Any hunts you wouldn’t do again?

[Doug3006]

I’ve only hunted Africa with my buddy @Jeff505. Some hunts were 2:1 and some were 1:1…so we only saw each other around the dinner table and campfire. The key is, we’ve known each other for 25 years and hunted many places in the US as well as Africa. So as a travel buddy he’s been tested….. and vice versa. I would not hunt Africa with anyone I didn’t have a long history with.

 

[fourfive8]

I wish my DIY hunts here for elk were 50 percent. More like 25 percent, but that beats the 10-13 percent average.

I hear ya! I think overall my DIY hunts for everything have been under 50%, with some categories well under 25%

 

[ActionBob]

I'm a card carrying non-partisan but most "conservatives" define that as liberal (and most liberals think it is too ... free thinking is supposedly by definition liberal minded behavior). My best friend and my brother both are rabid conservatives but I still have fun hunting with them when I'm in Montana. Not as much fun discussing politics over a beer, but when we're hunting we make sure the talk is about hunting, not Trump's porn star hush money or what brand of diaper Biden wears.

Was the liberal drunkard outfitter able to produce the trophies you were after? Or did that not matter?

His area was great. His guides were fantastic. I had drawn the short straw and got stuck with this BPAC. Couldn't get him away from camp. Took all day to load his supplies then hunted late afternoon till dark.... something like 10 or 11 pm. Constant tantrums like a 3 year old... you know, like many liberals

 

[revturbo9967]

Griz is an expensive hunt for a non-resident.

I’ve seen average of 10k trophy fee for grizzly on top of another hunt. I would rather hunt caribou or moose and if we see a 9-9.5 foot bear, take him.

 

[ActionBob]

I'm a card carrying non-partisan but most "conservatives" define that as liberal (and most liberals think it is too ... free thinking is supposedly by definition liberal minded behavior). My best friend and my brother both are rabid conservatives but I still have fun hunting with them when I'm in Montana. Not as much fun discussing politics over a beer, but when we're hunting we make sure the talk is about hunting, not Trump's porn star hush money or what brand of diaper Biden wears.

Was the liberal drunkard outfitter able to produce the trophies you were after? Or did that not matter?

The area was capable of producing giant grizzly. Brown bears really, just on the grizzly side of the line. And huge moose but I was there before moose season.

I had a couple days at the end to hunt one of the young guides. I asked him about tips. Best tip was from a guy who paid a semester of College for the kid. Worst was from a very wealthy A Hole who got nice moose and bear while being a difficult client the whole 10 days. Pulled out a stack of $100 bills and pealed one off for the kid.

I asked if my guy, the outfitter, ever got a tip. The kid looks at me with a grin and says "never! And he can't understand why!"

I did shoot a very middling but attractive silvery bear just behind camp. Shot through the boiler room with blood spurting out and just as I was about to pull the trigger on a follow-up shot, my left eardrum was subjected to the muzzle blast of his 375 H&H as he shot the bear in the left rear ham. No way was i expecting him to shoot a follow up on that.

The kid told me a story a wealthy Russian client who brought a bottle of Vodka and another of Whiskey. This kid took him out to a spike camp and they got not only a great bear. But also a huge moose... Got back to camp and the client goes to his tent to retrieve the Vodka to celebrate. Comes back and asks the outfitter if he had seen the Vodka... Umm, well, yea.... I thought that was for the camp and um, well, I drank it. Ok, how about the Whiskey? Well, yea, drank that too.

I guess from a liberal perspective of a Democratic Socialist point of view it makes sense that your outfitter would rummage through your private stuff and "share" your booze or anything else.

For the record, I caught him digging through my stuff also! And yes he got a tip.... "run your operation as a business, always drink less than the clients, discuss your policies on follow up shots before hand. Practice safe firearms handling. Train your assistant to understand how to be quite during a stalk. Put a front sight on the un-scoped rifle you give your assistant to use... Stop doing the same disastrous things over and over while expecting different results.


The list went on but he wasn't listening to his tips anyway. I did manage to have a good time with the other guides and the other clients! AND I got to visit and fly with Jim Tweeto! And got to take his old yellow Honda 4 Wheeler on a tour of the village. The old yellow one with windshield that he drove one the show Flying Wild Alaska. THAT was cool! To me anyways

 

[Ontario Hunter]

The area was capable of producing giant grizzly. Brown bears really, just on the grizzly side of the line. And huge moose but I was there before moose season.

I had a couple days at the end to hunt one of the young guides. I asked him about tips. Best tip was from a guy who paid a semester of College for the kid. Worst was from a very wealthy A Hole who got nice moose and bear while being a difficult client the whole 10 days. Pulled out a stack of $100 bills and pealed one off for the kid.

