Guide or No Guide?

[Squid]

For some background this will be my 2nd year elk hunting. I've been archery hunting for 6 years and have taken at least one whitetail or mule deer every year. I pulled a high point tag in Wyoming this year on the random. I checked with some guides right away, but as expected everyone was full. Just got a letter in the mail from an outfitter in that unit (not sure how they got my address). It's type 9 and I can dedicate basically all of September to the hunt if I need. Do you think I should risk DIY in such a high point unit? Money wise I could afford the guide. I just got back from a scouting trip and found good elk sign and a small number of elk, but curious on what others would do.

 

[mntnguide]

Does the unit have a lot of wilderness or private lands, that an outfitter will be able to get you access to, that holds a lot of elk? If not and you can devote the entire month hunting it, then youre probably fine without a guide. But most of all it depends on what you want out of the hunt. An outfitter already knows where elk will be, what they will do when weather hits, and what caliber bulls to expect and pursue. Depending on the area, those things can be very important to have knowledge of.

 

[WVELK]

MNTNGuide giving some good advice there. I am not a guide. I am not an outfitter. His best statement is “depends on what you want out of the hunt”. I have hunted elk with a bow since 1994 - I think. I have taken a good bull every year that I have went with the exception of one. I think that was in 2000. I have done it as DIY and with outfitters in WY, CO, AZ and NM.

I mean this with all due respect, if it is your second year of elk hunting you have a lot of fun ahead of you and probably a lot to learn. I kill bulls today that there is no way I could have killed in the 90s. If it were me and you used a lot of points to get the tag, can afford an outfitter, and have never killed an elk I would hire an outfitter.

As for how you got the letter, that is common. Outfitters can get access to people that drew tags. Elk are my favorite animal to chase with a bow. They are not hard to kill, but they are not easy. It is worth it to me to have an outfitter who is going to put me on elk day one these days. No scouting on my own. No leg work trying to find elk on my own, which sometimes finding them is 95% of the battle. My two cents hope it helps.

 

[TaperPin]

A second year elk hunting makes the average elk hunter in your boots way down on the success totem pole - add in an area you haven’t hunted before don’t have a buddy who hunts there and odds go down further, but you have plenty of time to make it work.

If you want to learn a lot about elk and elk hunting, the diy route and a lot of time is a great teacher, not to mention the sense of accomplishment of putting the kabosh on your own elk is pretty priceless.

The logistics of getting an elk out are a huge benefit of an outfitted hunt. We all talk about how tough we are and how easy it is to bust ass getting one out, but nobody would pack an elk out on their back if a pack horse was standing there giving the elk that funny look they always seem to have at first. Lol