Hunting Partners/Family Friends

[mooretitan]

For those of you with true hunting partners, how and when did you guys meet up. For the life of me I can't find anyone that enjoys the outdoors like me and is a trustworthy person to be around. I really have tried over the years to put myself out there but it never seems to come together. I have kids and family that I enjoy spending time with but at some point family will out age themselves for certain types of hunting we enjoy. As I enter my 40's wondering if its ever going to happen. I don't let it slow me down to much but somebody to share a few long hikes and drives would be great. Couple guys to hang around a camp fire or help with a serious pack out.

I drew a OIL tag a few years ago and in the end I shared the hunt and scouting with my 60y old dad and 8 year old son. It was a great hunt and we put some serious work in but in the end I could not believe I could not find one other person to share this hunt with.

Anyways just wondering when and how some of you met your hunting partners. I know part of the reason is how I hunt is not for many people and I try to hold a little higher standard of who I bring around my kids. But man it should not be this hard to find a couple guys that enjoy getting out of the house and a little hard work.

 

[MuleDeerMike]

I'm spoiled with good hunting partners. I've been hunting my whole life with my dad and brother as well as a ton of my friends that I grew up with. And most recently I've gotten my fiance into hunting and shes gone 2 for 2 on blacktail bucks in her first 2 seasons, so I've got her hook, line and sinker now too. Even with all these people in my life I still find myself hunting by myself a lot, so I can see how difficult it would be to find a single reliable partner that can line up schedules with yours.

Someone needs to make a hunting partner app like they have for dating sites lol. Maybe Rokslide can make a "ISO Hunting Partner" section. Even if you're both out of state, if they're trustworthy and reliable you can just meet at the TH on X day and time and go hunt for a week or whatever. This obviously has the potential to be a major shit show and CF for some guys getting bailed on but also potentially could be a great resource if you have no other options .02$.

 

[Bärenjäger]

For those of you with true hunting partners, how and when did you guys meet up. For the life of me I can't find anyone that enjoys the outdoors like me and is a trustworthy person to be around. I really have tried over the years to put myself out there but it never seems to come together. I have kids and family that I enjoy spending time with but at some point family will out age themselves for certain types of hunting we enjoy. As I enter my 40's wondering if its ever going to happen. I don't let it slow me down to much but somebody to share a few long hikes and drives would be great. Couple guys to hang around a camp fire or help with a serious pack out.

I drew a OIL tag a few years ago and in the end I shared the hunt and scouting with my 60y old dad and 8 year old son. It was a great hunt and we put some serious work in but in the end I could not believe I could not find one other person to share this hunt with.

Anyways just wondering when and how some of you met your hunting partners. I know part of the reason is how I hunt is not for many people and I try to hold a little higher standard of who I bring around my kids. But man it should not be this hard to find a couple guys that enjoy getting out of the house and a little hard work.

Man... You are me....

Same age. Gotta a boy that's 8. Try to avoid the unsavory individuals our society seems to be cranking out these days. Most of my family/friends are either not hunters or don't have desire to hunt western states.

What state do you live in? Which states are you looking to hunt?

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[Bärenjäger]

I'm spoiled with good hunting partners. I've been hunting my whole life with my dad and brother as well as a ton of my friends that I grew up with. And most recently I've gotten my fiance into hunting and shes gone 2 for 2 on blacktail bucks in her first 2 seasons, so I've got her hook, line and sinker now too. Even with all these people in my life I still find myself hunting by myself a lot, so I can see how difficult it would be to find a single reliable partner that can line up schedules with yours.

Someone needs to make a hunting partner app like they have for dating sites lol. Maybe Rokslide can make a "ISO Hunting Partner" section. Even if you're both out of state, if they're trustworthy and reliable you can just meet at the TH on X day and time and go hunt for a week or whatever. This obviously has the potential to be a major shit show and CF for some guys getting bailed on but also potentially could be a great resource if you have no other options .02$.

I could get behind a "Tinder for Hunters" app! How make sure the wife knows it's legit first though...

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[WCB]

Played hockey with my main "hunting partner" in college. We have the same outlook/ideas on hunts and hunting styles. Just got lucky we both went to the same small school for different degrees but met through hockey. I am also lucky to have a family of pretty hard core accomplished hunters and have a father in his mid sixties that out hikes most guys half his age. On top of that one of my best friends that I grew up with and played baseball and hockey with through high school just started hunting again. I am basically his booking agent now and just tell him what tags to apply for and when we are going. He is not the most experienced hunter but 100% accountable and squared away and super eager to learn. I've known him 25 years or so.

