How to define a bad hunt?

[Happy Myles]

My first clue was bailing my guide out of jail on day one. The hunt went downhill from there

 

[dgr416]

I think I can win this one .I got left for dead on my first hunt ever in Alaska .It was a drop by myself for moose .The plane was too little had to change to a cesnia instead of a super cub .I had too much stuff .I fill the plane with just two bags my tent rifle and deer carrier .The guy flying had not flown that plane to where we where landing and it took a longer runway to land He wacked the willows going in knocked some holes in the wings which he kinda taped up with a roll of alumium it would have flipped easy if the trees didnt give . .The other owner said he would there with me but didnt come there .They told me where to go camp every tree was grizzley marked on the trees .
I had not used the tent or sleeping bag ever my cousin let me use .The sleeping bag wouldnt zip above my knees and the tent had extra rooms that were not made for snow .
I stayed ten days I had left my wallet and credit cards with my old girlfriend .I just took my id and hunting licence while I hunted she was supose to make sure the guy checked on me every three days .He finslly came by at 7 days and I I asked when he was picking me up hr didnt know .I said ten days was my limit on food .He didnt come back and between bears and snow and cold I about froze to death .The bears came to camp every night closer and closer then one finally rosred sticking his head in thr side of the tent and i when out with my 338 win mag and 7 grizzlies came that night and wanted me as a snack .It snowed the last three nights so hard the extra rooms in the tent colasped .I about froze it was 8 degrees and the sleepimg bags hardlry kept my legs warm .It snowed two feet and really got cold put out my fire and here really came the bears .I shot between there feet to try to keep them away .I heard a plane the 20th day and he said I gotta get out of here or die .He couldnt take me but said he would csll the ffa to get me rescued .The guy came 6 hours later said jump in the plsne I can harly fly in this snow .We flew 50 feet off the river through a canyon so he could tell where he was going mountains on both side .We had to pull up when the army said your on the bombimg range prop city we bomb .We pulled up and were hitting geese and craines like crazy .He kept yelling we are gona crash the whole rest of the wsy .I had to calm him down .We finslly got back and I walked to my gf office she looked like she was seeing a ghost .She wanted me to not come back and had stolen off all my credit cards .I never went on a drop hunt by myself after That or left my wallet .I also bought my 416 rem mags after that .I was lucky I made it back from thst hunt .I lived there 12 more years many more bear advrntures

 

[steve white]

I think I can win this one .I got left for dead on my first hunt ever in Alaska .It was a drop by myself for moose .The plane was too little had to change to a cesnia instead of a super cub .I had too much stuff .I fill the plane with just two bags my tent rifle and deer carrier .The guy flying had not flown that plane to where we where landing and it took a longer runway to land He wacked the willows going in knocked some holes in the wings which he kinda taped up with a roll of alumium it would have flipped easy if the trees didnt give . .The other owner said he would there with me but didnt come there .They told me where to go camp every tree was grizzley marked on the trees .
I had not used the tent or sleeping bag ever my cousin let me use .The sleeping bag wouldnt zip above my knees and the tent had extra rooms that were not made for snow .
I stayed ten days I had left my wallet and credit cards with my old girlfriend .I just took my id and hunting licence while I hunted she was supose to make sure the guy checked on me every three days .He finslly came by at 7 days and I I asked when he was picking me up hr didnt know .I said ten days was my limit on food .He didnt come back and between bears and snow and cold I about froze to death .The bears came to camp every night closer and closer then one finally rosred sticking his head in thr side of the tent and i when out with my 338 win mag and 7 grizzlies came that night and wanted me as a snack .It snowed the last three nights so hard the extra rooms in the tent colasped .I about froze it was 8 degrees and the sleepimg bags hardlry kept my legs warm .It snowed two feet and really got cold put out my fire and here really came the bears .I shot between there feet to try to keep them away .I heard a plane the 20th day and he said I gotta get out of here or die .He couldnt take me but said he would csll the ffa to get me rescued .The guy came 6 hours later said jump in the plsne I can harly fly in this snow .We flew 50 feet off the river through a canyon so he could tell where he was going mountains on both side .We had to pull up when the army said your on the bombimg range prop city we bomb .We pulled up and were hitting geese and craines like crazy .He kept yelling we are gona crash the whole rest of the wsy .I had to calm him down .We finslly got back and I walked to my gf office she looked like she was seeing a ghost .She wanted me to not come back and had stolen off all my credit cards .I never went on a drop hunt by myself after That or left my wallet .I also bought my 416 rem mags after that .I was lucky I made it back from thst hunt .I lived there 12 more years many more bear advrntures

