This morning my family and I headed to the dock to do some fishing. I have been in contact with Lindley via email since February when we booked. This was going to be the highlight of our trip. We chose Mighty Fine out of all of the other available charters because of the great reviews of the crew. I only wish we would have had the opportunity to experience how good the crew was. We arrived on the docks right at 6, which was our starting time verified in the email sent by Lindley and discussed a few days ago on the phone. Upon arrival we were all giddy about the trip we have been looking forward to for months. We arrived at the boat to see no fishing poles, no gear, no bait, just the crew and the woman I assume to have been Lindley. They were not smiling. She informed me that the pump for the restroom was broken and that they could either take us out without a restroom and use buckets if we needed to or would shorten our trip and take up to two hours to install a "new" pump and then we could go out. I want to be clear that we were informed weather could cause cancelations, and I realize that things happen. As a business it is how you handle issues that arise. We are of course upset our fishing trip was ruined at no fault of our own. The following are reasons I am not recommending Mighty Fine Charters:
- We never received a call notifying us the restroom was broken. Even the 15 minute notice they did not give us could have been useful in deciding what to do such as staying at the house.
- They gave us the option to go without the restroom. We took the keys to use an on site restroom and discuss this. When we returned from the restroom they had started working on the pump. As a result we waited.
Keep in mind this was supposed to be a "new" pump. We did not appreciate the lack of honesty.
- The crew began cleaning the pump. Based on our conversation with Lindley the pump was clogged with debris (toilet paper it appeared to be) and who knows what else. The pump was being worked on on the same table used to clean fish. We still held out hope at this point that the not new pump would be installed and we would be on the water. We had sanitizing wipes for the table if we caught any fish.
- An hour and a half later we were told the pump had been installed, but now the switch was broken. At this point Lindley informed us that they would not be able to get it fixed. Once again things happen. I cannot fault them for a different group flushing what they shouldn't have. My issue lies in the fact that when we requested a shorter 4 hour trip without the restroom she said no.
- We woke up at 4am, waited around for an hour and a half, led to believe we could go without the restroom, told we couldn't and were let down.
The woman said sorry, however sorry does not fix poor customer service and poor communication with clients. Maybe we would have been let down anyway but the situation was handled poorly. I believe they never intended on taking us out. They had nothing ready on board as I mentioned above. They probably saw us coming with the girls and kids and thought they will never agree to go out without a restroom. This is all speculation of course........ but we were ready to after we used the restroom. We were led on and let down. Lindley never offered to make it up to us on a future trip or date, or even reach out to other people in the industry that might have taken us out. She knew everyone is booked solid during the busy season. I believe the only thing going through her mind was put this group off and get the thing fixed for the next group. It is business and they have to make money. We get it. Just tell us up front and don't try to sugarcoat it like you are trying.
In summary I cannot speak to the quality of fish they catch, the character of the crew (they seemed nice), the shape of the boat, but if you do decide to deal with this outfit do yourself a favor and be prepared for a let down, poor communication and no effort by Mighty Fine to offer and follow through with solutions for problems that pop up. Just a little effort to get us on their boat or another boat at a later time/ date would have gone a long way. read more
