OUTFITTER COST

[YORT40]

I don't know about you, but I spend quite a bit of time watching the Outdoor or Mens channel checking out all the elk hunting I can. With that being said, I was curious to find out what is the average cost you would paid for a good guided Elk hunt. I am asking because after most of these shows, I get on the outfitters web site to check prices. Wow, some of these hunts take big cash, for example- Royal Rut Ranch in Utah. I saw a good hunt, went on line & found this:
Management Bull = $3,900.00
350 Bull = $6,000.00
400 Bull = $12,900.0
Over 400 Bull = $25,000.00

I always thought $2,500.00 would get a hunter a good Bull Hunt. Right now, I pay $1,000.00 for a cow hunt on private property. Are all these shows based on the High-end hunts only?

 

[tmoniz]

The camp I booked in 1988 was 2400.00 for 10 days. Got a real nice bull. Good guides, camp, grub. Very rugged terrain, but very rewarding hunt. That camp is now 3950.00 for 8 days. If I had the cash today I would book these guys in a heartbeat.

I'm seeing the average bull elk hunt ranging from 3500.00 to 4000.00 for 5 to 7 days lately. I do know some high rollers who have paid upwards of 20,000 for 390 to above 400 class bulls in Arizona and New Mexico. Two of the three I know have not done very well. I do not know if they were partially refunded for being unsuccessful.

There are a lot of good guide services out there. But there are some horror stories as well.

Right now I am researching unguided/trespass hunts for bull elk ranging from 1100.00 to about 1500.00. Some are tent wilderness drop camps and some are wilderness cabin hunts.

I get the feeling that guided hunts are priced according to where they hunt, the quality of the game available and whatever the market will bear.



wolverine creek

 

[300wby]

I really can’t stand the idea of an outfitter charging by the trophy score of the animal taken. What if you run into a major bull that’s a once in a lifetime kill but you would have to pass on it if you can’t afford $25,000? That's not outfitting that's profiteering. I'd just keep on searching for a proper outfitter. Sounds like they're simply after the rich guy that just bought his brand new Jarrett rifle and needs to get a mount to show his friends he's the ‘real deal’. 25k for an elk....even if I had that kinda money I would buy better hunts on other continents. That’s just me…

Forgot to mention cost. Me? I would be hard pressed to justify more than 4k for a fully outfitted hunt ANYWHERE for elk and MUCH less $ for a drop camp. Like tmoniz said the outfitter will charge whatever someone is willing to pay.

 

[YORT40]

I totally agree. If I was on a hunt which priced the Bull by size, I would spend more time asking the cost of the animal than trying to find it in my scope.

 

[AgentP]

I think the hunts that base their price on the size/score of the animal taken are on private land. It makes a little more sense there. They essentially "raised" the animal and have prevented others from taking it, reserving it for somebody who is willing to pay.

On a public land hunt, the guide should just be a guide and whatever you get the price should be the same. I'm not sure how they could legally do otherwise.

 

[tmoniz]

On my first guided hunt after we rode in in the dark to the base camp at dinner time a discussion broke out between the hunters and the guides. This big burly guide looked across the table at me and wanted to know what kind of animal I wanted to try for. I told him nothing less than a mature 6x6 or I'll be back next year. Everyone else just wanted any elk. He said he had honey holes for trophy hunts that were a bit more, but nevertheless he agreed that we could run into almost anything out there. He also had a policy. No bull, no pay. But if I missed or wounded and did not recover the animal, I still paid and it was a quick ride out of camp. We put in alot of miles over the first three days. Then he took me to a basin 15 miles from camp and when the sun broke out there they were.
I paid 2600 for that adventure. He came highly regarded by everyone in town.
The hard part about going guided is getting the right guide for the money. There are a lot of sharks out there. References are important along with the opinions of other guides. With the right guide you can get a real good bull for 4000 and down.

 

[Speckmisser]

Tmoniz nailed it!

Check references! Talk to your guide BEFORE you book, and do so as much as you think you need to in order to feel comfortable parting with your cash.

I would imagine $4k-$5k would put you in some of the best guided hunts in the country. I also know you can get good hunts for less, especially if you're not dead-set on shooting a trophy. $2500-$3000 ought to be about right for a good guided hunt (maybe 2 on 1), in many parts of elk country where you might only see raghorns or you could see the bull of a lifetime... all for the same price. Unfortunately, those prices are moving up.

I think the outfitters you see on the hunting shows are more of the exception, and are often ranched animals.. which is how they can guarantee a "400 class" bull. They know what they've got on the farm, and usually know about where to find him.

Those outfitters who "donate" hunts to the hunting shows are doing it because they know that this is awesome advertising. They don't worry too much about the guy who can't afford that $25K bull, because they only need to reach two or three rich guys to make their season.

