What would you do??? Outfitted hunt

[ChrisS]

Holy shit this whole conversation makes me sad for “hunting”...

The day I have to worry about whether I booked the 160” trailcam treestand vs the 140” treestand is the day I stop ******* paying people to sit in their treestands.

I'm not going to post anything more than agreeing with this and that the attitudes in this thread are why I think whitetail hunting community is one of the worst for the sport of hunting.

 

[cmahoney]

Do they offer remote hunts?


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[ddavis_1313]

Do they offer remote hunts?


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Remote hunts meaning?


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[Mike Islander]

I'm not going to post anything more than agreeing with this and that the attitudes in this thread are why I think whitetail hunting community is one of the worst for the sport of hunting.

That's a pretty broad brush you are using to paint an extremely varied "community".

 

[ddavis_1313]

I'm not going to post anything more than agreeing with this and that the attitudes in this thread are why I think whitetail hunting community is one of the worst for the sport of hunting.

I’ll agree for the most part. Mainly Bc I have time to go hunt when I want most of the time. However, without spending money and due to where I live, bigger deer aren’t possible. I’m happy as can be with the animals I have taken and will continue to take where I hunt. However, I’ve killed 140’s. My wife has too. So we are spending money to have the best chance possible at a deer bigger than what we have access to. One of three things will happen. We will not Kill. We will kill a “shooter” or we will kill a bigger deer which is what we want. This ain’t about disappointment of only killing a 140. There are only so many deer to hunt that fit what we would love to harvest. The more pressure and the more of these that are taken before we arrive, the lower our odds go. (Our meaning everyone going). But..... I have spoke with the person I booked with and this shouldn’t and isn’t going to be an issue. So, that’s where it is. I will suck it up, go hunt, and we will try to make the best out of it and still be happy to tag a deer regardless of size. I’m sure those corn and soybean eating deer up north taste much better than these east Texas deer. Lol


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[Trial153]

I'm not going to post anything more than agreeing with this and that the attitudes in this thread are why I think whitetail hunting community is one of the worst for the sport of hunting.

A lot of truth to be said about this. All too often hunters act likely greedy bastards.

 

[ddavis_1313]

A lot of truth to be said about this. All too often hunters act likely greedy bastards.

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[dustin862]

That’s a a tough scenario.


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[banded_drake]

I don't hunt with outfitters that hunt during or before paying clients do.

This. Funny how bone growth on a deer can really highlight the character of a man. Sucks to have to pay for that

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[Okhotnik]

The whole idea that the order you booked would warrant preferred treatment is ridiculous.

Yep

That’s a bad sign there. Especially if everyone paid the same. Expect a lot of discord during the hunt.

As mentioned not very good hunt dates. Hope they gave your group a great deal on the hunts. I’d be in my stand all day

 

[92xj]

What happens when a 200" walks past the 160 or 140 that the trail cam is magically holding in place at the stands and you shoot it? Still going to be mad?
Is this a fenced in hunt? I'm so confused on buying rights to hunt a stand that has a certain deer on camera during the summer and expecting that deer to be there during a week in late October.

 

[Rich M]

Aint nothing wrong with first come first served - You like to give away your spot at the deli counter? The guy who got there after you is gonna pay the same $12/pound for that meat too. It is a fair way to do stuff - johnny paid first, he gets to choose first... It isn't a family gathering or a hunting club to draw straws at. You show/sign up last, you go last - easy to understand.

All kinds of crazy crap with the guiding community. It is all about money, not about anything else. The use the antler as a tease - you might get a chance at bullwinkle here. Johnny got a 180-inch out of that tree last year. It does add some excitement to the hunt, but doesn't work when 2 guides give diff stories to the same guy (happened to me, sucks to know you are getting scammed).

I do agree that OP will be better without complaining or making a stink. The less disturbance to the pond, the better.

 

[Yooper]

I'm so confused on buying rights to hunt a stand that has a certain deer on camera during the summer and expecting that deer to be there during a week in late October.

This is exactly what I've been thinking all along as well. It's months away unless like mentioned it's some kind of high fence outfit.

 

[jspradley]

Sounds a little sketchy but a lot of what goes on with whitetail hunting can be sketchy...

If you agreed to pick based on order of booking then that should be upheld but other than that it sounds like it should have raised some red flags from the get-go

 

[JP100]

1) is there a contract? what does it say?

2) you've already paid your cash unlikely to get it back

3) go along and enjoy it and see what happens

4) trail cam pics probably from a different area anyways haha

Hopefully this isnt the start of the shit show haha

 

[Gatorgrizz27]

Holy shit this whole conversation makes me sad for “hunting”...

