I live in PA, and have done self guided hunts all across the USA and I don't feel any were a BAD hunt
you don't have to live close by to scout, all the more so in todays modern world
between google earth and all the info on the world wide wed, the ability to contact folks in areas you hunt(wardens, DCNR< locals, folks on forums and so on)
its really NOT needed , all the more so if you know how to read sign
I personally tend to call a DIY hunt a learning experience and a challenge
I use the first day or two to be my in field scouting, as well as hunting, and fine tune from there
its NOT honestly all that hard to do if you put in the effort
the harder part might be recovering the game when its an elk , if your all alone!
BUT many places out west offer recover service's
, or drop off camps, or??
the options today are almost endless
the real key to anything done right is doing YOUR part ALL you can
yes there can always be BAD experiences and folks that scam you
But again, the more you do to weed them out, asking right questions and research on them, the better off you are
you cannot just HIRE a outfitter and HOPE Its going to work out
and NEVER just take 2-3 peoples word as a reference
dig deeper, outfitters loose help as often as any business, so from one yr having GREAT guides, the next eh can have BAD one's
the key is asking, HOW Long the guides have worked for SAME outfitter, and like wise questions
again, you get what you put into things MOST times
but a guide isn't needed if your willing to do the work!
If you want a more easy hunt, then an outfitter can SOMETIMES offer that, with the right one, that is
other wise, you can be just spending a lot of extra cash for NOTHING!