Yep, you win!

 

[Hornedfrogbbq]

I think I can win this one .I got left for dead on my first hunt ever in Alaska .It was a drop by myself for moose .The plane was too little had to change to a cesnia instead of a super cub .I had too much stuff .I fill the plane with just two bags my tent rifle and deer carrier .The guy flying had not flown that plane to where we where landing and it took a longer runway to land He wacked the willows going in knocked some holes in the wings which he kinda taped up with a roll of alumium it would have flipped easy if the trees didnt give . .The other owner said he would there with me but didnt come there .They told me where to go camp every tree was grizzley marked on the trees .
I had not used the tent or sleeping bag ever my cousin let me use .The sleeping bag wouldnt zip above my knees and the tent had extra rooms that were not made for snow .
I stayed ten days I had left my wallet and credit cards with my old girlfriend .I just took my id and hunting licence while I hunted she was supose to make sure the guy checked on me every three days .He finslly came by at 7 days and I I asked when he was picking me up hr didnt know .I said ten days was my limit on food .He didnt come back and between bears and snow and cold I about froze to death .The bears came to camp every night closer and closer then one finally rosred sticking his head in thr side of the tent and i when out with my 338 win mag and 7 grizzlies came that night and wanted me as a snack .It snowed the last three nights so hard the extra rooms in the tent colasped .I about froze it was 8 degrees and the sleepimg bags hardlry kept my legs warm .It snowed two feet and really got cold put out my fire and here really came the bears .I shot between there feet to try to keep them away .I heard a plane the 20th day and he said I gotta get out of here or die .He couldnt take me but said he would csll the ffa to get me rescued .The guy came 6 hours later said jump in the plsne I can harly fly in this snow .We flew 50 feet off the river through a canyon so he could tell where he was going mountains on both side .We had to pull up when the army said your on the bombimg range prop city we bomb .We pulled up and were hitting geese and craines like crazy .He kept yelling we are gona crash the whole rest of the wsy .I had to calm him down .We finslly got back and I walked to my gf office she looked like she was seeing a ghost .She wanted me to not come back and had stolen off all my credit cards .I never went on a drop hunt by myself after That or left my wallet .I also bought my 416 rem mags after that .I was lucky I made it back from thst hunt .I lived there 12 more years many more bear advrntures

Ummm...wtf?

 

[Hornedfrogbbq]

Hunting is locker room replacement or family time. It is the guys I grew up with or met later in life, great steaks we usually cook, fine old red wine, too much scotch, a campfire and alot of light bullshit.

My family is all girls -- two daughters and my wife and just being outdoors with them and experiencing it all together is gold.

Killing animals is secondary but always nice to have some action...fishing or hunting. But it is building communion with those I love that I will remember in the end.

It is about what a good steak, great wine and whiskey and friendship around a fire can do to one's soul. For me, I decompress and relax and forget the "noise of the day" from work or politics or any other abstraction. The "forced" focus is priceless.

