Not a good start

[rnjwildhoghunts]

I will add one thing then let this post rest, the opportunity was there, but considering that opportunity or no opportunity, shot or no shot, he brought crackers and cheese for the whole so we catered to him all weekend as he stated and we still offered him a second hunt at a reduced price.

 

[Cold1nhand]

If the hog made stops at 90 and 120 yards why not take a shot then? And when you made the statement, "This has discouraged me on paying to hunt on private land. I can go have unsuccessful hunts on public land right out in our mountains here." That last sentence in my book is a slam against any guide or outfitter. And by what I read and Randy's reply I would say that you are a novice hunter, and may have had some unreal expectations. Most only post the successful hunts, unless they are telling us of the hunting experiences they shared with family and friends. If your intention was just to report that you had no luck then you should have left those last sentences out. I also believe that this is only one of two or three weekends where someone didn't bring a hog off that ranch. And the others would be the first to admit that the reason that didn't was because of an error on their part. I do see where you said that they took great care of you and fed you. That was great, but those last sentences killed anything nice you had wanted to say about their operation. That and the fact you implied that you weren't given a genuine shot opportunity. If that hog was high tailing it out of there it would not have stopped twice.

 

[Rancho Loco]

Nothing good coming from a thread like this...

 

[Flatbroke]

Answered my question by viewing the website, very nice by the way.

 

[HOGHUNTER714]

QUOTE (Rancho Loco @ Jul 19 2008, 06:00 AM) http://index.php?act=findpost&pid=1017582

Nothing good coming from a thread like this...

Agreed...This one should rest...

 

[Land Cruiser]

SBOldman,

Hey mate, don't get discouraged. Think of it this way - hunting is a lot of hard work and some luck. I think you've earned major luck points on this hunt (they accumulate), besides you've learned a lot just by being out there and hunting with pro's. You'll cash out sooner or later and trust me it will be the best feeling.

Good luck and if I were in your shoes I'd give this outfit another chance. For once it will be cheaper than going elsewhere, right?

 

[JNDEER]

sorry to hear about your hunt, but that is hunting....whether you are going private or public....it cost MONEY........

i will add one thing: be careful with what you post in regards to "chambering a round then jumping out of the jeep".....it is illegal to have a loaded weapon in any vehicle regardless if public or private.

 

[oneshothunter]

I will ad this sorry for the not coming home with a hog .. i paided for 2 hunts with a outfit.. 1000. <2hunts>and seen hogs on the second trip .. one arrow fired and no hogs taken from myself or my buddy he has gone 4 times with the outfitter and same thing no hogs .. it sucks but im wiser about things ..the amount of money spent on 4 trips to FHL with no pigs taken you can go one trip . to a good outfitter.. dont get to turned off by private land deals ..my 3rd paid trip <first ever rifle hunt > was the funnest hunt tom willoughby is one of the best guides out there its a fast paste running and gunning hunt and will go back again just my 2 cents one day i will try RNJ people from the posts they seam like goood guys

 

[bpnclark]

SBOldMan – Better luck next time. It happens to all of us. I have been “Skunked” on guided hunts before; it’s all part of hunting. If this has “discouraged you on paying to hunt on private land” I’m assuming you haven’t been hunting long.

 

[Family Tradition]

I think posts like this are a good education for people about what can happen on ANY hunt.

Stuff happens and the guy is a new hunter.

Show me a hog at 3 hundo when I'm paying 600 bucks to be there and its dead, thats just me.

I'm not going to go into any of the specs of this hunt because I wasn't there.

BUT, I'll say now its never a good idea to post up a story like this with dollar amounts attached.
I drove 600 miles this weekend to go look at a forkie that I wouldn't shoot............
Is that the goal? No.
The best result was what I got.
I had a blast, ate well, shot the bull, looked at a part of the world I'd never been in and met a JHO member for the first time in person and had a blast...........oh and looked at some critters. Money cant change that.

