44 Outfitters

[Oldarcher]

Looking to do a 2026 drop camp with these guys in Gypsum Colorado. Wondering if anyone has used them. Ty

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

The current business is new but when purchased had been open for decades and previous owners sold due to age. I worked briefly for the old owners and hunted their permit a bit which is in a good spot, hard to access from the top and is technically least used to be only accessible through private land.

Have you asked them for references?
Are they on the Colorado Outfitters Association website?


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[Oldarcher]

Thanks BAG, I have asked. Haven't talked to them yet but I think they were Mule deer hunters. I know success depends on a lot of variables. This is a big deal for me and my son's and trying to get it right. Thanks again.

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

I am an outfitter and with drop camps success is heavily based on the hunter(s) opportunity is a better question and why their opportunity vs success was higher. I’ve put clients in camps with harvestable animals and they came out with 0, there were many reasons. Animals were further than we wanted to hike, animals were to far up the mountain for us to want to hike, we passed on legal bills for a larger bull, we passed on cows for bulls. There’s tons of factors as well, I’ve even had guys hike 6 miles from camp just to look back at elk 1/4 mile from camp.

I will say I do know the owners of 44 outfitters personally, but I didn’t want to give you a recommendation on them on that standard. I think they are great guys, Clayton has lived and hunted their permitted his entire life so the only new thing for him is just the outfitting. Jason grew up hunting near Gypsum and guiding on his families permit, so he knows outfitting better.

They have spoken to me several times about permitting, camps, amenities and all that kind of stuff several times where I in a way mentored them, to get them on their feet. I’m not sure how long the previous owners were shut down to the public before selling, I believe they had a short list of long time repeat clients they catered to until they sold.

I talked to Clayton last week shortly about their 2025 season and it seemed like they had a better year than I did when it came to success, but I’m not sure how many camps they ran, I typically run 4-5 camps a week in my permit so my volume is higher than theirs.

To be honest I’d call the hunters you have access to, even if they were deer hunters they should be able to give you an idea of at minimum camp quality for gear and amenities. Essentially with a drop camp that’s what you are paying for and the hunting is up to you.


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[Oldarcher]

Thanks again BigAntlerGuy. I spoke with one of the hunters that was Elk hunting. He gave a very high recommendation for them.