The day I have to worry about whether I booked the 160” trailcam treestand vs the 140” treestand is the day I stop ******* paying people to sit in their treestands.

No kidding. Sounds like a 40 acre high fence place in Texas where the deer have ear tags.

 

[Gatorgrizz27]

If it were me I would have paid with a charge card so i could submit a chargeback request, find a breach in the contract and walk away with a lesson.

Agreed. Dispute it with the CC company. You weren’t going to get what you paid for. If you sent him a check, SOL.

 

[Boarmaster]

That doesn't sound like an outfitter. Sounds like a hunting host getting a free hunt for dragging y'all around to shoot culls. I'm a big proponent of always being up front about what I expect for my money. I say tell the main guy your concerns and your backup plan is name and shame. If you're already dissatisfied and you haven't even left the house yet, how much worse is this goat-rope going to get?

I agree right here. This is a part of hunting that I hate to hear about

 

[ddavis_1313]

So I thought I’d give an update. I’m sure most of you have forgotten about this thread but some may be curious how it went. To sum it up, I probably should have stayed home.

Wife and I drove 18 hours to south East Ohio non stop and arrived at 2 pm on the 16th. Weather was great. Cold and cloudy. We weren’t able to hunt the first afternoon Bc technically ate hunt didn’t start until the 17th. Bummer Bc there was a shooter on cam that afternoon. We went with all intentions of sitting all day every day, or at least 4 out of 5 days as per what was discussed with the main outfitter in Ohio. He didn’t want a lot of traffic in and out of the stands every day which I can understand and why we agreed to sit all day if we wanted to hunt mornings. My wife brought food to prep for all day sits. Upon arriving, we were told that we could not hunt mornings Bc we may bump deer off the feed piles. I wasn’t too happy about it but there was nothing I could do.

Day 1. I take my wife to a 300 acre farm and put her in a tree that the outfitter suggested one of us hunt. He had a corn pile in front of the stand and instructed us that it was 30 yards to the corn. I then climbed into my tree only to have my wife text shortly after to tell me she ranged the corn and it was not 30 yards but 41.... A little far in my mind for shooting an arrow at a deer. Right before dark she had a shooter walk by at 20 yards and stopped at the corn with his but facing her. As she drew back, he turned and took 2 steps and was gone into the trees. I’m sure you are wondering why she didn’t shoot him at 20. Well, that’s Bc the outfitter did not bother trimming any limbs in the saplings in front of This stand. 40 yards was the closest shot she had period.... again, not happy at all....

The yellow line is where the corn was. As you can see, not much of a shot opportunity...

I saw a few doe and my stand had clear shots at three angles with the furthest being 20. So for the rest of the week I had my wife sit where I was and I sat the stand with the long shot.

Day 2 was slow. I saw doe and a few spikes. Wife saw doe and a few small bucks. After the hunt I told the outfitter that the corn he put out was pretty much gone and that what ever was left would probably be gone by morning. He said if it was gone on day 3, he would put more out in day 4. Again, I reiterated that the corn was going to be gone by morning and nothing else was said. Also, two of his game cams on the farm had cards that were full so they were no longer taking pics and sending them to his phone. I asked for a new card and I would happily change it out for him. Was told he would get me one and never received one.

Day 3 was slow again. Less deer seen and the ones that came in did so right before dark but didn’t hang around from lack of corn. I did manage to remember I had a hand saw with me and was able to climb the saplings to trim 2 limbs. It was time consuming and took 5 mins.... (sarcasm) And when I climbed into the stand to see my new view, I was even more frustrated that my wife missed out on killing the deer on the first day....

After not getting a game card, I pulled one of mine out of my digital camera and used it in my wife’s set for the rest of the week so I could at least see what she’s seeing and tell her what was a “legal” deer per the rules that she could shoot other than the pics we received of the target bucks that were in the area. Again I instructed the outfitter that there was no corn and he said he would handle it.

Day 4. Hanging out at the lodge I over heard a guy asking about moving stands. Apparently he hadn’t seen anything other than a doe or 2. The outfitter showed him an area close to where he was hunting and told him it may be worth trying. Then said there was a stand and a ladder outside and if he wanted to hunt that stand that day, he should probably go hang it now or else he’s goi to he making too much noise.... I thought that was a bit odd for paying guests to hang their own stands. I know I’d have been fine doing it myself but still kind of expect those things to be done when paying for a hunt. Shortly after, I was told there were 6 bags of corn outside waiting on me to put out and I too may want to leave early so I can put out corn and hunt. The farm we were on was 35 mins from the lodge. So my wife and I scrambled to get showers and dressed so we could get to the farm by 2:30 and get corn out and then sit till dark with it sunny and 75. How fun... I rebated both of our spots and again we saw deer. Doe, spikes, and she saw two 6’s spar briefly and a small 8. I put corn closer to my set and would you believe that every deer that came out offered me a broadside shot at 20-26 yards??? Who would have thought?