 

[mark-hunter]

To me there's no such thing as a bad hunt ( unless the guide/PH is an ass).
To me anytime in the bush is good even if I don't fire a shot. Getting an animal is an added bonus.
Now I prefer hunting with my son and my mate and his son and get great enjoyment out of teaching them skills to improve their outcome.
Watching young hunters mature and improve is a great gift.
My son has become a good hunter in his own right and now wants to teach is girlfriends brother to hunt so the pupil has now become the teacher.
I still love to hunt and harvest game but that's only part of the experience. Sitting around the campfire with a nice meal and a few drinks with friends increases the experience. Even getting bogged on a track and getting out of it is part of the learning curve and gives another story to tell of stupidity and Triumph.
Hunting to me isn't just about shooting an animal, it's the whole experience.
The joy of eating something you harvested and processed yourself seems to make the meal even more enjoyable as well.
That's my perspective on hunting. It's the whole experience not just the kill.
Bob

Bob, you speak my language.
"Better a bad day hunting, than a good day in the office..." as the adage says.

I had an early youth phase with my kids teaching them of fishing, hunting and shooting, but now they are fully focused on college and studies.
I found the joy and pleasure in sharing the knowledge with new people so I am active in my club as coach, and target shooting club management.

My attention after the hunt is now focused on young people entering the sport of target shooting, or hunting, and giving them guidelines and mentoring them when they allow.
I brought in number of my friends, and others from my circle into the sport, providing them information of clubs, options, hunting exams, I take them to occasional hunt, etc.

When you get to "give back" stage, you make a full circle.
A give back stage is mature stage of hunter giving back experience, knowledge and teaching new ones.
I think that many of forum members sharing their knowledge here on the forum, are well into the "give back stage", actually floating actively between "trophy stage" and "give back stage".


Qoute/unqoute from link below, phases of hunters development:

1) Shooting Stage​

The impulse here is to get off a shot quickly, usually at the first animal that appears. This eagerness can lead to bad decisions:

• the wrong animal being chosen,
• a poor shot being taken that wounds the animal or
• even a shot that endangers others.

Target practice, good mentoring and more experience will lead most hunters out of this stage quickly.

2) Limiting Out Stage​

This hunter wants to always bag the limit. This may cause a hunter to take unsafe shots or misidentify targets in the zeal to limit out. More experience and hunting with mature hunters will lead hunters out of this stage.

3) Trophy Stage​

Success is judged by quality, not quantity. The hunter is very selective and will pass on many opportunities that do not match the desired trophy characteristics. Many trophy hunters focus on big game. The hunter’s patience and commitment must be highly evolved

4) Method Stage​

Here, the process and challenge of hunting becomes the primary focus of the hunter. A more challenging method, such as using a bow, muzzleloader, or handgun may be chosen. The hunter may choose to stalk or still hunt, rather than sit in a stand next to a feeder.

5) Sportsman Stage​

The total experience of the hunt is what is important to the sportsman:

• What animal is being hunted,
• How it is being hunted,
• The immersion into nature and the companionship of who you are hunting with,
• all combine into creating a more sophisticated appreciation of the hunt.

6) “Give-Back” Stage​

At this point the hunter is motivated by the desire to pass on the proper hunting values, safety skills and responsible attitudes to others. They want to preserve our hunting heritage by introducing new hunters to the sport in the most rewarding manner. The hunter may choose to join a conservation organization that improves habitat through wildlife management and promotes hunting.

Source:

https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/hu...se/responsible-and-ethical-hunting/six-stages

 

[mark-hunter]

My first clue was bailing my guide out of jail on day one. The hunt went downhill from there

This looks like a good story to share!



Do you have it on forum to provide the link?
Or, give us some more details?

 

[mark-hunter]

I was lucky I made it back from thst hunt

Great story!
I enjoyed reading. Wow!

But say honestly:
Did this story later turn to scenario for the movie "The Edge", with Antony Hopkins and Alec Baldwin?
Wow! What an adventure! Wow!

 

[BryceM]

Well, you'll know it when you experience it.

