The bottom line: If you want a down to earth guide who knows fishing well and easy to work with, Bob is your man. We only caught two fish on our boat, but I was one of the two to land one, King Salmon. Overall, it was a fun day with everyone on board and Bob was nice and easy to talk to. I ended up landing a 24 pounder and unfortunately it didn't taste good at all.... But oh well, can't fault anyone for that. read more

Bob Sparre's Guide Service - King Salmon (24 pounds) - Fishing Near Me

As we all know fishing is not catching. I never go on a boat expecting to catch a fish. What I do expect is to be treated with respect and have a good time outdoors with my dad. No, we didn't catch any fish. After not catching anything, he tells my dad and me that his policy is to have the "crew" scrub the boat. I thought he was joking only to get a broom in my face. I don't care that I didn't catch a fish but don't make me clean your boat after dude. I will never take this guide again and I will never pay money, to not catch a fish, and then get told to scrub his damn boat down. read more

Bob is the guide to hire. If you want to hook up, he is the guy to go with. He runs a tight ship and expects you to follow his instruction. But he knows the score and will get you to the fish. If your looking to just get drunk or fish half assed, go elsewhere. But if you are ready to follow his lead you'll leave with a cooler full of fish. We had a great day with him and will talk about this trip as a family highlight for many years to come. Bobs style and personality was a big part of our experience too. He is a mans man, yet very professional. His gear was top notch and we never lost a fish due to equipment issues. I will be booking a Sturgeon trip with him soon. But for now I'll be enjoying some amazing King Salmon 'we' landed. If there is anything negative to report, I'd say he could be a little more technically modern- what, no facebook! But that is about it! Great guy, great guide and fish in the cooler!! read more

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Let start by saying just don't waste your time and money fishing with Bob Sparre. I've been fishing with guides for the past 30 years and this was without a doubt the most disappointing experience I've ever had. We took Bob for a half day (which begins at 4:30) on the American River for shad. There are two positive things I can say. Bob is a nice guy and he has a very nice boat. Not that it matters because we anchored and fished in the same spot for 3 hours. Even if we were catching fish - which we weren't - I don't want to pay $450 to anchor 1/4 mi from the launch and fish there the entire time. And the $450 doesn't even include any drinks, not even water. My dad and I were fly fishing and my nephew was spin fishing. And I should also mention that Bob spin fished the entire time too. That was new for me, I'm used to a guide trying to get me fish not get them for himself. He did a good job catching fish himself - he probably got 20 shad - and my nephew did OK on the spin rod as well. Neither my dad nor I even had a hit the entire day and we're both pretty experienced fly fishermen. And we had told Bob in advance we'd be fly fishing. In three hours he made one suggestion about trying another fly (it didn't help) that was the extent of his effort and concern getting us fish. All he seemed to care about was that he was getting fish. Maybe it was because he was too busy getting himself in good position to fish, he'd even move the boat in the middle of our drift because he wanted to fish a particular spot or maybe the 50 plus texts he sent over the course of several hours kept him from helping us? All that I know was he wouldn't try another location despite my requests nor did he seem to care that neither my dad nor I got a single hit. Most guides really want you to catch something- not Bob. And when I take an afternoon off from work I really don't want to hear my guide's phone ping every 5 min (no exaggeration) it really was annoying. I've just never before experienced such an apathetic guide, nor one who fished and especially not one who was texting so much. It was just completely unprofessional and a waste of time and money. There must be plenty of other guides on the American. Don't make the same mistake we did. I'd strongly recommend finding someone else unless you want your guide doing the fishing and handing you the pole after he hooks a fish. That's definitely not my idea of fishing. Fishing with Bob was the worst fishing experience I've had ever. read more

Went salmon fishing with Bob today. One of the worst fishing guide experiences I have. We caught fee fish but that can happen. Worse, Bob was surly, even insulting, unwilling to do much to help anyone unfamiliar with his methods. You pay huge rates, you expect respect, service and results. Bob struck out on all counts. read more

