Guide Schools later in life and Taxidermy schools

[Mojave]

I noticed that I had 9 months of GI Bill left to burn.

What is the latest in life that anyone has been to guide school. Mostly doing it for the experience. The ones I am looking at are in Montana and Idaho.

What about taxidermy schools. Really only interested in a bird course or a game head course. I don't have the time to commit to either one.

Neither one will be my career, just want to compete in the amateur competitions for taxidermy and maybe guide a couple guys year. If nothing else eventually get my own pack stock and learn that process.

I am lucky enough that I make ok money and have a lot of time off.

So neither the cost of either one nor the time off is a problem.

For you guys under 27 there is a guide school in the Yukon. If I could push the way back button 35 years I'd be there.

 

[butcherboy]

I went to Taxidermy school. The one I went to is probably closed now and I wouldn’t recommend him anyhow. He was more concerned with how many students he could squeeze in than actually teaching. There are some good ones though. One in Montana, a good one in Idaho but I can’t remember his name but he judged a competition I was in. Tom Matuska has a really good one as well. If you didn’t have the GI bill then I would recommend learning one on one with a good taxidermist vs. going to a school.

 

[mtnbiker208]

My wife went to fishing guide school in her mid 40's. it was something more to do. She was the "mom" of the class.

 

[Mojave]

I have heaps of GI bill left.

Thanks for the information on Matuska. That sounds very good.

 

[Shane802]

Guide School Financial Aid | Swan Mountain Guide School

Many opportunities exist for financial aid at our guide school, including VA approval for military personnel to use the Montgomery GI bill towards tuition.

www.guideschoolmontana.com

I am in the same boat and was looking into this school because of The GI bill. Not that I think I could ever guide but I think it would be a blast to learn and a good way to spend the GI Bill

 

[bpitcher]

Interested to hear recommendations as well. I need to use mine before the kiddos go off to college.

 

[Mojave]

Guide School Financial Aid | Swan Mountain Guide School

Many opportunities exist for financial aid at our guide school, including VA approval for military personnel to use the Montgomery GI bill towards tuition.

www.guideschoolmontana.com

I am in the same boat and was looking into this school because of The GI bill. Not that I think I could ever guide but I think it would be a blast to learn and a good way to spend the GI Bill

Yes me too.

When I was retiring I had a spot set up at the Colorado School of trades to do the gunsmithing program. I called them about 5 months before I retired to confirm my start date and got told that they threw away the list I was on and I had to reapply.

I ended up going to work for the government and have since burned all of my GI bill except 9 months. I was looking at what kind of programs I could do, and it made more sense to use it on adventures.

So Outward Bound also has veterans trips. I can't get the website to load from Europe, but it would be worth looking into if you have some GI bill left and don't know what to do with it.

 

[Shane802]

Yes me too.

When I was retiring I had a spot set up at the Colorado School of trades to do the gunsmithing program. I called them about 5 months before I retired to confirm my start date and got told that they threw away the list I was on and I had to reapply.

I ended up going to work for the government and have since burned all of my GI bill except 9 months. I was looking at what kind of programs I could do, and it made more sense to use it on adventures.

So Outward Bound also has veterans trips. I can't get the website to load from Europe, but it would be worth looking into if you have some GI bill left and don't know what to do with it.

That’s great info thank you I’ll look into that. COVID kicked off when I was retiring so all the internships got canceled that I was looking forward to.

 

[575 ELK]

If you know how to hunt I don’t know why anyone would need a guide school. Call some outfitters and tell them you want to become a guide, learn some country and go hunt. The rest of it is just grunt work.

 

[Dogone]

I have hired from guide schools. Had quite a variety of people. Some young and still needed to learn manners and how to dress. Others older and to good for the grunt work. Most never understood that it was a real job and they were there to serve the customer: not be his buddy and drink beer with him. A few good ones but they all move on. Paying top dollar to a poor guide doesn’t make him a good guide either.

 

[Mojave]

I am intersted into pack horses. My father actually started the pack race horses in the 1970's in Wyoming.

I know how to hunt, been 30 years since I hunted elk as a kid with a pack string. That is what I am really interested in.

 

[Beendare]

My buddy started Taxidermy at about 55, he has a good business now

 

[HornPorn]

How much does a fully ramped up Taxidermist make, ballpark? I'm not talking bout the owner of Monarch or Dewey Wildlife Studio. I'm talking about a guy who starts his own company and is a 1 man show

 

[Mojave]

I think it depends on what you can get moving. I am not interested in doing it as a full time job. My own work would give me several months of work. Would be fun to compete in amateur level taxidermy competitions.

