WOBhunter

Its an expensive hobby, guide or no guide. Pencil it out, you'll be suprised.
LIVE IT and LOVE IT.

ShatoDavis

I've used one of these as well, Atcheson & Son's in Butte Montana. My father has been a client of their's for several years. My understanding is that they get 10% of the cost of the hunt from the outfitters. I'm sure that the cost is passed on to the client. Meaning if you could find the outfitter without the assistance of the booking agent then you would save 10%.

The rub is finding the good outfitters. Many of the best don't advertise. Many don't have a computer much less a website. So how to find them? I've been on 3 hunts that Atcheson's hooked me up with, every single outfitter was top notch... Is it worth 10%? On a once in a lifetime type of hunt, to me it is.

ShatoDavis

Now you're just being a jerk!Okay I'vetried being nice, Now I'm aggrevated.

Do you feel better about yourself now that you've bad mouthed me? Does it help your self confidence to attack someone else?Do you get pleasure from it? Does it make you feel like a superior hunter to deminish the accomplishments of someone else?

You see I never ran down the way you hunt. I said it wasn't for me. Granted if I lived closer I wouldn't use a Guide to hunt Muley's or elk. But,If I decided to go to the yukon to hunt Moose I would still like a professional guide like Jim Shockey. When I go on my Dall sheep hunt I would still use a guide.

You see you try to run down the way I hunt, and I think the real reason is jealousy. You got hung up on the word "idiot" when I'm quite certain that if you thought for a second you would know what I mean.

Many of those guys that go to hunt the National forests of Colorado are good friends of mine. They are all excellent hunters. They have a great time when they go. But everyone of them says the same thing: "there are too many people hunting in the area. Too many "idiots" running their 4 wheelers up and down the service roads. Too many "idiots" blasting off every round in their magazines in rapid order. Too many "idiots" taking 500-600-700 yard shots at elk crossing a saddle because its the only shot they will have most likely. Too many idiots getting drunk and beligerent. Too many idiots hunting drunk etc. Thats who I meant when I said "idiots". And if you truely are Then I feel sorry for you.

Kodi

Costs for Booking Agents

In almost all cases, you will pay the same cost for an outfitted/guided hunt no matter whether you book direct through the outfitter or go through a booking agent. Outfitting is a business just like any other; and marketing and selling costs are included in the total cost of the hunt no matter which route you choose to go.

Some outfitters choose to do their own marketing which means they incur costs for magazine advertising, maintaining a website, having booths at sports shows like the SCI show in Reno, the Harrisburg Sports Show in Harrisburg, etc., and handling all correspondance. Others opt to have booking agents do their marketing for them for a commision. Regardless of the route, those marketing costshave to beincluded in the total cost of the hunt; and you will pay about the same no matter which way you go. (By the way, the booking agent fees probably average closer to 15% rather than 10%)

If an unethical outfitter with a booking agent arrangement tried to go behind the booking agent's back and discount a hunt by booking direct with a client, the booking agent would drop him in a New York minute.

One word of caution is in order when working with booking agents, however. I would only work with the larger outfits that have been in business for a number of years and have withstood the test of time. They are in it for the long run and have reputations to protect. All it takes to get into the booking agent business is an 800 number, a kitchen table, and possibly a website. While a top quality booking agent is worth his weight in gold, some little guys are in the business mainly to hustle free hunts from outfitters and couldn't care less about matching clients with good quality reasonably priced hunts. These are the guys to steer clear of.

triton21

looking atbrown bear hunting 10000 an up , come on now thats crazy. i feel sorry for most all of us thatwould like to do that but will never get the chance.

Colorado Bob

I think $40,000 for a new pickup is crazy too. $3.39 for a gallon of gas is crazy too. If you don't want to pay the price don't.

20 slugs

You better go in debt now for that big hunt as the natives are getting a bit wise and are talking about treaty right,s such as any white man has no right to guide a hunter on their land or public land as they are are starting to fight for these Provincal Parks and public lands.If their is to be a guided hunt they are going to start taking a % of that hunt moneyfrom the guide or camp so if this does happen the cost will double.There a have been too many conflicts with the natives in the last few yrs that the goverment is trying to keep out of it as they know they will have to turn those lands back to natives to avoid a big conflict such as Ipperwash Provincal Park,Rice Lake Serpent Mounds Provincal Park all here in Ontario and others in Canada.Most of these lands were leased out to the Canadian Goverment and they have since ran out and the natives have taken them back with very little or no notice at all.

ironranger

I've only done "Do it yourself" thus far but wouldn't mind trying an outfitted or semi guided hunt. Or even a drop camp for that matter but you are right about that Shatodavis, it's a matter of finding a good outfitter and there are so many options out there. I did have a good bow hunt last year on a draw area in Colorado. Never saw another hunter in the woods for 10 days and only a few on the backroads. Took a young bull and then a huge one came in after the shot. Within the next few years I really want to make the effort to save for an outfitter hunt. Just to see how I like that...

WhitetailsInc.info

In terms of a brown bear hunt 10k is a bargain, maybe too cheap for a quality hunt. Think about how much it costs to own and maintain an airplane, or a 60-80 foot yacht for the boat based hunts. It costs thousands just to feed them in a land where everything has to be flown in. I can only imagine what the insurance costs for these operators. Plus the guides, camps, support staff.I assume the wages are much higher in a place where milk is probably more than $5 bucks a gallon.

I too lust after one of these hunts. The brown bear is my number1 animal I would like to hunt. But it will probably never happen.

It kills me to think about the cost of many hunts today howeverwhen you consider the guides are working 16-18 hrs a day thier wage is a bargain.

As to the booking agents: The guys who are looking for an easy buck won't last long. thereis no easy money in this business. If an outfitter is willing to book the hunt around his Agent he has just shown you he is not trustworthy. If he is willing to screw the guy who brings his clients to the door He is certainly willing to screw YOU! A good agent has invested thousands on every outfitter to make sure they are legit, and thousands more on the ones who didn't make the cut. Due to the here today gone tomorrow agents, the days of a free evaluation hunt are over exept for a very select few. I spent time with 4 outfitters last year on my own dime and none of them made the cut. This costs alot of money but I do it so you don't have to.

laufer303

You have more problems and issues than I've thought, I've obviously pushed a wrong button by pointing out your badmouthing.



This explains much more on where you sit on hunting, but I still would not call idiots other hunters, no matter how they hunt and if they pay for a kill or not, and no matter how much they pis sme off personally. Anti-hunters would love to seeyour labeing of other huntersand use it as a proof that all (since they generalize just like you have donein thisuseless and rude internet forum exchange) hunters are just killing machines runinig"our" nature,animals that do not care about anythng else but killing. This is what they use to push gun control, l this is how they try to supress hunting on public landand ruin it for both you and me.

If my comments aggravated you this much, after you call other hunters idiots, well so be it.

I appologize to others for having to read this ****.