Guided hunts - are prices to high?

[jpichler]

Please share your opinion and comments on the following topic. And don’t be shy, I am expecting some heated discussion on this topic especially from businesses running these types of operations.

“Has prices for guided hunts on private land gone to far” don’t get me wrong I am a firm believer of free markets and if the current price level for guided hunts $600-$1000 is what hunters are shelling out so be it.

I don’t know about most of you, maybe you are independent wealthy but that is some serious $$$ for one weekend (that might be over in the first few hours)

Are pigs on private land that scarce or is it that insurance has become so expensive that to break even you need to charge those amounts?

Me personally I will not pay $600-700 for a guided hunt, it simply does not sit well with me when I can buy say a gun for the same amount, if the prices were around $300-400 then yes.

Anyway I am just sitting here (in the rain) pondering these questions.

Share your thoughts and don’t worry I am wearing my flame retardant suit ;-)

--JP

 

[upper]

JPICHLER,Those prices are ony too high if you don't want to pay that much.It is all relative.I myself would ony pay for hunts such as Choppers and Tehon as the place to stay or camp has worth.And rember a new gun is worthless unless you can shoot something with it,Good luck Upper

 

[7magHunter]

QUOTE (jpichler @ Jan 4 2008, 04:23 PM)

Please share your opinion and comments on the following topic. And don’t be shy, I am expecting some heated discussion on this topic especially from businesses running these types of operations.

“Has prices for guided hunts on private land gone to far” don’t get me wrong I am a firm believer of free markets and if the current price level for guided hunts $600-$1000 is what hunters are shelling out so be it.

I don’t know about most of you, maybe you are independent wealthy but that is some serious $$$ for one weekend (that might be over in the first few hours)

Are pigs on private land that scarce or is it that insurance has become so expensive that to break even you need to charge those amounts?

Me personally I will not pay $600-700 for a guided hunt, it simply does not sit well with me when I can buy say a gun for the same amount, if the prices were around $300-400 then yes.

Anyway I am just sitting here (in the rain) pondering these questions.

Share your thoughts and don’t worry I am wearing my flame retardant suit ;-)

--JP

I pull a similar question a few years ago and I got shot from a lot of members trough the computer screen!
so here we go again, I'm glad I'm not the one who started this thread!

QUOTE

“Has prices for guided hunts on private land gone to far”

YES
QUOTE

I don’t know about most of you, maybe you are independent wealthy but that is some serious $$$ for one weekend (that might be over in the first few hours)

I agree!
QUOTE

Me personally I will not pay $600-700 for a guided hunt, it simply does not sit well with me when I can buy say a gun for the same amount, if the prices were around $300-400 then yes.

I honestly believe that most pig hunts are overpriced in this State, but is a big business, this amount of cash will buy me a new rifle or an Elk tag in Colo.
But we can complain ol year and it is what it is, like gas prices, I don't like to pay $3.50 a gallon but do I have a choice?
For me is pay $500- 700 or don't hunt at all I take door number 2.
Now the big question is who set these prices so high and why?

 

[ksberry209]

I hate paying $3+ for gas but if you want to drive then......

I am also a fan of a free market and if people are willing to pay $600+ to hunt then it is what it is (I hate that saying too). Personally I can't afford to pay that much for a hunt but when I think about the amount of time and gas I spend going into the field and coming home with an empty ice chest it does start to make me think. Probably the main reason I like to hunt and fish is because it gets me outside. I enjoy it more than shooting although I would like to "feed the family" sometimes. Since I am a rookie to the hunting world my learning curve is HUGE and I have yet to harvest any big game and I am really starting to believe that guided hunts on private land are the way to go at least in CA but the cost has limited me to enjoy my toys.

Short answer...Yes they are too expensive but I do not want to be a hypocrite so if that is what the market will bear then I guess not.

Upper does have a great point…”a new gun is worthless unless you can shoot something with it”

 

[Common Sense]

It is too high for me; but if the guide stays busy at those rates, why would he lower the rates?

 

[7magHunter]

Let's be fair there are big expenses for the guides and property owners too!
I'm not inform about but I'm sure the guide license and liability insurance must be expensive.
plus all the services they must provide.
So I can't really do the math and confirm if ol these expenses equals $500-700 a pig ?
We need to compare the prices from 10 to 20 years ago to see if the increase is reasonable!

 

[Speckmisser]

I'll save some effort and assure you that the guide's expenses are NOT $600 a pig... or they wouldn't be in business. They make money, but you're not gonna find many rich hunting guides either.

But you're right. There are significant expenses associated with guiding... especially liability insurance. Vehicle costs (fuel, wear and tear, etc.) add up, and there's the lease arrangement that usually takes a bite out of that $600 too.

From what I've been told (I wasn't in CA then), 15 or 20 years ago you could hunt pigs just about for free. Farmers wanted them gone. The realization that pigs are a "cash crop" didn't seem to sink in until relatively recently. The fast rise in prices has been a direct response to the increase in the market... pigs suddenly became the second most popular game animal in CA, and everybody from ranchers to guides to the DFG have taken advantage of that to get their cut of the pie. The price is probably going to continue to rise a bit more before it hits the ceiling.

It's all about what the market will bear.

And please don't anyone take this wrong, but...

