I am posting this here because I suspect some of the avid western huters can give me some advice along this line. I have a chance now for some western hunting for years to come where spotting from a good distance is the norm .... mule deer, elk and pronghorn. I have good binos - Swarovski 8x40, but no spotting scope.

How necessary is a spotting scope? And any experience with spotting scopes within my $2,000 budget.