…….

[Elk97]

No. Not my thing, but would probably go if one of my kids/friends wanted to take me just so I wouldn't hurt feelings.

 

[DCT1983]

Being I’m from the Midwest and have a family I do the guided thing for western big game. Would I do a guided hunt for something I could hunt out my back door? I’m not going to say never, but not near as likely. With a job and family I don’t have the time off work or away from the family to get out west and scout and do what it takes to be successful. I am definitely fair chase only though. If I was going to do a diy deal out west I think I’d want to pay some kind of trespass fee to be on private land though.

 

[mtblackdog]

Not for public land. But I would on ranch hunts. Better yet just pay trespass and Ill do it myself. I could name a dozen elk ranches in Montana. And a couple mule deer In Utah.

 

[cnelk]

What’s an ‘Outfitter’?

 

[Button]

Depends on situation. But I’d rather find the fish and animals on my own. But I’m not put off by it. I was invited on an epic fishing trip, buddy said load your kayak and a tuna rod I got a guy that’s going to drop us way offshore. Epic trip. The guide had a great trip. He got to fish for 2 days while we got towed around for miles.
I’ve never spent money on a guide but I’ve been paid as a fishing guide. It was fun but baby sitting some ‘men’, I’d rather keep my main income and have my own adventures on my weeks off.

You could probably find an elk in a kennel in Texas..literally.

 

[Phaseolus]

I’d go hunt the Thorofare with a guide.

 

[Tmac]

Heck, I’ve used a few when money was an issue. I predominantly go diy, but have done a good number of guided/outfitted hunts. I have enjoyed both, as long as I picked the Outfitter well.

 

[TNhuntsman]

I prefer diy over guided, the benefit to guided for me is game retrieval, if I don't have to recover the animal then I would hunt some hard spots that I would typically avoid hunting solo.

Would probably do guided for a grizzly hunt, just cause I would have someone watching my back.

 

[5MilesBack]

I've always said "I would never pay someone else to do something that I'm capable and willing to do myself". So while money really isn't an issue, it kind of is when.......I can do an archery elk hunt on my own every year for almost 30 days for less than $500. That's about $7k savings over a one week elk hunt for the same thing. It was equally easy to do my CO sheep and moose hunts on my own as well.

BUT.......for species or locations outside of my comfort zone, ya I could see hiring an outfitter.

 

[tdhanses]

I did my first guided hunt this year, I’ll say this just because you have a guide it doesn’t make the hunting easier, a good guide will listen and work for you not direct you but may add their view to the situation to help make a decision. The guide isn’t hunting for you though but does have a better idea of where game usually is.

On my hunt I spotted my elk, made the game plan to get closer and snuck in to 100 yards, my guide would tell you all he did was bring the horses along.

I wouldn’t use a guide for an area I know well but after this last hunt I no longer view guided hunts as easier then diy, only difference really is in camp you aren’t cooking and setting anything up and the horses get you places quickly. You’ll still hike and work your butt off, we would leave camp at 4:30am and return to camp around 8 or 9pm each day, we hunted and glassed all day and it was a blast, it’s also probably good to have a guide that fits your personality and desire to hunt hard or not, my guide quickly felt like another hunting buddy.

I feel many that diy hunt and maybe need that extra push to go out earlier, hunt all day and stay out later could use a guide no matter the hunt.

 

[Venom One]

I've been a DIY guy since I started hunting and enjoy the freedom to do what I want, but it seems like a no-brainer to at least try something different. I'm betting that if you find the right outfitter you'll have a great experience.

 

[Laramie]

Hopefully you have a great hunt this year. If you don't enjoy the experience, see below.

If money were not an object, and you are experienced, consider useing that money to find opportunities previously out of your reach. That may be landowner tags, trespass fees, etc... Keep in mind some outfitters cater to DIY guys. I have an experienced buddy that drew a great elk tag in a mainly private area. He did this because he had pre-arranged access to amazing property through an outfitter. He wasn't guided but was able to use the outfitters camps, and other amenities. Once he shot a bull, he also had free help packing. He did pay about 75% of full price for the hunt but he got to do it on his terms. Another consideration would be remote drop camp hunts. You are still primarily DIY from a hunting aspect but you get a lot of the grunt work removed.
In the end, nothing wrong with spending money to hunt. Each individual is going to see things a little differently and the person in the mirror is the one you need to make happy- don't stress what a bunch of people on a forum think.

 

[Young Blood]

I would say yes to hunts that I couldn't pull off myself. No way would I pay for a guided elk hunt on public land, no matter how much money I had. I would pay for a hunt on a private ranch for elk or I would start looking at caribou, moose, dall sheep, kodiak griz, other out of state opportunities. If its an elk hunt in my neck of the woods where I already know the country and have the gear and its public land what's the point of paying someone? Heck I had to wait for 10 minutes just this morning on my way to work for 40 head of elk to cross the road in front of me just 1/2 mile from my house. No way am I paying for a guided hunt around here. Put me on a private ranch during archery with elk that aren't pressured or a canadian moose hunt and I'm paying all day long.

 

[Werty]

Im not apposed to outfitters, personally Id just have enough horses and the right horses to get me in everywhere. Then pay someone to watch the livestock.

 

[NorthIdahogunr]

Of course I would, but it depends on the outfitter. I like hunting by myself, hunting with a partner, hunting with a guide, hell I just like hunting. Might learn something from someone who does it day in and day out.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

I hunt my a$$ off for whitetails, pheasants, rabbits, and squirrels in my home state. Heck I even throw a few snares out every year to scratch my trapping itch. I am 100% confident after more than 35 years of hunting I will be successful if I do my part.

At 46, I'm late to the Western big game hunting game. My brother and I purchased an outfitted pack-in hunt on public in the Bob in September. We went this route, because we didn't want to wait for years to build up points for a decent opportunity in other states. We lost our older brother to cancer at 50 a couple years ago, and since we both have good jobs, and life is too short to simply "talk about it" any longer we pulled the trigger. Out of 8 guys, I'm the only one that was blessed to punch a tag.

Outfitter benefits of this trip for inexperienced noobs from Iowa included:
-He managed the entire point and application process
-He provided flexible payment options
-He provided phenomenal horses and mules to take us 18 miles in, take us up the mountains every day, pack my elk out, and take us out as safely as possible
-The guides used their experience and worked their butts off to try and get everybody an animal (hunters in camp were from IA, AR, KS, and WA).

Our next trip will likely be DIY or maybe drop camp now that we broke the ice with a difficult wilderness hunt. Just gotta save the $$$ and build up some points.

 

[Stubborn_bowhunter]

Probably not for elk.
Maybe on a giant private property, or reservation like Rogan and Hanes hunt now if money was no issue.

Other critters. Probably.

 

[Still Hunter]

If money was no issue I would still prefer to do it alone but on a place that had a great elk population. Don't see driving up and pointing one out an shooting it as hunting. That's just killing. But money IS A ISSUE , so I can do 6 years DIY for the same cost of one year Guided. A no brainer for me.

 

[cmahoney]

Nope


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[AaronMColeman]

As a resident who knows the mountains I hunt in, nope, not on a general tag.

If I lived out of state, probably.

If it was a once in a lifetime unit, yes.

As a general answer to the question, no. I would prefer if a guide just pointed out some good places to start. Now, I would hire someone to come along as a 2nd caller. Most of my hunting is solo and it would be nice just to have another body calling sometimes.