Going on a guided hunt has always been a benefit of the priviledged classes... it's a luxury. The cost of a guided hunt has always been out of reach of "the little guy". Nothing has changed there.

 

[hatchet1]

pretty simple, if your willing to pay it,there gonna charge it

 

[7magHunter]

If what Speckmisser said is accurate, I think we gonna see higher prices in the future, because there's a huge demand to hunt pigs everyone is cashing in, good for business but bad for the average low budget hunter!
I just gonna sit and wait for the prices to come down, ohh never mind I thought we were talking about Real Estate!

 

[sancho]

running around the wilderness looking at tons of pig sign but zero pigs can get old really quick. i think every once in awhile, ponying up some cash to get onto some quality area is good money spent. i think prices will creep up. the only thing that will keep it from going haywire, is the fact that pigs jack things up.

i think while i am relatively young, paying the occasional trepass fee is ok.

 

[jpichler]

paying a trespass fee i would be ok with, i too spend lots of time hiking up and down hills finding a few pig signs here and there *BUT* never the acctual pigs...maybe they are nocturnal or maybe i am just not smart enough, anywho i would not mind paying some land owner $300 for access to pig inhabited country for a weekend, no guide and sign a waiver releasing the owner of any liability. But even that is virtually impossible to find.

I am not adversed to paying, i just feel the current cost is to high for what you get.

--JP

 

[spectr17]

QUOTE

I'll save some effort and assure you that the guide's expenses are NOT $600 a pig... or they wouldn't be in business. They make money, but you're not gonna find many rich hunting guides either.

I dunno, I got cellphone pics of Chopper wonderin around with a diamond encrusted cane and purple pimp hat to go with it. Swear.

 

[sidepass]

Its not uncommon to spend about $250.00 a day on vacation and many of us do it.Hotel alone might cost that.$500.00 for 2 days of vacation doesn't seem unreasonable. And $250.00 a day doesn't seem an unreasonable daily wage for a man or woman, subtract liability insurance, ranchers take ,fuel and wear and tear on guides truck ,self employment tax . Starting to sound like a bargain. I work in the intertainment industry and 2 orchestra seats cost $300.00 for 3 hrs of entertainment,throw in dinner for those same 2 people. Another $100.00, parking $20.00, baby sitter $50.00 ,bridge toll $4.00. That pig hunt really sounds like a deal now! And yes i'd love to pay a simple tresspass fee of a couple hundred bucks to help a landowner rid himself of some pest, ain't going to happen.

JMO, sidepass

 

[bpnclark]

$600 for a hog is high but what are you going to do? All prices are going up. (Elk, Deer, Antelope…) I would never pay $1000 for a hog hunt, but I just paid $700 to go to TX and shoot 2 Javenlinas in Feb. With hog hunting in CA becoming more popular (and probably the most guided animal to hunt in CA) I can’t see the prices coming down, ever.

$600-$800 for a weekend hunt with lodging is about right. They are just pigs. There not worth a $1000.

 

[chickenfried]

Just my uneducated opinion. Yes, guided hunts are too expensive to be attractive to me. I don't really like the idea of a guided hunt in the first place, kinda feels it makes me more of a shooter than a hunter. But I also realize I live in an urban area without any areas to hunt close by so the kind of hunting I daydream about might not be possible for me. If the price were a little cheaper it would be easier to get over my gut reaction to guided hunts.

Even if I was willing to shell out the dough for the guided hunt. It's hard for me to think of a hog hunt as worth a premium price. It seems for a little more I could hunt a more exotic/sought after game animal than a hog.

 

[upper]

Chickenfried,your gut is smarter than you think

Upper

 

[7magHunter]

QUOTE (bpnclark @ Jan 4 2008, 09:17 PM)

$600 for a hog is high but what are you going to do? All prices are going up. (Elk, Deer, Antelope…) I would never pay $1000 for a hog hunt, but I just paid $700 to go to TX and shoot 2 Javenlinas in Feb. With hog hunting in CA becoming more popular (and probably the most guided animal to hunt in CA) I can’t see the prices coming down, ever.

$600-$800 for a weekend hunt with lodging is about right. They are just pigs. There not worth a $1000.

my

I completely agree!
There's not many choices left.
I would probably just show up at the rancher's land and offer him a couple hundred bucks to let me in and shot some pigs on his property if he say no I might keep trying till someone welcome me, but that's just an idea.

 

[upper]

BPNCLARK,What does it cost to shoot one of those Wharty's?I can't believe your last post,JJJEEEEESE EE Upper

 

[Batch61]

While the prices are a bit much for us average working stiffs, it's unfortunately the only game in town. What pisses me off is the so called Trophy fees. These aren't Deer or Elk these are considered nuisance animals. Thats why theres no limit. Only reason tags are so hi is the number of people willing to pay for them.

 

[bpnclark]

Upper – It cost me $350 to hunt a warthog and $900 for a full size mount. Try getting that done in CA. The only problem is the $2000 plane ride to get there.

Here was the last hog I paid for in CA. $400. The friend I went with, wanted to do it again but I couldn’t see paying $800 for another one. I’d rather go out of state and hunt something new.

[attachment=48169:hog.jpg]

Batch61 is absolutely right about “trophy” fees. When Boone & Crockett, SCI, or P&Y start measuring tusk, then guides should ask for trophy fees.