How to define a bad hunt?

[Ontario Hunter]

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

Proving once again misadventures are the adventures we never forget. So send him a thank-you card for that ... with a two cent tip.

Actually, this is exactly what I do when I get really shitty service in a restaurant. Leave no tip and the waitress might think I'm cheap or forgot. Leave her two cents and she gets the message loud and clear.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

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.

That is the truth! My first taxidermist sent "finished" trophies off to shipper without sending me photos of the stuff or an estimate from shipper. Once the "forwarder" had possession of the crate, he had me over the barrel. Needless to say he stuck it to me big and hard! Then the shipment when it arrived was a mess. Hard to believe anyone could screw up eight African skulls so badly. Still, I had a great hunt on safari. My PH made it truly a memorable affair. I managed to fix up most of the damage to trophies but even if I'd thrown them away, I'd still rate the hunt as a success.

 

[coyote wacker]

I've only had one bad hunt. It was a backpack hunt on my own in the UP of Michigan 3rd week in November a foot of snow and tempatures below zero at night in a tent. Had a new Winchester 70 that I had a new gunsmith re-blue matte finish. Gun worked fine when I sighted it in at 50 degrees. On the second day of the hunt got a shot at a very nice buck. Only problem was when it pushed the safety off the gun fired also fired on the second when closeing the bolt .Never touched the trigger ! Had no tools except a knife, fork and a spoon. It ended the trip !

I learned never go on any hunt and only have one rifle avalible to use, bring a second one no matter what.

5 hours in to the trip home stopped at a friends house 5 hours from home. He said my mom called looking for me, to call home right away, called and my Grandfather passed away the day before. She had the DNR and State Police trying to find me. And had no idea other than a near by town where I was. This was before cell phones or pagers. Even today theres no cell phone service where I was.

 

[slam8031]

I have been on an elk hunt that we didn't see a elk that we could even pursue. I went back with the same outfitter because I felt as though he was looking out for me and we had a good time even with no animals. I was fortunate to take a bull over 320 inches on the second trip. Joy is a choice. I agree that honesty and integrity go a long ways in making hunts enjoyable.

I also spent the better part of three days in a blind waiting for Mr. Spots, with one day being 19 plus hours in the blind due to my time constraints and covid issues. It was truly miserable, and exciting, and boring, and entertaining, and awful, and enjoyable. Three months later I returned and was able to take Chui on the first sit. Joy is a choice!

 

[MS 9x56]

To me the only bad hunt is one that ends with injury or death

 

[Rare Breed]

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

YOU WIN!!! You can’t make that stuff up!!!

 

[Pablo]

I think it all boils down to expectations by the hunter. You can be humble and unassuming and have a great trip. Both of my safaris in RSA were great. A little hiccup on the first that got ironed out but didn't spoil the trip. That being said, dealing with complete strangers with holier than thou attitudes would screw up even the most seasoned hunter's plans.
The worst was here at home. I got on a mule deer lease in West Texas about 30 years ago that was a friend-of-a-friend deal. It was a big ranch right in the transition zone on the Pecos River. The lease manager was a jerk and told us what we could and couldn't hunt. "Big muleys are everywhere," said the guy who never shot over a 120 class whitetail. He also didn't believe in shooting whitetail does for management. It was promised that there was a camp house we could stay in, but the guy that had the cattle lease was using it, so we stayed at the Roach Inn in town. I ended up knowing another hunter from the horse world and we had a blustery meeting with the lease manager over the circus. After 5 days, I finally shot a buck with 7 points and one fork who looked like a hybrid, and I got outta Dodge licking my wounds. To top it off, about a month later my chest freezer died and I lost all the meat.

 

[Flbt]

I would say if something bad happens acciden that would count as bad.
But having a hunt interfered with by animal rights nuts or a drunk.
(Going to take people for a friend on a crop damage shoot and they show up drunk)
Or some one in your party braking your personal ethics ( especially if you own the hunting land). Ie some one you have hunted with shooting a covey of quail grounded
Taking to long of a shot or trying to shoot doves off a roost with a 22.

Most hunts with good friends no mater if game is taking are normally good hunts.

 

[Miletic]

For me,bad hunting is primarily related to the organization of the people who are the hosts. If the hunt does not go according to the protocol we agreed upon.
After this, it can be a bad hunt for me if I shoot an animal and we don't find it. That's totally bad for me.
All other circumstances, including weather conditions, are acceptable.
In my country there is a saying: have you ever drunk bad brandy?
I am.
And what was she like?
Well, good

 

[Hornedfrogbbq]

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.

Ditto. I have had more issues guiding folks and them being unreasonable or egotistical or simply wouldn't listen. And restraint isn't my forte.

 

[Hutch01]

For me, any bad hunt created a memory of that hunt and makes for a better story. So none of them I’d call ‘bad’. Hutch

 

[Doug3006]

I haven’t had a truly bad hunt. An unsuccessful Mountain Goat hunt years ago was one of my most memorable experiences. Surely, some have been better than others.

 

[BRICKBURN]

I have had incidents but never had a hunting trip that was truly bad through and through.

1. Rookie PH that had a tantrum while out hunting. The tip reflected what I thought of his skills and refrained from hunting near him again.
2. An ESKOM truck driving through the middle of a stalk honking the horn with the driver yelling out the window at his buddy. Not one clue they drove through the line of fire.
3. Being told mid-hunt that we could no longer take a species because the land owner was not seeing enough Waterbuck.
4. No PH involved. Arriving at a property in the dark and upon waking the next morning I discovered that I could see every fence from a single central spot on a hill. I also relaized that I could snipe every animal on the property from a prone position with a bi-pod from that same hill. I put my rifle away and watched some rookies have fun.


.

 

[Parkerpusher]

There are some really, really good stories here that beat all.