 

[eddiehsf]

These are things I ask and do before booking a hunt.

I ask myself .... What type of Elk do I want? (Quality 330+BC type animal or just a Bull, Raghorn - 280 BC)

I ask myself What type of hunt do I want; Drop Camp or Fully Guide; Horse pack in or Drive in type camp)

I then find a area that will provide me with this type of Elk.

I then Contact the DFG and any Outfitter/Guide Org. In the state I am looking at.

I look through Magazines, Websites, and go to Shows and gather info on different guides.

I now ask the guides I like for a list of both Successfull and NON Successfull hunters. I ask for photos of Elk they took last year only.(Not Elk they shot 10 years ago or "their best ever"

I TELL the outfitter what I am looking for in the hunt and compare prices.

I put into account any price differences, if one is hunting Public vs Private or Tent camp vs bunk house.

I have found most outfitters charge the same amount for the same camp in the same area. If one is super low, I ask why???

One I my best hunt as for action and game was a Nevada Mule Deer hunt. I did not get a Buck, but I passed on some nice deer in the 170 - 180 BC class. I saw a huge 200+ BC buck on the second day and made a decision to only take him. I will and have gave nothing but praise about that outfitter. He did exactly what he said he would do and showed me some nice Bucks.

Eddiehsf

 

[tmoniz]

When I drew that Elk tag, I was flooded with brochures from dozens of guides and outfitters. I was overwhelmed. I called one outfitter who described a guided hunt out of Wilson Wyoming. About 1600. He said there would be about 12 hunters in camp with one guide per two hunters. And, by the way, you could drive back into Jackson at the end of the day if you felt like doing so.

I told him I had more of a wilderness, pack in hunt in mind. He referred me to Bob Johnson of Coulter Creek Outfitters which is now Wolverine Creek Outfitters.
He said that bob could get me on the bull I wanted. I had no BC score in mind, just a good mature bull.

I then drove to Jackson that August before the season and dropped his name. Everbody spoke highly of him and like wise his references. They said he was a bit rough around the edges but that he worked hard and had a very high success rate and a lot of repeat customers.

What made me book him was that all the previous years brochures were of bulls taken that exact year. Not from way back, but from that specific year.

It's tough to decide, especially with so much money on the line. The guys I know that have spent 4 times what I did have not gotten a bull as good as mine. I remind them of that every time we bump into each other.

 

[wmidbrook]

I have yet to go guided but have looked into prices because I'd like to at least do a drop camp or guided hunt one of these years in the not too distant future. There's little doubt in my mind that going with an outfitter certainly increases your success of bagging an animal or wallhanger. Plus, they have a lot of good pointers you probably won't pick up from huntin' videos and such.

I've seen archery elk drop camps from 1,000 on up and the guided hunts from around 2,500 on up.

DIY is a lot of fun and is still worth it, IMO. I've managed to get into elk every year I've been elk hunting DIY. But, I've gotten into decent units (or at least good areas in decent units) via buying landowner tags and through word-of-mouth and phone scouting.

I'm also using scouting services this year which is a nice happy medium for those who are comfortable with DIY and don't want to budget what it costs to go guided.

I'll probably go guided when I draw extremely long odds, dream tags or when I've got the budget to do a wilderness pack in hunt with horses.

 

[MJS-MI]

I am booked right now for Fall 2005 archery only hunt in Alberta. It is 12 day, 1on 1 with a world wide know guide. It is costing $4750. I did my homework on this and found out to be the best available at the time. They Elk up there aren't huge like in New Mexico, but I am just looking for a decent 6x6. A 5 day hunt in New Mexico 2 on 1 was $5000.

 

[outdoorplay]

I would check out Dark Timber Outfitters in Colorado, www.darktimberlodge.com

They are real hunters, the week need not apply.

mike

 

[tmoniz]

The Peace River area of Alberta has been well known for Elk. As far as "the weak need not apply" that goes with any pack in wilderness hunt anywhere. If you don't ride horses regularly then start. That's the worst of it. Getting your ankles, knees and ass in shape. Walk alot, go for hikes in local country and most important is shoot alot at the range from all positions. Guides hate a bad shot.

 

[Rancho Loco]

Originally posted by outdoorplay@Mar 10 2005, 09:51 AM
I would check out Dark Timber Outfitters in Colorado,

the week need not apply.

How'd Speckmisser get it so easy then?

I made those boys promise to work him a bit harder this year.

 

[Speckmisser]

Originally posted by outdoorplay@Mar 10 2005, 09:51 AM
I would check out Dark Timber Outfitters in Colorado, www.darktimberlodge.com

They are real hunters, the week need not apply.

mike

Hey Mike,

Do you know Rick personally? I'll be hunting with him in October (pending drawing, of course). I enjoyed talking to him, and it sounds like he's gonna do good things with the operation out there.

