James B

I was not there either but one thing is for sure, you may be a hunting guide or run a lemonade stand but when you take someones money to do a job, you owe them your best effort. It doesn't sound to me like this guy did much to earn his money of leave a happy customer in his wake. Bad things can happen on any hunt but he at least owed his best effort. Hope you find a better outfitter next time.

I was a hunting guide for about ten seasons. I may have had a few customers who did not recieve what the hoped for on thier hunt but I never had a customer that could say that I didn't give them the best shot I could.

DoctorDeath

James thank you ...that was the point I was trying to get across ..all we expected was a reasonable effort.

dd

White-tail-deer

I have been on several paid hunts and my problem is how do you really know about an outfitter until you actually hunt with them? I ask all the questions, talk to references and still you get there and hunt and come accross outright lies to be honest. If I could ever find an honest outfitter he would have a lifetime client.

DoctorDeath

WT I feel your pain my friend however IMHO the outfitter is not a miracle maker but he can and should do everything within his ablities to make your hunt sucessful ....if at the end of the hunt you feel he has regardless to the harvest then I think you got your moneys worth ...I just do not think you can judge the outfitter or guides performancesolely on a kill ...example.. The outfitter I used on this hunt is the same one I used in 04 when I took a nice buck on the third day ...and even though he gave very little effort that hunt I gave him the bennifit of doubt that he must have scouted some prior to our hunt to know where to place the stand ...as it turns out he puts all 4 stands the same place every year so really not much effort in the scouting dept...I harvested a buck of a life time but not really due to a lot of effort from him but because of luck ...its like a crap shoot ...if you score from that stand he is a hero and if you strike out "thats just hunting" according to him ...I just don't buy that excuse ...WT good luck to you in the future my friend.

dd

Champlain Islander

The only outfitter I ever hunted with was Snowshoe Lake Hunting and Fishing in Newfoundland. They far exceeded my expectations in my 3 trips and always tried to make me feel comfortable. They worked their arse off to ensure success. It is hunting however and some things are beyond the scope of what they can handle. When things turn tough that is what separates the true professional outfitters from the people who take your money just to let you hunt on their land. When I pay an outfitter I am paying for the location, with his experience and unique personality to give me something I can't easily accomplish on my own. This year 2 of my best hunting friends and I tried something different. We went to Colorado as first time elk hunters and decided to try it on our own. None of us had experience or even seen an elk but we are accomplished North Country deer hunters. Hunting is hunting and even though it took a few days to figure it all out we came home with 3 nice animals. It was fun to hunt a strange new country but I kind of missed a guide to fill us in on all the intricacies of that particular hunt and the lore of the native people who live there. Success to me doesn't mean a filled tag. There is much more to the hunt.

White-tail-deer

I couldn't agree more DD and Champlain, the hunt is not all about the kill. And every hunt I've been on I have come away with great memories some with kills and some without. But what I'm talking about are outright lies. Example...the last hunt I went on the hunting season opened on a Saturday. We were told our hunt would start on a Monday to allow for deer to pushed on to the property from surrounding properties. When we arrive on Sunday as agreed to get settled in we find out that 4 guys hunted the property all weekend and took 3 buck off the property. We were told we would be hunting unhunted property. I could go on and on.I guess it's just the nature of the business??

DoctorDeath

WT in a case like that ..if what you heard about the previous hunters was accurate then that is just a down rite lie ....I am not sure when you found out about the previous hunters but if it was before you went to the field I think I would have addressed that with the gudie and found out if it was true and if it was I would have asked for my money back "IF" at the end of the hunt we had not had a reasonable chance at a shooter buck ...if he refused to agree to that I would have asked for my money back and just left the camp prior to hunting .... if you found out after your hunt then that sure makes it tuff have recourse ....you can always demand your money back but its unlikely you will get any satisfaction from a pure dee liar AFTER the hunt.... sorry to hear you had such an ordeal ..

dd

diamondaranch

First of all, condolences to you dd on your experience.

Second, I am not sure I understand this stuff, so maybe some of you can help. How can a person justify charging you $9500 when you harvest nothing? I hope you were in a five star hotel/restaurant!!

We have days, sometimes weeks where folks don't see a deer here. So that part I understand. Sometimes we blame iton too many acorns, the wind is too strong, (snow is not anoption here lol)etc. etc. But we darned sure don't charge for something you don't get...how can aperson be in business like that?

best of luck

DoctorDeath

Thank you DR but the hunt was $4500 each + airfare and my buddy paid an extra $500 for a moose tag.

dd

davester

Hey D.D. how about posting some pics of the trip and show us you previous bucks?
Don't give up!