I asked if my guy, the outfitter, ever got a tip. The kid looks at me with a grin and says "never! And he can't understand why!"

I did shoot a very middling but attractive silvery bear just behind camp. Shot through the boiler room with blood spurting out and just as I was about to pull the trigger on a follow-up shot, my left eardrum was subjected to the muzzle blast of his 375 H&H as he shot the bear in the left rear ham. No way was i expecting him to shoot a follow up on that.

The kid told me a story a wealthy Russian client who brought a bottle of Vodka and another of Whiskey. This kid took him out to a spike camp and they got not only a great bear. But also a huge moose... Got back to camp and the client goes to his tent to retrieve the Vodka to celebrate. Comes back and asks the outfitter if he had seen the Vodka... Umm, well, yea.... I thought that was for the camp and um, well, I drank it. Ok, how about the Whiskey? Well, yea, drank that too.

I guess from a liberal perspective of a Democratic Socialist point of view it makes sense that your outfitter would rummage through your private stuff and "share" your booze or anything else.

For the record, I caught him digging through my stuff also! And yes he got a tip.... "run your operation as a business, always drink less than the clients, discuss your policies on follow up shots before hand. Practice safe firearms handling. Train your assistant to understand how to be quite during a stalk. Put a front sight on the un-scoped rifle you give your assistant to use... Stop doing the same disastrous things over and over while expecting different results.


The list went on but he wasn't listening to his tips anyway. I did manage to have a good time with the other guides and the other clients! AND I got to visit and fly with Jim Tweeto! And got to take his old yellow Honda 4 Wheeler on a tour of the village. The old yellow one with windshield that he drove one the show Flying Wild Alaska. THAT was cool! To me anyways

The misadventures are the adventures you never forget.

Rummaging through your stuff? He was looking to get a big tip ... of a big bullet. If your gun was R8 or Model 700 it would have been a slam dunk for accidental discharge.

 

[CoElkHunter]

I'm a card carrying non-partisan but most "conservatives" define that as liberal (and most liberals think it is too ... free thinking is supposedly by definition liberal minded behavior). My best friend and my brother both are rabid conservatives but I still have fun hunting with them when I'm in Montana. Not as much fun discussing politics over a beer, but when we're hunting we make sure the talk is about hunting, not Trump's porn star hush money or what brand of diaper Biden wears.

Was the liberal drunkard outfitter able to produce the trophies you were after? Or did that not matter?

"what brand of diaper Biden wears"? My pesos are on "Depends"? That's really not much of a challenge. Here's one, what drug(s) does Brandon take to keep him vertical every day, or at least when he's reading from a teleprompter at one of the few news conferences he's ever done. My guess is lithium. He can sprinkle some powder on his wheaties in the morning and it'll perk him right up till the afternoon when it's nappy time. LOL

 

[Jeff505]

I’ve only hunted Africa with my buddy @Jeff505. Some hunts were 2:1 and some were 1:1…so we only saw each other around the dinner table and campfire. The key is, we’ve known each other for 25 years and hunted many places in the US as well as Africa. So as a travel buddy he’s been tested….. and vice versa. I would not hunt Africa with anyone I didn’t have a long history with.

Well said my friend, all the hunts weather good or bad have hinged on the attitude and company you keep.

 

[cperso]

I won't ever hunt in Australia again. The country is not hunter friendly and once you have your water buffalo, there isn't enough variety of other game that is interesting to hunt.

Have you ever stalked Sambar Deer in the Victorian Alps in Australia?

 

[375Fox]

My first "guided" hunt was waterfowl on Chesapeake Bay. Similar experience, I would never do again, in fact I refused to do a guided hunt for another 15 years.

Hopefully this most recent hunt changed your mind. The level of service you get in Africa vs North America is night and day.

 

[375Fox]

First full week of May. The weather is typically beautiful and the bears are moving.

View attachment 560063

Coastal Alaska is a really unique place. I was much further south on my bear hunts on prince of wales island for black bear and The misty fjords for brown bear. It’s one of most impressive landscapes I’ve ever seen. Coastal black bear is really an underrated hunt for the value. The coastal goat hunts I could never do though. The outfitter said he had clients back out mid-hunt for goats over the terrain.

 

[channelkat]

Coastal Alaska is a really unique place. I was much further south on my bear hunts on prince of wales island for black bear and The misty fjords for brown bear. It’s one of most impressive landscapes I’ve ever seen. Coastal black bear is really an underrated hunt for the value. The coastal goat hunts I could never do though. The outfitter said he had clients back out mid-hunt for goats over the terrain.

I was just eyeballing SE Alaska winter Blacktail hunts. I Love everything about Alaska, but not really in shape at the moment to trudge up and down those mountains, especially for goat.

