service can stand up not just 1 but 2 groups at the same time. Very unprofessional. read more

Huge disappointment! We had a salmon fishing trip scheduled for this past Sunday for our boys. We called to confirm on Friday and got no response. On Saturday as we were packing the car to begin our 4 Hour drive to the hotel we called again to confirm. At that point we were told their trailer was broken and they would have to cancel the whole thing. Good thing we contacted them. Our boys were so disappointed as this trip had been planned for months. I understand things break but I would have appreciated them contacting us and perhaps a little flexibility. We asked if they could do anything at all to fish with our kids so they could have some fun. Even without about getting out on a boat. And they said there was nothing they could do for us. read more

Chad runs a good show and has always put me on quality fish...sometimes lots of them. That said, he's also a master of Social Media and Web Marketing, and since he does most of this himself, don't be irritated when his focus on the boat, at times, is his smartphone (it comes with the territory; after all, he's running a business in a fairly competitive marketplace and marketing makes the difference for him). Also, the last time out I believe it was "bring your own food". That's uncommon among fishing guides. read more

Recently went fishing with Chat Brett and was truly disappointed with how my Dad and I were treated. We were even asked if we wanted to forego fishing after driving eight hours. There was also another group that was turned away and very upset after they drove four hours. The guide was also late one day and a group was left out front of the meeting point and didn't know where to go; I actually had to go get them. There was also very little communication regarding the trip prior to going. Chad was very short and impatient. Mind you my Dad is in his 70s and this trip was on his to do list for some time. We did not expect it to be so uncomfortable. Within ten minutes on the boat Chad was sighing and rolling his eyes because we stated we preferred to use spinning rods vs the bait casters. After bringing my concerns to Chad, I received no apology and was encouraged to book another tip; however, after the experience my Dad and I had, we will not be going again with Chad but another outfitter, I'm sure much more pleasant. Northern Indiana and Southern MI have lots to offer for Salmon; I would encourage anyone to check there before going to Chad. read more

Betts Guide Service - Chad said he would take us out then didn't want us to go again and offered to refund our deposit to take down the review, where I declined. - Fishing Near Me - Newaygo, Michigan

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Used this guide recently with a group of friends for the fall salmon run. Was disappointed with how my friend and I were treated. While we aren't expert fisherman, the job of a good guide is to be patient, helpful and teach. We were on Chad's (the owner) boat and he was condescending and rude pretty much the entire trip. Maybe he was having a bad day? He seemed more concerned about his boat and equipment than us having fun and learning. To top it off he was on his phone several times speaking to customers to book more trips. I missed landing a couple fish when he wasn't engaged in helping me and was talking to customers on the phone. My friend and I caught some fish but wouldn't recommend this guy if you want to have a good time on the river. read more

Went fishing with my 2 boys today , everything was great we caught some big ones ! Chad was awesome ! Thanks for a wonderful trip

We had a great time. Zack was our guide. He was friendly knowledgeable and full of great tips. We hooked up almost immediately and my Son landed the first fish. Over 20 Lbs. of Chinook Salmon, Fantastic. We drifted, fished, motored, fished and enjoyed a beautiful October day. We fished for Salmon, Brown Trout and Steelhead, again Zack was great in showing us how and why to cast to the fish. I recommend your service and Zack as a guide to anyone wanting to catch fish and just enjoy fishing. read more