Bob was awesome. Helped me and my son catch 10 shad. Very knowledgeable and patient. Bob showed us how to cast, rig up a line and what kinda bait to use. My son and I finally know what its like to feel the fish on the line and reel em in ! Thanks Bob and B. We'll do salmon next ! read more

If you are going to pay a guide to take you out fishing there is no better choice than Bob Sparre. I have gone fishing with other guides before and Bob makes them all look not too good... This however was my first time Salmon fishing in the Sacramento River. All the other Salmon fishing I had done was out of Bodega Bay. Actually the 3 times I went out of bodega bay with other guides it was more like a boat trip since we never caught anything. So naturally I was afraid this trip with Bob Sparre would turn out the same. Oh boy was I wrong. about 45-1hr in I had a salmon on my line and wow! is how I am going to describe it. I have never had a fish on my line that fought like this salmon. It was amazing. Bob is very professional but still manages to make you laugh. His instructions are clear and do not make you feel like your in trouble. When you have a fish on the line he walks you thru the whole process so you get that fish in that net. At the end of the day we had 7 salmon for 4 fishermen. I was very happy with the whole experience. The one guy that only got 1 was a bit drunk so that was his fault (the one fish he landed was actually one that I had in my line and I handed over the rod to him). Everyone else did great and we all had an awesome time. read more

Bob Sparre took my family out to the Feather river for a morning of salmon fishing. With his expertise and knowledge of the river, we limited out and got some steelhead as well. I didn't see anyone else getting the action we were getting. We all had a great time and learned a lot. I will definitely hire Bob again. read more

Would really like to leave a good review but I'll leave an honest review. What a waste of time and money didn't catch one fish, didn't get any bites went fishing for salmon we would have been happy catching anything beside weeds from the river. What a waste of time. read more

Hands down Bob Sparre is the best! He's so knowledgeable, pleasant and you don't leave empty handed. My son would like to go weekly!

He was very knowledgeable i was amaze. We caught many fish. It was very fun. We went to a hole and did a few passes, i caught 6 huge salmon. On the way back he clean the fish for us. I recommend bob to you for all your fishing trips read more

Bob was such a great guide. We went out on the Sacramento river for salmon, and a great time was had by all! We caught four salmon, but we were seeing bites and action all day long. Never a dull moment! It was very clear that Bob was putting us on the right spots (we visited many throughout the day) and had us using the right equipment. He was perfect with both those who were inexperienced and experienced. He helped the inexperienced a ton so that she (well, I) caught fish and was able to start casting on my own, and also let the more experienced men on the boat still have their freedom, while also teaching them a lot throughout the day. Personality-wise he was awesome - very nice and a lot of fun. I would definitely recommend choosing Bob as your guide! read more

I'm writing this review "before" I've even met Bob or gone fishing with him, I'm waiting for the striper bite to get as hot as it was in April of 2014, just off the hook, even I caught one as a bank fisherman in Patterson, only 24" but my biggest ever. My "bucket list" calls for a 20 pounder, just 1, though I'd settle for two that size. Bob was at an RV show at Cal Expo once but I missed it. $200 is a bit high just for me but 2 big stripers would be worth it. Bob always replies to e-mails and just seems better than the other guides in this area. read more

I've fished with Bob for years and for all type of fish (Salmon, Trout, Sturgeon, Stripers) and he is absolutely first rate. The best guide in the greater Sacramento area. is equipment, tackle, boat is all top of the line. He spends 7 days a week on the water and knows where the fish are, and what to use to catch them. Wether your highly experienced or a beginner, Bob's a great teacher and will make you a better fisherman. read more

Bob is the best; always gets you on fish and on big fish, from strippers to salmon. He boat is comfortable and he is really fun to fish with. read more

Bob talks a big game, but did not deliver. I booked a trip for 4 hard working guys, looking to get some Salmon. Bob promised, "we were not just going for a boat ride". He took me for a ride alright. We did not catch any or hook up any fish between the 4 of us. Bob fished himself all day and could not catch a fish. He told us," if he did not think the fishing would be good, he would postpone the trip". That never happened. An honest man would have offered a discounted, return trip, or something. Must be nice to get paid either way. Do yourself a favor and get an honest guide. read more