Three of us caught 130 fish in four hours and it was SO much fun! Bob Maindelle is no ordinary guide: he graduated from West Point with a BS in engineering and made a living in and out of the service as an environmental engineer and minister. He worked with Mepps to develop his signature MAL lure which we used exclusively on the trip. He has a custom designed center console boat crammed with LOTS of state of the art electronics, including FIVE Garmin LiveScope monitors with a separate LiveScope transducer for each side of the boat. All of us were amazed at the ability to see our lures go up and down and see the fish respond to them. We chose Bob Maindelle because we wanted a good lesson besides catching a lot of fish. He totally delivered on this with detailed demonstration, description and coaching on the very specific ways he fishes the MAL lure vertically and horizontally. He had separate rod and reel setups for vertical and horizontal fishing: slower reels with softer tips for vertical fishing and faster reels with stiffer rods for horizontal fishing. Bob also gave use a good lesson on how he uses his marine electronics. He uses a Humminbird Solix as his primary fishfinder in for sidescan mode and it is linked to his Minn Kota i-Pilot Linked trolling motor so he can mark a location on the fishfinder's touch screen and then send the trolling motor back to that exact location with a few more touches. He carefully explained the importance of positioning the boat downwind of the mark before commanding the trolling motor, so that the boat will be positioned correct when it arrives at the marked location. His attention to detail is exactly what I expected out of a West Point engineer, but he has an excellent ability to explain things so that less technical individuals can understand. Bob also pulled up Canyon Lake on his fishfinder map and showed us a bunch of places for us to try fishing on our home lake. We will certainly bring our boat up to Lake Belton for Bob's on-the-water sonar training class to make sure our electronics are properly installed and the settings tweaked to maximize our units' fish-finding potential. Based on Bob's demonstrations, we will be adding additional electronics to our boat to improve our fishing. White Bass fishing is fast-paced with lots of fish being caught. It is PERFECT for younger anglers who need a lot of action to stay interested. It is LOTS of fun for all ages. Bob makes it all so easy and fun and he is reasonably priced. read more

Holding the Line Guide Service - Just a few of the 130 White Bass we caught on our trip. - Fishing Near Me - Salado, Texas

Bob with Holding the Line was excellent with our kids, ages 6 (girl) and 3 (twin boys). I had never been fishing before but I had a great time. We caught something like 70 fish! It was really beautiful out there near Salado. Thanks so much Bob, we'll definitely be back! read more

Bob went out of his way to give us a great morning of fishing with my dad. My dad has some mobility challenges and Bob went out of his way to ensure a safe, fun and extremely fantastic fishing trip. I do not like fishing but this morning I did. I would recommend him to anyone! read more

Captain Bob is the real deal! We have been out fishing with him thrice and each time over 70 fish in 3 hours!! I don't know how he does it. Also, Bob is one of the nicest most polite people ever and he is great with kids. Whether you have been fishing your whole life or are brand new to the sport, Holding the Line will deliver. Highly recommend! read more

Bob is an excellent guide. Many guides can get you a limit of fish and have you back to the dock 2 hrs early. Bob is catch and release and stays out on the water the full time. He is very knowledgeable and teaches while you fish. If you want to learn to catch white or hybrid bass in central texas book a trip with Bob. read more

It does not get any better than Bob Maindelle of Holding the Line Guide Service! I have been with him three times this year in 2017. He is an awesome guide that always put me on fish and did everything within his power to make me have a successful trip. He was willing to make the trips geared for what I wanted which was more of an educational vs catching large numbers of fish, though we still caught tons of fish in between and while teaching! He was extremely patient and wonderful to be around. Very professional and family friendly. I simply can't say enough about Bob and how his teachings have enhanced my pursuit and understanding of white bass! read more

I highly endorse Bob Maindelle of "Holding the Line" fishing guide service. I scheduled a morning fishing trip with Bob, for my son and myself. Bob provided detailed instructions of what to bring and where to meet. He was ready to go promptly at 7:30am. We literally got out of our car and walked right onto the waiting boat. As soon as we were onboard, Bob provided an overview of the lake, a safety briefing and where we were going and why. Bob's intimate knowledge of Lake Belton along with his years of experience, put us on the fish right away. We landed white bass with ease and when spin casting with lures slacked off, Bob switched to a new technique that kept the fishing biting even as other frustrated boats in our area left. We then moved to more open water to search for hybrid striped bass. The wind picked up and even though the sun poked through a little, we still had pretty good cloud cover. Eventually the other boats in our area gave up, however Bob continued to patrol the channel looking for a school of hybrids. Pretty soon we were into the action using live shad. The bites were coming so fast that we eventually had to go only one pole per person. We ended the day landing 130 fish and having a great day on the water. Bob is extremely knowledgeable about any and all aspects of fishing and is happy to share his knowledge about species management, fishing tackle, and habitat preferences. He is an innovator and explained his preference for everything from hook geometry, to rigging, to line selection. Each and every piece of tackle on his boat has a specific purpose and is refined to his exacting standards. . Bob is a great steward of the fishery and the environment. He took great care to unhook each catch, limiting any permanent injury to the fish. I don't believe we lost a single fish out of the 130, due to an entrenched hook. I plan to use Bob again and look forward to my next fishing trip with him. read more