I did get some exciting news, I would be taken out to hunt on the last morning if I wanted to go. Of course I did! I came to hunt and had been bugging the outfitter for the entire week to hunt mornings! So 4:30 was the agreed time and it was off to bed.




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[ddavis_1313]

Day 5. I’ll title this day as “Joke’s on Me”.
Up at 4:30. Come out and outfitter is awake. I grab clean clothes out of the dryer and am about to get dressed only to have the outfitter tell em there is a shooter on one of the stands currently and that it would be a good idea not to go. WHAT?!?. I just got 4 hours of sleep and am mid dressed to leave. I asked which stand and he tells me. So I said, great. That stand is plenty far enough away and I won’t be going past it anyways. He again says there is no way to know what’s on the stand Bc his cell cam isn’t sending pics. I remind him that he has three different bait piles on that stand with a cam on one. Even if the cam was working you wouldn’t know what’s on the corn in the tree line. He then says that the best compromise is to go in at 8 when I can see what’s on the bait piles before I get there. Lolololol. You mean go hunt at 8. When it’s warm. And there has only been a couple deer pics all week past 7:30 and they were of a doe and yearling.... nah, I’m good. I’m going back to bed... so I did.

Afternoon. “The Joke’s Grand Finale”

My wife and I load up and head to the farm and arrive at 3:30. There was a small front blowing in that night and rain expected to start around 8:30 pm. So we at least got some excitement thinking that deer may move and one of the shooters was around that morning. As we drove in to the farm and were headed to our parking spot next to a small cabin on a little river, we rounded a corner in the crp field to find two trucks parked in the tree line along the rivers edge. Now I’m confused... I knew there wasn’t supposed to be anyone there. I drive a little further and spot tents and tarps set up on the rivers edge and see fishing poles out in the water.

After taking pics, I send them to the outfitter and put my wife in the tree she’s hunted all week. Outfitter calls and says no one is supposed to be there so go back and tell them they need to leave and call him so he could talk to them. I head down and they even have a canoe, lights, food, grill, and what I’m sure is a small mason jar of shine. Lol. Great.... I get the outfitter on the phone and he talks to the guys. Apparently, the land owner gave these guys permission to set up and camp there for the next 2 days!!! 600 yards up wind from my stand on the river that the main target buck cruises right at dark. FML!

I ask the outfitter what we can do to rectify the situation and he says go hunt the third stand that is on the farm. I asked “you mean the one that hasn’t had corn in 3 days and that you’ve only gotten pics of doe and small bucks?” His reply, “yes, it’s better than where you are”. Nothing else is said.... No offer to remedy it in any other way... no offer to stay and hunt one more day. NOTHING! NOT EVEN AN APOLOGY!!! Wife saw doe and small bucks, I saw a couple doe and my first ever branches antler deer in Ohio! A 4 point! All of which came from the opposite direction of the camp and all of which were nervous and looking that way.... three doe that crossed the river every day never showed up. Imagine that. And we got back to to lodge, packed, and got the hell out.

We stopped in Nashville on the way home to Texas and stayed the night so we could eat at a place she found that had incredible breakfast biscuits and then went to the country music hall of fame. We gladly drove 5 hours through rain until 2 am and then paid $150 for a room so we didn’t have to be at the lodge another minute.

My wife had fun for the most part while hunting. It was her first bow hunt and she is now addicted. She was beside herself by having 8 deer under her at one time. She gained a lot of confidence and said she prescribed “in her mind” on ever deer as to when she would draw and thought through scenarios as to when to shoot and when not to. So for that I’m proud of her. She never got busted although she had 3 doe that came out every day and stared into her tree. They did the same to me on day one so apparently they have busted a hunter there before. She was pissed about the 40 yard stand as well as the campers and felt like success wasn’t the main concern with the outfitter. I’d have to agree based on the stand she sat in.

Only one other guy saw a shooter. It was the secondary outfitter that put the trip together. Apparently it was a pretty big deer. He guessed the deers range at 25 yards and shot between the deers legs. After ranging, the deer was at 42. Why someone doesn’t pre range right after they get in a stand is beyond me? Especially when you use a single pin sight.... Hell, I didn’t even have to tell my wife. It was already done when I remembered and texted her to do so. In fact, when she moved on day 2, I told her use the 20 pin on everything Bc that’s the furthest shot. She still ranged and could tell you to the tenth what every bait pile was and her furthest 3 shots...



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