The quick answer is, if I'm able to shoot the same quality buck on my own or in a stand hung by an outfitter, I have more of a sense of accomplishment doing it on my own.

When I was growing up in Florida, however, hunting those pygmy deer, I dreamed of being able to hunt bigger bucks. So hunting with a guide, in Alabama, on a greenfield, is just something entirely different. You could hunt 50 years in Florida and never see deer like the ones they have on that property. So, it's like a present you give yourself for hunting so dang hard every year.

Also, we hunt what I would consider a 'semi-guided' hunt every year in Texas; we've got a lease with pre-set stands that have been part of the countryside for 40 years. We know what kind of deer come to each stand, and where we want to sit, but ultimately, we're sitting predetermined locations. That definitely gives me the same thrill, because the hunting is still really hard, just in a different way from the scouting and stand placement you do on your own.