I agree that finding a good hunting partner is hard, and it’s even worse when they don’t know how bad they are. I had to be the “bailer” a few years ago, but not from a specific hunt. But at the end of season in 2022, I cut ties with the only hunting partner I’ve ever had outside of my family. It was a former coworker who, by all definitions, was a great dude to work with and be around. We got along great at the office and did some stuff outside work and got along so we decided to start hunting together in 2020. We had 3 successful years hunting together and went on some good trips, but I had a limit of about 3 days with him at a time. I had never met somebody so bent on just being a contrarian just for the sake of being a contrarian. If I wanted to glass, he wanted to still hunt where I was gonna glass. If I had new binos, he had newer ones that were better. I had a browning rifle at the time and he made it clear that his tikka was better. When I got a tikka down the road, his tikka was automatically better because he had paid less for it. The worst part was when he would ask for advice or an opinion on a tactic or piece of gear, to which I would provide an answer, and he would then take the opportunity to explain why my answer was wrong and how he had already decided to do this other thing instead. Everything with him was a you-know-what measuring contest, and his opinion was always the correct route, no matter what. After 3 years, culminating in an excruciatingly cold and miserable Colorado 3rd season tag, I decided I was done. My dad’s work situation had changed and he was hunting more, as were my brothers. So I cut ties with that guy and have only hunted with family since. Success rates have increased, frustration levels have decreased, and overall enjoyment of every tag and season since has been exponentially better.
Good hunting partners are hard to find, and putting up with a crappy one only leads to burnout.