I hunted with Bruce Hyatt a couple years back, and it was a great time. However, I've since talked to a couple other folks, including BDB who went there on my recommendation, who found it to be less than one might hope for. Now that Rick's bought him out, I'm hoping his operation is as good as it sounds.

 

[BDB]

Originally posted by outdoorplay@Mar 10 2005, 09:51 AM
I would check out Dark Timber Outfitters in Colorado, www.darktimberlodge.com

They are real hunters, the week need not apply.

mike

I don't know how it will be with the new management but I did have some issues on mny trip. Like speck said, my experience in Oct 2004 was not quite what I was looking for. My bad I guess for not spending more time in research of the outfit and their typical hunting methods. Speck was there with only a couple of hunters. From what he told me it was more like what I was looking for and he had a great time.

I was there with 15 hunters in camp. It was too many for the 4 guides to handle IMO and most of what was done was drives. I'm not much on sitting 7 guys on a ridge and 8 guys sneaking through timber to them right at 1 minute past legal shooting time. Maybe at 10am or mid day but not right out of the gate. I also didn't like being pulled out of a prime hunting spot 1 hour before sunset because we had an hour and half walk back to the 4 wheelers. I had to protest on day two to actually hunt until dark and then walk out. Freindly protest mind you but I did have to speak up, I hate missing the "witching hour". Don't get me wrong, the people and guides were top notch people and I enjoyed my time there, just wasn't keen on some of the methods.

I saw 0 elk for 4.5 days of hunting. On the afternoon of the last day I convinced the guide to let me go off on my own to work down a ridge and he would get me 6 miles down at dark. I went off on my own and saw 4 cows. 1 5*5 was taken by 15 hunters for the week.

The key is the reasearch I guess. Every hunter is looking for something a little different, be very clear on what you are looking for up front.

 

[outdoorplay]

that did not sound like our trip, "I ho, I ho, a hiking I go,

and that is how we found our elk.

 

[tmoniz]

Outdoorplay.

Do you have photos of your Elk when you hunted with Dark Timber?

My last hunt with Wolverine Creek Outfitters out of Jackson Wyoming went like this.

Met the Outfitter at 4 am for breakfast. He sprung for it. Checked our licenses and conservation tags. We drove our vehicles to a ranch. The wranglers loaded our gear onto the mules. We rode 20 miles in to the base camp. There were only 2 guides, four hunters, 2 wranglers and a cook. We got up every morning at 4 am to a hot breakfast. Loaded up the horses and mules and rode another 10 miles east of the camp to a prime Elk area. We stopped hunting when the sun went down and rode back to camp in the dark. We hunted from a well kept cotton tent camp. The food was excellent and the tents had a wood burning stove. Very warm. On the 4th day of a ten day hunt we rode out at 2 am. The wranglers had prescouted and spent the night in an area with a large amount of elk. They rode back to camp and told the guides where the Elk had settled in.
We rode out in the dark for several miles til we came to a ridge. The one guide grabbed me and off we went on foot. We stopped and he blew a cow call. Several bulls responded. Their bugles sent a chill right up your spine. When the fog lifted they were on the side of a hill. I did my part as the guide expected. The horses and mules were packed with our Elk. The walk back was enjoyable even though it was long. I felt like I really had accomplished what I had dreamed about for many years. It was money well spent. The guides earned every penny.

4x4's and ATV's does not a wilderness Elk hunt make. Nor does a private room and shower. 15 hunters is 11 too many in one camp. That's a lot of doe to pocket at 2500 a head. And several 5 day hunts.


wolverine creek

 

[eddiehsf]

Hey BDB

Sounds like a bad deal, sorry that happend to you.

I have been on a few guided hunts, and have yet to have a bad one (knock on Wood)

Get all the info you can about last year, the rest is just history.

I now ask the guides I like for a list of both Successfull and NON Successfull hunters. I ask for photos of Elk they took last year only.(Not Elk they shot 10 years ago or "their best ever"

I TELL the outfitter what I am looking for in the hunt and compare prices.

I put into account any price differences, if one is hunting Public vs Private or Tent camp vs bunk house.

I have found most outfitters charge the same amount for the same camp in the same area. If one is super low, I ask why???

I know this is a repeat of my early post, but its your hard earned money so don't take any chances.

FYI: Blue Creek Outfitters in Colorado hunts unit 61 and 62. I have never hunted with them, but their name has came up from contacts on Monster Muley and other booking agents I know. (Remember Check them out First, Don't just trust me)

Good Luck

Eddiehsf

 

[scr83jp]

If you want really trophy elk contact the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona the tag a few yrs ago was about 40K+.When I spoke to them a yr or 2 ago they said they had done away with the 10K hunting fee and the 40K trophy fee combining them .