My simple thought for me is: any hunt that I go on where I can’t stand the company. And that includes MYSELF.

I haven’t had any of the crazy stories mentioned here, but hunting for me is always a time of reflection and a reset in life and priorities. I have had hunts ruined by bad company, or because of my state of mind. And that’s a lesson in itself.

 

[wiyofa]

So, some hunters go for a hunt, collect the animals and are not happy.

On the other hand, sometimes hunters go to u hunt, especially on a single animal hunt, do not connect and are not complaining.
Sometimes it is delivery or non delivery of trophies, that cause complaints, or other logistic mishaps.

I dont have bad experiences, but I have seen number of complaints on the forum, and many times I cannot find a general rule.
I do have hunts when I did not get animal (back at my home country) but I do not consider that to be anybody's fault, in free range unfenced areas. Its hunting.

It is all about expectations I think.
So, how do you define a bad hunt, and decide the outfitter or other related logistics company is not recommended?

A bad hunt worth calling out is when the outfitter fails to deliver what they honestly advertised and it was within their control to do so. Not getting an animal in true free range hunting is just hunting. Misrepresenting the experience, poor camp conditions, unprofessional guides, hidden costs and trophy handling failures are all legitimate complaints. Your point about expectations is the key variable though. Experienced hunters understand the nature of the pursuit while first timers with unrealistic expectations will always be harder to satisfy regardless of outfitter performance.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Bow season for white tails in PA, I was half way up the mountain, and spotted a good tree I could climb and tie off and sit in (back before tree stands). Walked about twenty yards away, found a stump to spray with a plastic bottle of fu fu juice. Removed the cap and started squeezing......and squeezing....and squeezing. Somehow it was plugged or I didn't punch a large enough hole. The bottle wasn't tested to an idiot's level and it explodes in both hands. Now I have this stuff all over my face, up my nose and all over my clothes. Never saw one deer and even the usual squirrels gave me wide berth. That smell stayed with me after multiple showers and what seemed like a week in my nose. Been about fifty years but am still reminded of it by some of my compadres. Except for this one, in sixty years, I can't really characterize any hunts as being bad.

 

[dgr416]

My left for dead hunt cost me $92000 on my credir cards from wacko old girlfriend doing that stealing while leavimg me for dead in Alaska .I had another gal wanted to leave me on a glacier to goat hunt fly me there and leave I ssid no wsy .The women in Alaska were more dangerous than the bears .I was originally supose to go with a outfitter but canceled that hunt and kinda good I did the flight i was to go on originalky crashed and everyone including the friend I knew all died on the plane I was supose to be on.Alaska was not good to me in lots of ways went back last year to hunt and my truck was stolen and house and 5th wheel totslly destroyed .

 

[Mauser3000]

My left for dead hunt cost me $92000 on my credir cards from wacko old girlfriend doing that stealing while leavimg me for dead in Alaska .I had another gal wanted to leave me on a glacier to goat hunt fly me there and leave I ssid no wsy .The women in Alaska were more dangerous than the bears .I was originally supose to go with a outfitter but canceled that hunt and kinda good I did the flight i was to go on originalky crashed and everyone including the friend I knew all died on the plane I was supose to be on.Alaska was not good to me in lots of ways went back last year to hunt and my truck was stolen and house and 5th wheel totslly destroyed .

It sounds like you should probably stay away from Alaska.

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

My left for dead hunt cost me $92000 on my credir cards from wacko old girlfriend doing that stealing while leavimg me for dead in Alaska .I had another gal wanted to leave me on a glacier to goat hunt fly me there and leave I ssid no wsy .The women in Alaska were more dangerous than the bears .I was originally supose to go with a outfitter but canceled that hunt and kinda good I did the flight i was to go on originalky crashed and everyone including the friend I knew all died on the plane I was supose to be on.Alaska was not good to me in lots of ways went back last year to hunt and my truck was stolen and house and 5th wheel totslly destroyed .

I’m not going to Alaska with you or near when you’re there.

 

[Scott CWO]

I’ve had some great hunts in Mexico but also one of my worst. I hunted the year before with the same outfitter and had a good hunt and took a 33” typical mule deer. We had to drive a long way each morning to the ranch I was hunting and my guide and I dropped off other guides and hunters along the way, which caused us to be a little late for the best morning prime time but it all worked out.

The outfitter wanted a nice bull elk so he asked me to take him elk hunting in trade for another deer hunt in Sonora. He came elk hunting and got a really nice 6x6. He took one of my wall tents home with him and said he would set it up on the far off ranch with a cook and a guide for me right there to avoid the long drive from the other ranches and base camp. Sounded great to me.

When I arrived at his base camp where I stayed the year before, my tent was set up there instead. He said not to worry and that I would still hunt the distant ranch and get an earlier start each morning without dropping off other people along the way. For two days, that proved to be the case but on the second morning, I had two guides and they hid the truck in some trees and brush. We then climbed up on a hill to glass for deer. I noticed a nice ranch house in the distance. Some guys with ARs walked out of the house and got in a Ford pickup and started patrolling the ranch. When they later turned our way, the guides said, “Let’s go to the other side of the hill to glass.” I then figured out that we were trespassing!

When we got back to the base camp that night, one of the other hunters in camp had taken a nice 196” buck that I scored for him. He had driven across the border with his own truck and decided to head home to Utah the next day. I asked if I could ride with him and if he could drop me off in Tucson. He agreed.

The next morning, I folded up my tent instead of hunting/trespassing and left with the guy from Utah. I told the outfitter that I could not be involved with trespassing. The guy from Utah dropped me at the Tucson airport and the next summer, I got my tent from him when my wife and I went to Utah to visit my sister-in-law. A wasted trip to Mexico!