PS:No matter how much you spent, you should still tip your guide/guides with or without a kill. Sounds like they earned their keep and went above and beyond what many here myself included would expect with my 20+ years of hunting.

lick your wounds and get back out.........or not.........Hunting, its not easy or cheap. Only you can decide what makes a hunt a success. Maybe you can look at what you learned as a introduction to hog hunting 101. If so you got a good deal as you learn more from failed hunts that hunts when you kill and go home early.

Just my .02 and I'm no pro

Mark

 

[Cold1nhand]

Well put Mark and I couldn't agree with you more.

 

[SJ Hoghunter]

Yikes...sorry that expectations were missed here. Having hunted with RNJ (sucessfully) I am surprised by some of your statements. From all that was posted it sounds like you were less than prepared for the hunt and maybe had exectations of sucess that were off base. Someone here posted that it is called hunting and not killing for a reason. Enjoy the time during the hunt...the spotting, stalking, etc...that's really the good stuff anyway. I can cartainly understand your disappointment coming away empty handed. Use the experience as a whole to prepare for the next hunt, equipment and supplies to bring, state of mind, etc. RNJ are good guys...get back out there with them and enjoy.

SJ

 

[UPER]

Good post SBOLDMAN from a newcomers point of view just because you pay does not mean sucess everytime. Sounds like a class outfit you were with. Sorry a few folks here dogpiled you before you got your point across, tough crowd here sometimes.
Cheers......

 

[Family Tradition]

Well everybody loves a good dogpile once and a while

SBOLDMAN, I meant no offence and hope you dont take it. Just trying to pass on some info and insite.

For the record my first and worst ever guided hunt for hogs ended with me killing a hog so its not always a kill that defines a hunt.

Maybe you could make a pig-o-rama at Tejon and hook up for part of a day with one of the JHO crew.

From what guys say its a ton of fun, lots of hogs and maybe you wont feel the pressure of being on a fully guided hunt.

That said I would jump on the 400 backup hunt, thats more than fair in todays market.

FT

 

[tmoniz]

I don't understand why this story was even told here. Maybe there is an underlying motive.
I've been on many many guided hunts (not for pigs) where some hunter screwed the pooch.
They have only themselves to blame.
They (the hunters) come in ill prepared, out of shape, and unskilled.
Going on guided hunts does not assure the client hunter of quick success.
When I went on my first guided hunt I was told by many experienced hunters to be prepared. Follow instructions.
And expect nothing but the worst.

 

[UPER]

Nah no underlying motive just a new guy posting up on his first hunt that's all, maybe just in a way were not used to hearing about.

 

[bpnclark]

Just because someone did not get their animal doesn’t mean they are out of shape, ill prepared or unskilled, and it doesn’t mean the Guide was bad or was the problem. Sometimes you just don’t get a shot. That’s hunting.

I don’t think SBOldMan meant any harm in his post (he probably should have left some sentences out of his first post). And I think this could help out some new hunters. A lot of people think that a guided hunt is a “Slam Dunk”. I know I did. But I had to go all the way to Kodiak to learn that lesson.

 

[Family Tradition]

If its a slam dunk its not a real hunt, PERIOD.

Still a hard lesson to learn.

FT

 

[BackCountryHNTR]

This is a good opportunity to learn, specially for some of us that have never being on a guided hunt. I really like some of the things said here:

“If you judge the quality of your hunting experience by the amount of money you had to spend, you are missing the point”
-SDHNTR

“Hunting is a lot of hard work and some luck.”
-Knifenut

“Lick your wounds and get back out.........or not.........Hunting, its not easy or cheap. Only you can decide what makes a hunt a success…you learn more from failed hunts that hunts when you kill and go home early.”
-Family Tradition

“On my first guided hunt I was told by many experienced hunters to be prepared. Follow instructions and expect nothing but the worst”
-tmoniz

“Just because someone did not get their animal doesn’t mean they are out of shape, ill prepared or unskilled, and it doesn’t mean the Guide was bad or was the problem. Sometimes you just don’t get a shot. That’s hunting.”
-bpnclark

 

[tmoniz]

I always went into a guided hunt with no expectations. Clear your mind so to speak even though you're amped about the hunt.