 

[ActionBob]

Coastal Alaska is a really unique place. I was much further south on my bear hunts on prince of wales island for black bear and The misty fjords for brown bear. It’s one of most impressive landscapes I’ve ever seen. Coastal black bear is really an underrated hunt for the value. The coastal goat hunts I could never do though. The outfitter said he had clients back out mid-hunt for goats over the terrain.

My BC Coastal Mountain Goat hunt was a very challenging and very memorable adventure! I had my rifle in my pack and clawed my way up that mountain on all fours Twice! Thankfully a couple days apart. I did too late in life but sooner rather than later is a good guideline no matter what your age

 

[Michael70]

I won't ever hunt in Australia again. The country is not hunter friendly and once you have your water buffalo, there isn't enough variety of other game that is interesting to hunt.

I am disappointed to hear of your experience, if I recollect you were here only recently.

I must agree that hunting is tolerated more than accepted across Australia, although the Top End is more hunter friendly than most. If you believe this is bad, please never bother travelling to Western Australia.

There is other game to be had year-round, but access and time is the issue. There are wild hogs, camels and scrub cattle to name a few; local knowledge really helps. Hard to organise for the travelling hunter but I am sure an outfitter can provide this along with Banteng and even a visit to a river for some barramundi.

I would not travel all the way to Australia for a single bull; mixed with other game and something unique like Banteng, certainly makes it a better option.

PS. Victorian Alps for Sambar, Fallow and Reds along with the only huntable population of wild, free-range Hog Deer in the world is also valuable to add to the itinerary (this though is subject to a one-month season).

 

[Foxi]

That may be true in Poland, that is absolutely not true in the UK. In fact, that would be highly illegal in the UK.

The UK breeds millions pheasants a year.
It's an agricultural industry there.
The difference is that they release them in spring and they run wild (to some extent) until hunting season, when the gamekeeper calls them to feed they come out of the bushes.

Unlike in Eastern Europe where they are released before the hunting party arrives.
Important for an Englishman is the game in flight,after that nothing comes for a long time and for that he pays immensely high prices for this sport.in my time,a few years ago,25 pounds for a rooster(one !!).
But all are supported stocks,pheasants are running birds,you know that at the latest when you are their thighs.
They only fly so high because they can be driven over suitable terrain, not voluntarily, they prefer to fly flat over the land.
No one has developed pheasants so skilfully as the English.
And the gamekeepers wage war on everything that can develop as a predator for pheasants, right down to the hedgehog.
Few people realise what it means for a territory to produce "only" complete wild 50 huntable pheasants.where shuold they come from in mass ?
Pheasants hunts is therefore often more expensive than other types of hunting.
If you drive through our villages you will see signs saying "Beware of children".
In England "Beware of Pheasants
The crown of the hunt for the English is the driven grouse. They cannot be bred, even though this is often attempted.
The pair cost 250 British pounds at the time.
No, thank you, I said. Everything has its limits somewhere.

 

[Philip Glass]

Dove hunting in 100 degrees with dusty wind blowing my hat off. F that all day long.

Welcome to my world!

 

[WAB]

Coastal Alaska is a really unique place. I was much further south on my bear hunts on prince of wales island for black bear and The misty fjords for brown bear. It’s one of most impressive landscapes I’ve ever seen. Coastal black bear is really an underrated hunt for the value. The coastal goat hunts I could never do though. The outfitter said he had clients back out mid-hunt for goats over the terrain.

Yep, I’ve been stalking a goat, leaned back against the mountain, and looked at our boat perfectly framed between the toes of my boots. It’s the most vertical country I have ever hunted.

 

[HankBuck]

I will still hunt bear in Maine, but only because I'm so close. Hunting bear over bait is incredibly boring. So boring I typically hound hunt now a days. The only upside is if you do want a big bear, you can be picky and have a decent weeks hunt. I have taken a 340 dressed bear out of northern Maine, the big ones are there, you just need to be patient and accept that you may go home empty handed.