I make too much to walk away from what I currently do, and It would be a 75% income loss. I have at least 12-15 more years until I retire from the government.

Guiding is kind of the same. I'd like to guide 4-8 antelope hunters a year and maybe two weeks of elk guys a year. I have almost two months of vacation a year. So 3-4 weeks of guiding would be interesting for a couple years.

 

[TaperPin]

My view of any kind of school for a trade is they teach you the basics - not best practices. Packing you can pick up from other advanced hobby guys - a hobby is not the same as using a business model then applying it to a hobby. One friend takes a number of friends hunting every 3rd or fourth year - they trade off being the “outfitter”. Unless you have teenage kids, it can be a challenge just ridding the stock enough, it’s questionable keeping horses or mules that only get used a few times a year and renting is a crapshoot. The image that comes to mind is an acquaintance that went along with his adult son and some of his friends - one of their squirmy horses ended up slipping on a steep side hill, sliding and jumping around in a bunch of downfall down the hill until it was stuck and freaked out. He had to be the adult and go down to sort it out - freaked out horse in a bad situation was really dangerous and had to be shot.

If you want to be good at taxidermy, there is no substitute for learning from the best in that category - not a single one of the award winning taxidermists I’ve used attended a school, but learned as an apprentice.

 

[Mojave]

I actually just need a refresher on throwing a diamond.

 

[WCB]

If you know how to hunt I don’t know why anyone would need a guide school. Call some outfitters and tell them you want to become a guide, learn some country and go hunt. The rest of it is just grunt work.

Guiding is not even close to hunting for yourself IMO. Unless you get a very like minded client. Also, for learning how to prep hides properly, guys that have never really been around stock or done any packing. Having someone put you in no win scenarios potentially like clients can sometimes and provide insight into it. etc.

I guided without going to a school but I knew horses a bit and how to properly skin, cape, flesh animals. I had done a couple years of "guiding" upland hunts on a shooting preserve and worked some service jobs before dealing directly with the public/customers face to face. I think someone that hasn't experienced those things would benefit from a guide school and "learn" it all in a fairly short amount of time where when you get to an outfit you can be an asset instantly. Might help some guys skip the "camp jack" stage and be off and running the 1st or 2nd year.

 

[Mojave]

Typical ask a question on a forum type day.

My question:
I like lamb chops, I want to cook them on my BBQ. I already have a BBQ and the lamb chops. Anyone got a good recipe?

The majority of the answers:
You don't actually like lamb, you are too young to enjoy lamb. I don't know why you would BBQ lamb. Lamb sucks. Only left/right wingers like lamb.

Seriously though.

I am in my 50's.

I am going for to guide and taxidermy school mostly for fun.

I have left over GI bill that could be used for both and the time to take the classes.

I have a mountain of PTO/leave every year.

I have a full time job, that pays. more than 95% of anyone in the guide or taxidermy industry makes and I am only doing it for fun.

I am not interested in changing careers.

Yes I know I probably know more than I will gain out of guide school. I found out that NOLS in Lander also has some courses that work on the GI Bill.

Yes I could probably just sit down and watch a video and get 85% of the taxidermy training done.

 

[smithjd]

At 53 I went through the ELM guide school (owners retired and shuttered it since). I didn’t know anything about horses, but had some other skills and a good work ethic. Was hired as camp jack first year, guide-in-training the next and also worked on summer pack trips.

It has been very rewarding and I’m glad to be doing it. The learning never ends, the office is awesome, and the mules don’t send me stupid emails. Work is hard but my health has improved. HR department is non-existent. Have met many hunters I would be friends with back in the world and few I wouldn’t.

 

[Mojave]

At 53 I went through the ELM guide school (owners retired and shuttered it since). I didn’t know anything about horses, but had some other skills and a good work ethic. Was hired as camp jack first year, guide-in-training the next and also worked on summer pack trips.

It has been very rewarding and I’m glad to be doing it. The learning never ends, the office is awesome, and the mules don’t send me stupid emails. Work is hard but my health has improved. HR department is non-existent. Have met many hunters I would be friends with back in the world and few I wouldn’t.

I was a whitewater guide in my 20's on the upper King river in California. Just doing it on the weekend for the NAS Lemoore Outdoor Recreation program. Was not a paid gig. But it was a lot of fun.