and i guess i did not make myself clear on the atv/horse thing! i do know that a horse is more work than an atv, but if u ride a horse to the top of a hill or a atv, u are still not using your own power to hunt! there is alot of poeple who say they are a great hunter on this sight. and they say big stories, and then mention i rode HORSE BACK for 8 miles to the base camp! thats fine but u are no better than i, who rode a atv 3 miles to camp!
Are you just trying to start trouble, or am I actually believing that you are speaking your mind as you see it??
Ok, so that extra 5 miles the guy on the horse rode PAST you on your ATV in the WILDERNESS area, where you couldn't take your ATV means that he is more lazy than you???? If I calculate correctly, he just passed probably 95% or more of the hunters, including you, to get to where he will probably see more game, and where a lot of the game pushed by people on ATV's will be pushed!!! That 8 mile ride on horseback to BASE CAMP gives him up to 5 miles or more in every direction to WALK and HUNT everyday without seeing another single person!! I challenge you to go after elk this fall. Get a general tag there in Wyoming. Backpack in 8 miles, no ATV, no HORSE, set up camp for 5 days, hunting in all directions during your stay, kill a large bull, and then PACK it out on your BACK BY YOURSELF!!! You would have to make AT LEAST 4 round trips, including the trip in, probably somewhere around 6 trips. So you are talking walking 6 trips of 16 miles each, that comes to 96 miles of walking, 32 of that being with a full load of elk meat on your back (4 trips), at about 80 lbs each, because remember, you have to bring it all out, the head, antlers, and ALL of the meat!!! I can almost guarentee by the time you get that far back into the wilderness, you won't be able to pack out every piece of meat before it starts to go bad!!! The guy on the horse can hunt all those 5 days, get an elk, put it all on his horse, and walk out in one trip!!! 16 miles total. I am sorry, but I call that a smarter hunter!!!
Elkcrazy8 - I too hunt from my feet, but only hike a couple of miles each day, from a camp where I can drive to, and usually have help to get an animal out.
so elkcrazy= u are saying that it is o.k. that a brownie outfitter makes a living on 10 hunters a year? and u are o.k. with that? i sure will not cough up 1/2 of my 50+ hours work week of 50 weeks a year for that! i would work 1250 hours to pay for a 7-10 day hunt? i don't see how that is in anyway o.k. with me!
Cost of Piper Super Cub - $80,000 used the latest I am seeing.
Cost of guide license, insurance, CPR certs, etc - $5000 or more depending on the location (this is just an estimate, not sure of exact cost)
Cost of GOOD gear EVERY year to keep a good camp, and keep your clients - $10,000 - or MORE!!!
Cost of food, and other expendibles, for 2 guides, 1 hunter, and assistant, for 1 week - $1000
Cost of fuel - 300 mile round trip in the Piper - $400 ++ depending on exactly how much weight for each trip, etc.
This is just the cost of the HUNT itself. Nevermind the expertise a non-resident hunter is getting from a guide who has been in an area for so many years, hunting these dangerous bears. Nevermind the wages you are paying for each guide, so he can go home and pay his mortgage, and buy food for his family. Never mind all of the other little logistical costs that are needed for setting up a brown bear hunt. All of a sudden, $12,000 a hunt for 10 hunters, or $120,000 doesn't seem like a whole lot of money to be split between 4 people, all the gear, maintnence, and expendable items!!