800+ years of fishing experience!
Sunday, December 23, 2012 at 05:45PM
Why should you go fishing with Bud n' Mary's Marina? I Figured I'd share this as we enter our 2013 season. This was a group shot we composed of all the captains last year for our promo movie and I love it. It makes a real statement about fishing at Bud n' Mary's and the world class crew we have here. Nowadays with the internet and ease of making websites, sharing videos & photos, social media, etc... business competition among fishing guides and charters here in Islamorada and the rest of the Florida Keys is at an all time high. Now the internet is great in many ways, don't get me wrong... but for guys who have made their living day in and day out on the water fishing it has been an obstacle. Many of these fishermen didn't grow up with computers and unfortunately have been left behind in this technologically advanced world we live in. Every day I see new charter companies trying to get a piece of the pie, which they have every right to do, but unfortunately it comes at the customers expense. They put together pretty websites with gorgeous photos, exciting videos, and tell you how they have a lifetime of experience fishing here because maybe their grandpa brought them fishing in Islamorada once or twice when they were a kid. They may often fake reviews on websites such as TripAdvisor and others, even paying customers to write good reviews for them. There are directories listing the 'best charters' in the area, alas this ends up being anybody willing to spend money to be on that list of boats. They may even cut deals which sounds good up front - but all that means is they are going to burn less fuel, bring less bait, give less effot - you get the idea... At Bud n' Mary's we have 24 backcountry guides and 15 offshore charter boats that do this full time, all year long. These captains have lived and worked together for many years, so they all try to work together and help each other out which is beneficial for everybody involved. They share fishing information and compare notes, kind of like a fishing network, which gives all of them an extra edge the next day. The captains who are 'lone wolves' and don't have these kinds of associations only have what they know from the day before. Many of our guides are 2nd and even 3rd generation fishermen. The average experience of our captains (when I say that I mean time spent earning a living on the water) is likely 15 years. Almost all of our captains are owner/operators, and none of them run multi-boat operations. You are not booking with somebody that pays somebody else to take their charters for them and has younger, inexperienced (or older, burnt out) guys doing so. We also have guides that specalize in certain kinds of fishing, and we pair you up with the guide that we feel best fits your agenda. While some guides may be great fisherman and offer 'referrals' if they aren't able to take you, often times they are just kicking back their buddies who have sent them business in the past - they aren't looking out for your interests. So before you book your next islamorada fishing charter, just consider a few of these things, and hopefully you'll put Bud n' Mary's Fishing Marina on your list. We have the history to stand behind us, and you can't fake that!
Give us a call at 305-664-2461 or email us bnmfm@budnmarys.com!