I did a hunt last fall that was my worst by far. I booked 2 years in advance for a 10 day November combo Canada hunt for whitetail and mulie. The nicest buck I laid eyes on was already dead - shot by one of the guides for himself on day 2 while he was with out with the other fellows in camp. If I'd have driven instead of flown, I probably would have packed up right then and there and headed home.

The last 5 days of the hunt were spent driving around with thermal imagers looking for something to shoot. They played fast and loose with areas where they had permission to hunt. Lots of talk about coming back at night to retrieve an animal, etc. Not my cup of tea. I was sold a spot and stalk mulie hunt and a stand whitetail hunt. I spent zero time in a stand, and about 6 hours total sitting in a lawn chair watching clearings. My own guide was great, and he tried hard, but the outfit he worked for was a total clown show.

The main guide I booked with was supposed to be in camp, but had some huge family issues to deal with. I'll grant him that. Life happens, but still, communication was terrible. I got the sense the junior guides were left to sort it out on their own.

The money spent was considerable, but the loss in time was what really hurt. I only get so many days off per year.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

If the day ever comes that you do hunt with an asshole, believe me, you'll know full well the meaning of a bad hunt!!

On 3 occasions I never received my trophies, that sucked, especially when my bongo hide never made it home!

@Andrew62
At my age I'm pretty good at picking arseholes from good people. Even just talking on the phone it's not hard to sort the bullshit from fact.
I suppose I'm lucky I have never hunted with an ass. A few idiots but that's another story.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Bob, you speak my language.
"Better a bad day hunting, than a good day in the office..." as the adage says.

I had an early youth phase with my kids teaching them of fishing, hunting and shooting, but now they are fully focused on college and studies.
I found the joy and pleasure in sharing the knowledge with new people so I am active in my club as coach, and target shooting club management.

My attention after the hunt is now focused on young people entering the sport of target shooting, or hunting, and giving them guidelines and mentoring them when they allow.
I brought in number of my friends, and others from my circle into the sport, providing them information of clubs, options, hunting exams, I take them to occasional hunt, etc.

When you get to "give back" stage, you make a full circle.
A give back stage is mature stage of hunter giving back experience, knowledge and teaching new ones.
I think that many of forum members sharing their knowledge here on the forum, are well into the "give back stage", actually floating actively between "trophy stage" and "give back stage".


Qoute/unqoute from link below, phases of hunters development:

1) Shooting Stage​

The impulse here is to get off a shot quickly, usually at the first animal that appears. This eagerness can lead to bad decisions:

• the wrong animal being chosen,
• a poor shot being taken that wounds the animal or
• even a shot that endangers others.

Target practice, good mentoring and more experience will lead most hunters out of this stage quickly.

2) Limiting Out Stage​

This hunter wants to always bag the limit. This may cause a hunter to take unsafe shots or misidentify targets in the zeal to limit out. More experience and hunting with mature hunters will lead hunters out of this stage.

3) Trophy Stage​

Success is judged by quality, not quantity. The hunter is very selective and will pass on many opportunities that do not match the desired trophy characteristics. Many trophy hunters focus on big game. The hunter’s patience and commitment must be highly evolved

4) Method Stage​

Here, the process and challenge of hunting becomes the primary focus of the hunter. A more challenging method, such as using a bow, muzzleloader, or handgun may be chosen. The hunter may choose to stalk or still hunt, rather than sit in a stand next to a feeder.

5) Sportsman Stage​

The total experience of the hunt is what is important to the sportsman:

• What animal is being hunted,
• How it is being hunted,
• The immersion into nature and the companionship of who you are hunting with,
• all combine into creating a more sophisticated appreciation of the hunt.

6) “Give-Back” Stage​

At this point the hunter is motivated by the desire to pass on the proper hunting values, safety skills and responsible attitudes to others. They want to preserve our hunting heritage by introducing new hunters to the sport in the most rewarding manner. The hunter may choose to join a conservation organization that improves habitat through wildlife management and promotes hunting.

