I've always made my own hunts as a point of pride. I believe that there are very few areas that a man, given enough time, cannot make his way into and make a good hunt.
A good guide saves this time and can/should improve you odds.
I've only hunted with three guides in the past. One was of the finest stuff and a pleasure to be around. He was selling the "sizzle" as well as the "steak" so to speak. I didn't mind getting out my wallet that day. The second was a good enough hunter and fimilar with the area (considering he lived there his whole life he better be) but he was so full of himself it made it a bit difficult to enjoy the hunt. In spite of this I would still jump in a boat with him again.
The third is was a piece of work.......A buddy of mine dug this guy up and we booked a hunt with him for a spring goose hunt in MO. This was done as a time saver. I was born and raised in SD and now live in IA. I've hunted these birds all my life. I own the usual ungodly amount of shells and rags. My buddy booked the fellow to save time on scouting/finding a field, setting up...etc. This guy was from WI. Not the hub of snow goose hunting. The hunt was a joke. We had horrible wheather and everything went south over night. The next morning we found ourselves looking at a water set with decoys froze in upside down.....rags that had half frozen to the ground. Some of these had torn free and now looked like laundry in hanging on a line. I didn't think he was serious. To make a long story short. Only one flock of snows looked at us all morning. These didn't get under 100 yards to us. HE CALLED THE SHOT!!!! I didn't shoot.
NOW.......I know a guide doesn't control the wheather or the birds. He has to book hunts in advance to make a living. Is it out of line to ask to split the difference on the fee for a hunt that is obviously not going to be productive? I expect a good job from my mechanic, and I expect proper service from the man working on the addition to my house. Should I have to accept a pair of raised arms and a laughing "thats hunting" as an excuse for poor service.
Please don't tell me that we should have researched this guide a bit further....that is obvious. I'm asking what you reputable guides out there do when faced with a hunt that has tanked.
A good guide saves this time and can/should improve you odds.
I've only hunted with three guides in the past. One was of the finest stuff and a pleasure to be around. He was selling the "sizzle" as well as the "steak" so to speak. I didn't mind getting out my wallet that day. The second was a good enough hunter and fimilar with the area (considering he lived there his whole life he better be) but he was so full of himself it made it a bit difficult to enjoy the hunt. In spite of this I would still jump in a boat with him again.
The third is was a piece of work.......A buddy of mine dug this guy up and we booked a hunt with him for a spring goose hunt in MO. This was done as a time saver. I was born and raised in SD and now live in IA. I've hunted these birds all my life. I own the usual ungodly amount of shells and rags. My buddy booked the fellow to save time on scouting/finding a field, setting up...etc. This guy was from WI. Not the hub of snow goose hunting. The hunt was a joke. We had horrible wheather and everything went south over night. The next morning we found ourselves looking at a water set with decoys froze in upside down.....rags that had half frozen to the ground. Some of these had torn free and now looked like laundry in hanging on a line. I didn't think he was serious. To make a long story short. Only one flock of snows looked at us all morning. These didn't get under 100 yards to us. HE CALLED THE SHOT!!!! I didn't shoot.
NOW.......I know a guide doesn't control the wheather or the birds. He has to book hunts in advance to make a living. Is it out of line to ask to split the difference on the fee for a hunt that is obviously not going to be productive? I expect a good job from my mechanic, and I expect proper service from the man working on the addition to my house. Should I have to accept a pair of raised arms and a laughing "thats hunting" as an excuse for poor service.
Please don't tell me that we should have researched this guide a bit further....that is obvious. I'm asking what you reputable guides out there do when faced with a hunt that has tanked.