Revturbo, I know that there are Big Bear in Maine also “more bear” in Maine then any other State East of the Mississippi. I also know that the “average bear” shot by Hunters in Maine is 135lbs (per Maine Fish & Wildlife). Maine has the smallest Black Bear of any State because of the long hibernation period they endure - the largest (fattest) bear are coming out of PA and NC - also some in NJ (the years where politics allows bear hunting). Unless you go to Alaska, BC/Vancouver Island, or parts of Canada where you can spot & stalk or be in remote areas with a better chance for big bear with Big Heads. After 4 Maine bear hunts with 6-12 hunters in Camp each time - have seen 3 bear that “scaled” 300 lbs (one was 357lbs) all were live weight... - yes Big ones are there but they are a very small percentage. I’ve gone home empty - “seeing” but passing small bears each time (although once killed 167.lb. “dressed” w/hounds). My friend continues to go back often and has 10-11 baited hunts there with 3 different outfitters over the past 15 years — he took only one bear over 200 lbs and usually only one or 2 bear is taken in Camp over 200 the whole week - with 12-15 hunters. What you always hear about is the 300-400 pounder that gets taken every season by these guides - by 2 or 3 hunters out of the 60 that hunted there each season. The Big bear are definitely in Maine but odds very low. But, I love Maine, the people and hunting there, If I lived there I know I could set up my own baits, camera’s and likely find a better bear plus the “satisfaction” of doing it myself would make the hunt more of an accomplishment. MY 2 best bear came off my property in NY Adirondacks - 225 lb sow during deer rifle season (pure chance “luck” encounter) and a 265 lb. Male (I weigh “everything”) the following bow season — he was on camera often and feeding in a cornfield - set up a stand on his travel route and 3rd sit he came by. These weren’t huge bear but they were better then average and both trophies to me.

 

[HankBuck]

I won't shoot anything over bait ... or water hole. I question the ethics. For bears, I accept that it's about the only way to manage populations effectively. But it's just not for me, especially the sitting on my butt for hours ... or days.

It can get slow sometimes waiting for birds to start flying again, but then I'll usually leave the decoys and walk the dogs to some sloughs or ditches for possible jump shooting. If there was more jump shooting available, my decoys would be in the bin at the Salvation Army Store. For me, hunting is about seek and destroy, not sit in ambush.

Ontario, you remind me of my only Canadian hunting friend (met him during the 2 years I lived outside Toronto 1990s). He’s older now (late 70s), good hunter and even better shot - competitive handgun shooter but excellent with shotgun or rifle too. He also couldn’t sit still on a stand for more then an hour - not for deer or bear or turkey etc... He wanted to be “on the move” stalking and what he felt was “real hunting”. Same way with ducks - we went to farms and “jump shot” mallards off farm ponds - it’s a One & Done type of duck hunt. He didn’t disagree that his “style” of hunting was often “unproductive” but he admitted “I hate sitting in a stand” and “I like to walk”. I admired his enthusiasm & intensity and he took deer every year with small group of friends on “deer drives”....he liked shooting game on the run and antler size didn’t matter to him - that was secondary to the meat and “the shot”. He also always shot the “first Legal deer that walked by”.
He was stubborn and set in his ways - but a good guy and hunted hard, didn’t complain, dressed and butchered anything he shot and enjoyed the meat. I was lucky to have met him otherwise I would’ve never found some of the good hunting spots he took me to during my 2 year stay in Ontario. He also liked my dog (Brittany) and told me that some of the farms he took me to - he’d hunted for 20 years but “never killed as many grouse or rabbits as when we hunted behind your dog”....I think he liked my dog more then me !

 

[revturbo9967]

Revturbo, I know that there are Big Bear in Maine also “more bear” in Maine then any other State East of the Mississippi. I also know that the “average bear” shot by Hunters in Maine is 135lbs (per Maine Fish & Wildlife). Maine has the smallest Black Bear of any State because of the long hibernation period they endure - the largest (fattest) bear are coming out of PA and NC - also some in NJ (the years where politics allows bear hunting). Unless you go to Alaska, BC/Vancouver Island, or parts of Canada where you can spot & stalk or be in remote areas with a better chance for big bear with Big Heads. After 4 Maine bear hunts with 6-12 hunters in Camp each time - have seen 3 bear that “scaled” 300 lbs (one was 357lbs) all were live weight... - yes Big ones are there but they are a very small percentage. I’ve gone home empty - “seeing” but passing small bears each time (although once killed 167.lb. “dressed” w/hounds). My friend continues to go back often and has 10-11 baited hunts there with 3 different outfitters over the past 15 years — he took only one bear over 200 lbs and usually only one or 2 bear is taken in Camp over 200 the whole week - with 12-15 hunters. What you always hear about is the 300-400 pounder that gets taken every season by these guides - by 2 or 3 hunters out of the 60 that hunted there each season. The Big bear are definitely in Maine but odds very low. But, I love Maine, the people and hunting there, If I lived there I know I could set up my own baits, camera’s and likely find a better bear plus the “satisfaction” of doing it myself would make the hunt more of an accomplishment. MY 2 best bear came off my property in NY Adirondacks - 225 lb sow during deer rifle season (pure chance “luck” encounter) and a 265 lb. Male (I weigh “everything”) the following bow season — he was on camera often and feeding in a cornfield - set up a stand on his travel route and 3rd sit he came by. These weren’t huge bear but they were better then average and both trophies to me.

This was my biggest, though he still had room to grow.