Source:

https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/hu...se/responsible-and-ethical-hunting/six-stages

@mark-hunter
Is there such a thing as a good day at work.
I did get one of my bosses a good one but he didn't see the funny side.
I was sitting at my desk having a coffee, my boss asked what I was doing.
I told him a bus station is where a bus stops, correct. He said yes
Next I said a train station is where a train stops, correct. Again yes.
So I told him I thought a work station is where work stops.
He didn't think that was funny, I don't know why.
Bob

 

[mark-hunter]

Good one, Bob!
I had a laugh!

 

[dogcat1]

After 30+ guided hunts, I have had a few bad ones.
Worst - foul mouthed, egotistical PH
Next worst - lying agent and lying outfitter
Next next worst - several hunts in Canada with outfits that oversell and overshoot theirs areas.
Last worst - predator outfits/guides for sheep hunts. These guys make a lot of money riding around for 14 days in empty mountains....

 

[Red Leg]

Huh. I guess I have been extraordinarily lucky, but have never had a bad experience as a client on a guided hunt. Sure, some were better - or perhaps more memorable is the correct way to express it - but I never a bad one. Way back in the day, while guiding duck hunters, that was a different story. But then, I couldn't pick my sports (clients).

I admit I try to avoid lodge hunting as much as possible. There is nothing worse than sharing a camp with a jerk. But, the few times I have experienced that, it has been pretty easy to isolate the contagion so it doesn't affect my experience.

Finally, I am pretty low maintenance - or at least I like to think I am. I don't have any particular demands or rules. Everywhere is different, and in my experience at least, 99.99% of the guides and PHs with whom I am hunting will have a far better idea how to hunt an area than I will.

I never hunt to collect a particular animal. I hunt to enjoy the experience of hunting an environment with the animal as a goal. That may be overly nuanced for some. But, I can't imagine booking a hunt in the Slavistan Republic for a royal gigantistag, killing it the first afternoon, and leaving immediately for the next item on my collection list.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

When the operator or PH is being obfuscative.

 

[Red Leg]

When the operator or PH is being obfuscative.

Now your showing off. I realize Rhodesians speak the King's English better than anyone in the UK - but obfuscative?!?

 

[mark-hunter]

I admit I try to avoid lodge hunting as much as possible. There is nothing worse than sharing a camp with a jerk. But, the few times I have experienced that, it has been pretty easy to isolate the contagion so it doesn't affect my experience.

Good point, which I completely forgot.
Jerks!
I remember one or two, in African hunting camp. True specimen of the species.
But, I focused on my hunt, and we stayed clear from each other.
Piece of cake.
But, this can really spoil the hunt, if one gets a jerk in a car on 2:1 hunt organisation.

Finally, I am pretty low maintenance - or at least I like to think I am. I don't have any particular demands or rules. Everywhere is different, and in my experience at least, 99.99% of the guides and PHs with whom I am hunting will have a far better idea how to hunt an area than I will.

Low maintenance is good description, which applies to me too. I think that being modest in demands, and not expecting a red carpet under chandeliers in rural hunting camp is a formula to have a good and not disappointing hunt.

 

[BRICKBURN]

