What to do when shack rentals don't produce?

I rented a shack through Wacky Walleye this past Sunday out on Sturgeon bay for whitefish and the spot was not producing.  I called in to see if my group could get moved and pretty much got chewed out for 1) not knowing what I was doing 2) being reminded the guide was a freshwater hall of famer and 3) not knowing what I was doing.  Side note, I have fished with Brett and rented his shacks in previous years with great results.

For those who rent shacks, is it wrong for a customer to ask to be moved when there are no fish (guide later told us it was because of cracking ice, incoming storm, barometric pressure, etc.)?   

His guides did come out to fish to confirm and eventually they moved us but at that point it was already late in the day. 

thanks

Schedule conflicts with Brett was the issue. He did have some open spots after cancellations but by that time I had already put down my security deposit. Figured I might as well try to see what a hall of famer does.

Also, I did not get my policy :( funny none the less :D

I am heading up there over the weekend to try a permanent shack that a friend has who rents them out. He has a number of shacks in case they are not producing and can move. We are also taking a portable as he recommended just in case.

I had a incident in open water with the guide in question and he really showed his true colors. 

When people move close to you and drill a bunch of holes over shallow water the fish will move out . I would think that if you were renting just a shack you would be checked on and given recommendations if you weren't doing good. 

Everybody wants a happy customer.

He got you with lexicon.

Insure means to issue an insurance policy.

Ensure means to guarantee that something happens.

Did you get your policy?

lol what about this though?

"A lifetime of experience insures your ice shanty rental will be in the hot spot for Whitefish in Door County."

Thanks everyone for the comments. I for sure have been spoiled in previous years fishing and renting shacks through Brett (ie. 2hr check-ins to see if we were on fish, a brief explanation, etc.). I definitely will go back to his services after this past experience.

My assumption has always been that I am renting not just the shack but the guide's fishing spots. Granted fish are not always going to be there but you would expect a higher chance given its the guide's livelihood to know where the fish are. I always take this option because I'm from out of state.

For those of you interested, we caught 12 fish in 3.5hrs between 6 people.

Thanks again.

Well, the first mistake was using DS's guide service. Have one open water experience with him, and that was plenty. Have definitely heard more negative than positive. 

Point about it being just a shack rental is valid, though. I'm sure there are services that check in to make sure you're doing well and move you if you're not, but that certainly doesn't seem like his MO. 

It is fishing, though, so things don't always go the way you want them to. Would definitely recommend trying again, but with a different service. We went out with JJ Malvitz last year and he seems to run a pretty decent operation. Plenty of other options too. 

100% depends on what you paid for.

Most guides in GB offer 3 levels of services.

1 - Fully guided which includes a shack and a personal guide to put you on the fish. In this situation you would be 100% entitled to wanting to be moved elsewhere.

2 - Semi-guided. You get a shack and a guide that jumps between multiple shacks to check in with you. Their job is to teach you how to catch the fish and put you in the general vicinity of the fish. So no you wouldn't be entitled to anything besides some education.

3 - Shack only. All you get is the shack to stay warm and you are entitled to nothing. A good guide will still check in and should put you on fish if he wants return business.

Regardless of which service you paid for, if you're still in the mindset that you will catch fish all day every day because you "paid for a shack", then you are bound to have some bad days of fishing. Whitefish has been slow on the bay the last 2 weeks, need to get out and be mobile if you want to stay on the fish.

I’d say it depends on if you paid to just rent a shack or paid to rent a shack with guide service. If it was just to rent a shack, he may do his best to put you on fish from the start but has no obligation to do so or move you. If you paid for guide service, which I don’t believe you did, then I would expect effort to be put forth to put you in a position to catch fish. 

His fish catching efforts are going to be spent on people who paid for actual guide service, as they should be. 

If you paid for a shack rental and that’s what you got, you got exactly what you paid for. 

Depends on the circumstances. 

Were others close by catching and you weren't?  Then no - you were doing something wrong.

Were others close by not catching either? Then probably no - fish not in a biting mood, and moving may not produce better results.

Did he park you all alone on the Dead Sea?  Then yes - there's a good reason why nobody else was around you.

Were weather conditions such that a reasonable person would not expect him to move you?  Then no - I know it's his chosen job in life, but we've had some extremely harsh days recently.

If he wanted you to come back and pay for his services again, then yes.

Edit - Of course, he COULD have been a Saints fan......

If you read the fishing reports for that area, there are a few guides who really go above and beyond to get people on fish from the sounds of it.  I wouldn't go back if that happened to me, not good customer service.

I would expect to be moved. As for getting chewed out, your response is up to you. 

I don't think it's wrong to ask to be moved but it is fishing after all. Guides may have their reasons not to move you and may choose not to tell you why. If you were dissatisfied don't utilize their services in the future. 

For what it's worth I've been skunked on Lake Michigan charter services twice, different boats, different captains.

I have never rented a shack. My thought is that you rented the shack. That does not guarantee fish. Maybe I am wrong. Like I said, never rented one.