121553

Maybe thats it Beav, I ain't a people person. If you ain't got it you ain't got it. Been there ,done it, not anymore, geting too old now to tolerate those snotty nose easterners who think that a Boone and Crockett is guaranteed as they want to be back at camp by 10 in the morning for what ever reason, its just too hard of work on part of a guide sometimes if you have most of your clients who are out of shape or can't acclimate to the altitude. Just my two cents.

schmalts

Dont get me wrong, customer relations is important too. But not everyone needs a hand holding out there, and are more paying for being put into a good area because they dont have the time or option of days to scout things out before hand. Some want to see how the so called pros do it for their own learning. I recently went on a elk hunt where the 19yr old guide was so green i bought him a push button cow call so he at least made acceptable calls. He was just more or less an extra set of eyes for spotting, and i didnt need to pay for that. All im saying is that just because your a weekend hunter who killed a few critters doesnt make you qualified to be a satisfactory guide. It depends on the weapon choice too. Say what you want, but a rifle hunt guide doesnt need to know jack compared to a bow guide. A few poor calls can blow the whole situation in a bow hunt, where a rifle hunt you just need to get in within a resonable shooting range. A guide is only as good as the client he is matched up with. Its not about how far you can hike in a day. It just kind of sounds like the guy who posted this topic is kind of green. A guide school would be good, or a guide assistant for a couple years.

BeaverJack

The guide school I went to gave me some learnin' 'bout packin' mules, an' a whole lot of experience stringin' wire round the owners dude ranch. Hunters is born, they ain't made. Trouble is, there's too few experienced guides fer the number of outfitters. They have to break in new fellers ever year, an' they don't start out knowin' the country, even if they can hunt proper. Had a new feller in camp this year. Good hunter. Is in excellent shape. Didn't know the country. His clients complained an' I took one of 'em out to fill onct I got done. By the end of the 3rd hunt, the feller was gettin' to be a excellent guide an' will be great next year ifn he returns. Thet's the big one. Guides roam around an' find better gigs an' git married an' such. Ol' farts like me thet do it 'cause we like to hunt more are few an' far atwixt. A guide can be a help or a libility. But thet's the luck of the draw. Ain't an outfitted I've seed thet has a set crew of good jacks an' guides ever year. Don't even git me started on camp jacks.

BJ

trmichels

Sounds like all of us who have guided have had the same experiences with in-experienced hunters and guides. Give me an "Honest to God" "older" archery hunter who hunts because he loves to hunt (not for the glory, fun or money), and I'll turn him into a heck of a guide; if he can put up with low pay and long hours. And good cooks and camp jacks are hard to keep. Don't get me started on stock.

I think we scared the "visitor" out of becoming a guide.

God save the guides, give them eyes in the back of their heads (to watch the pack string), and one arm made out of spring steel (for holding the lead rope of 20 ornery, spooky pack animals).

Got questions, ask and I'll try find the answers.

Look for my up-coming articles in the e-magazine.

T.R. Michels, writer, speaker, guide, cook, camp jack, mechanic, secretary etc.

Trinity Mountain Outdoors
[email protected]




T.R. Michels

James Vee

Schmalts:
<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote<font size=1 face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote> I recently went on a elk hunt where the 19yr old guide was so green i bought him a push button cow call so he at least made acceptable calls. <hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' size=2 id=quote>


I don't want you to give this guy the wrong impression. I'm a licensed guide for the state of Wisconsin. I don't think that age has anything to do with it. Experience does. A lot of you guys might say that experience come with age, and part of that is true. But 19-20 years old is definately old enough to know a lot more than a lot of people, especially if the guide has grown up in that area, or been hunting that species all of his life.

BeaverJack

I wish I was 19 knowin' what I know. A 19 year old with strong legs can be a real advantage ifn the hunter is in shape too. When the elk ain't talkin' an' there's a mounting or two to cross, well, I ain't on thet program no more. A good savy 19 year old can be a blessin' or a curse, dependin' on yer mood, blood pressure, an' belt size.

BJ

schmalts

It had nothing to do with his age, your right. It was he was just green. He also had poor equipment, or lack of it. I really liked him, he was a good kid with a great heart, but was put on this piece of land that was a total flop for bowhunting. He was upset himself that i was told by the outfitter about what kind of animals to expect to see. We never saw anything within 50 inches of what was expected, and even at that there was only 2 of them that were branch bulls. This was a spot and stalk/call type of hunt, very open country. When you dont even glass them up its pretty depressing. I got duped big time by a sweet talking outfitter with a big advertising mailing list.
the whole reason i replied to this post was that the guy who put the post up sounds green himself, just because if he didnt know what it takes to be a guide he probably needed to get some training before he got thrown into the bush with a client. That and he kinda sounds real young talking about how he want to be a guide like &quot;on the big hunts&quot; Sometimes even i forget that some real young guys post here.

Edited by - schmalts on 10/24/2002 19:08:23

Edited by - schmalts on 10/24/2002 19:11:00

BeaverJack

Well, good guides are hard to find an' keep. Jus' fer a minute, everone should consider how much trouble guides go thru. They got hunters thet, well, face it, those thet can afford a hunt usually ain't in no condition to do it. They gotta keep fellers safe, while puttin' 'em in front of good bulls no matter how poor they walk, ride, or shoot. Then there's the fellers like the one I had this year thet pulls the trigger on a 5x5 on the first day an' stiffs the guide cause he wanted a bigger bull an' spent all thet money fer one day of huntin'. Mos' fellers are good folk, but some come lookin' fer somthin' asides havin' a good time in beautiful country. Those are the reasons to go huntin'. I've had folks mad cause I'm doin' the real huntin' fer 'em, then other fellers thet git mad cause I ain't crappin' bulls ever hour. Here's my recipe fer a good guided hunt: have fun! The biggest bulls an' mos' successful hunts begin in yer head. Attitude is everthin.

BJ

Surestrike

Amen BJ......

There just ain't no pleasin some people. Ain't there just no displeasin others. I tell people when I talk to them that the only thing I can guarentiee is a good hard effort on my part. the rest is up to them. I'll keep em dry (most of the time) I'll keep em fed, if they don't like the feed I always suggest something else they can eat out in the corals. I keep them safe as is with in my ability to do so. If your going to go and do something stupid thats your own damn problem.

And most of all I'll generally show them game. But if I don't it ain't for lack of trying on my part. If I show them a bunch of game and they ain't impressed with the quality then that falls into the catagory one of two things A. Your being an unreasonable SOB because we charge for the hunt not the kill so don't bitch to me about not seeing that world recoed bull during your public land hunt. B. You should pay more and hunt on private land we can arrange that too.

Most of all if your going on one of them guarentied success deals it's A. either a scam or B. It's a high fenced private YO type operation. Nothing against it but know where you go.


Now Schmalts what is this B.S. about &quot;not becoming a guide if your not a good hunter&quot; Some of the hunt instinct is natural but a big part of it is learned. Or did you hit the ground bugling those 400 class bulls in on your baby rattle? Give the kid a break...everybody has to start somewhere.


Edited by - surestrike on 10/27/2002 13:57:44

trmichels

HNI Visitor,
If you're still interested, I run an advanced hunter and guide school.

T.R.
[email protected]

T.R. Michels