I think I can win this one .I got left for dead on my first hunt ever in Alaska .It was a drop by myself for moose .The plane was too little had to change to a cesnia instead of a super cub .I had too much stuff .I fill the plane with just two bags my tent rifle and deer carrier .The guy flying had not flown that plane to where we where landing and it took a longer runway to land He wacked the willows going in knocked some holes in the wings which he kinda taped up with a roll of alumium it would have flipped easy if the trees didnt give . .The other owner said he would there with me but didnt come there .They told me where to go camp every tree was grizzley marked on the trees .
I had not used the tent or sleeping bag ever my cousin let me use .The sleeping bag wouldnt zip above my knees and the tent had extra rooms that were not made for snow .
I stayed ten days I had left my wallet and credit cards with my old girlfriend .I just took my id and hunting licence while I hunted she was supose to make sure the guy checked on me every three days .He finslly came by at 7 days and I I asked when he was picking me up hr didnt know .I said ten days was my limit on food .He didnt come back and between bears and snow and cold I about froze to death .The bears came to camp every night closer and closer then one finally rosred sticking his head in thr side of the tent and i when out with my 338 win mag and 7 grizzlies came that night and wanted me as a snack .It snowed the last three nights so hard the extra rooms in the tent colasped .I about froze it was 8 degrees and the sleepimg bags hardlry kept my legs warm .It snowed two feet and really got cold put out my fire and here really came the bears .I shot between there feet to try to keep them away .I heard a plane the 20th day and he said I gotta get out of here or die .He couldnt take me but said he would csll the ffa to get me rescued .The guy came 6 hours later said jump in the plsne I can harly fly in this snow .We flew 50 feet off the river through a canyon so he could tell where he was going mountains on both side .We had to pull up when the army said your on the bombimg range prop city we bomb .We pulled up and were hitting geese and craines like crazy .He kept yelling we are gona crash the whole rest of the wsy .I had to calm him down .We finslly got back and I walked to my gf office she looked like she was seeing a ghost .She wanted me to not come back and had stolen off all my credit cards .I never went on a drop hunt by myself after That or left my wallet .I also bought my 416 rem mags after that .I was lucky I made it back from thst hunt .I lived there 12 more years many more bear advrntures

No where to go but up from there!


.

 

[BRICKBURN]

On 3 occasions I never received my trophies, that sucked, especially when my bongo hide never made it home!

That truly sucks.
My worst experience was dealing with trophies being taken hostage by a d&p/taxidermist/shipper. Trophies were not retrieved from the Outfitter for 14 months because of BS moving target pricing.
Eventually after threatening to abandon everything the Outfitter was used to assist in one last ditch effort. The result, several ruined trophies due to delay, magically missing record size trophies after pick up, more moving target pricing.
I learned a very important lesson: Understand before your hunt what taxidermy, D&P, Shipping options are available. If it is a monopoly, you have none.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

I define a bad hunt probably in a few ways...

When I've hunted bad...
By that I mean when I haven't followed the rules I've set myself and haven't hunted the way I have planned.
An example would be not setting a landmark every 50m or so and, when reaching that landmark, checking my compass to make sure I'm trekking in the direction I want to go. I've often neglected to do this, and I've deviated off track and not hunted the areas I set out for.
I didn't follow my plan...
When I'm lazy like that, I consider that a bad hunt.

And another example would be when I return home and I'm not revitalised... I'm not renewed... when I don't come home feeling that – for whatever reason, I consider that a bad hunt.

And lastly, another example would be when I come home and don't talk the ear off my beautiful wife; that's a bad hunt.
On a good hunt (once again, for whatever reason that might be) when I get home, I literally don't shut up for hours; I'm talking about every single minute detail like an excited schoolboy.
If I ever return from a hunt and I'm quiet or a little reserved, that's a bad hunt.

Of course I could probably go on and on, but these 3 I've mentioned would be at the top of my list.

Russ

I'd like a wife like that. Does she have a sister? I would happily discard my present relationship. She hasn't aged well anyway. Too many tire patches. But she is a good listener.

A bad hunt is when the weather doesn't cooperate or equipment/vehicle breaks down. I have shot so many animals in my lifetime it just doesn't matter as much now if I come home empty handed. Being away from home is what matters. Every tree, bush, or blade of grass is a unique lifeform different from all that have ever existed or any that will ever exist. And here am I wandering among it all and marveling at the randomness and variety. On the other hand, my home is essentially the same today as it was twenty years ago. Just a lifeless hunk of dead trees, masonry, and glass. There is no adventure here. Shooting stuff really shouldn't matter.