Keep in mind I have a bunch of guys I can call and are hunting partners...for most hunts they are game and obviously generally we are friends and do stuff together in the off season. However, most guys only have 1 maybe 2 guys that are 100% committed to any hunt at any time sort of thing.

Maybe and maybe not but it is possible that you would have better luck finding hunting partners for 99% of hunts and for the toughest hunts you may be solo. You state some of it is due to "the way you hunt". Not saying this is the case but I know a couple guys that have the same thing going and can tell you "the way they hunt" drives people away.

 

[Akwoodchuck]

My hunting partner is also my work partner...construction trades. We met as kids because our dads were also hunting and work partners, construction trades...we're real chips off the old block, lol...

 

[Gznokes]

I've learned that if my friends and I have the same tags we will end up in the field together most of the time, if those tags require travel the likelyhood is even greater. I believe the demand on people's time is so high that it is difficult for them to get in the field unless it is their own tag. When my friends join me on a hunt where they don't have a tag, I never ask for money--not for gas, lodging, or food. That makes it easier for them to justify the time off.

 

[Indian Summer]

I live in Pa. My western hunting partners are different than the ones at home. The ones at home are family or old time friends. Friends of friends.

My elk hunting partners are different. One guided for me in Montana when I was outfitting. He’s from Ohio. He knows from his guide days that the mountains are where it’s at. Another was also one of my former guides. Originally from Georgia he lives in Wyoming now. They are both in their 30s and I’m mid 50s. I’m young at heart and we’ve become good friends.

Now for the type of answer you’re looking for: My Ohio partner was my regular go to. But he got married, bought a house, and started having kids. Couldn’t go every year. So I had my eye out for a new one.

My criteria: #1 Integrity! No guys who didn’t know the meaning of the word commitment! No guys who would learn my proven areas only to come back with their friends.

#2 Steady job and with hunting a priority in their life which means not afraid to spend some money to hunt.

#3 Similar personalities and interests.

One of my interests is riding my Harleys. Each year I do several fund raising benefit rides. The biggest is called the Ride for Homeless Vets. They raise about 50 grand in one day. They auction signed guitars from Ted Nugent, Charlie Daniels etc. The guy who runs the whole thing was also the president of his bike club. A leader among his peers but also very humble and family oriented. A rare combination and very much like me. So I sent him a friend request on Facebook. That’s a good way to get to know someone. Come to find out he spends nearly every weekend at his camp in northern Pa.... Tionesta. Hunts his ass off. So far so good.... and he was booking bear hunts up in Maine every year. He had all the ingredients. So I asked him if he was interested in elk hunting in Wyoming. He jumped on it without hesitation. A good sign. But a rookie elk hunt is more of a test than anything. As with most newbies he got his butt thoroughly kicked. Haha. His deer hunting clothes and gear got destroyed. He could barely keep up with me and he didn’t kill anything. Perfect because if a guy comes back after that he just might have what it takes. He was standing beside me when I killed my elk that year. That motivated him. He was hooked. During the off season he was obsessed. I’ve been hunting elk for over 35 years but I am still as obsessed as I was the first year. So I was totally cool with his thousand questions. He was all in! Bought a new rifle and scope, a pile of Sitka clothes so he could dress in layers, he lost like 30 pounds. The list goes on. He had watched every thing I did, looked over my gear, made notes and vowed to be prepared and damn sure was when the time came.

Last year was his second hunt. No more babysitting. I got him up the hill on opening morning and immediately showed him elk. We heard at least 50 bugles and I sent him after a nice herd bull, wished him luck... and went my own way. Of course prior to that I went over the map with him. He was as prepared as any greenhorn could be.

He didn’t kill that bull. I told him that I enjoy a camp partner but that I hunt alone. I’m super focused on killing my bulls but one of the reasons is because I am all about my partner killing an elk and so the sooner I can punch my tag the better his odds would get. On day two we went up the mountain together and split up in the dark. He saw some elk but learned some tough lessons. He missed a turn on some directions I gave him and dropped too low. He paid the price for that! Haha. But that’s how you learn and he got familiar with some country that day. I didn’t see much that morning and went high that afternoon. I know my area well and later that day I glassed about 35 elk included two 6 points, a 5 point, a small raghorn bull and about half a dozen spikes. They were way up high on the other side of the drainage. It was only day 2 so I just observed what they were doing, where they popped out of the timber and how they acted. I left my gun and daypack in my spike tent that night.

The next morning I wanted to show my partner, Tom, a spot I call the glassing tree. From there he could look over all of the stuff he has been hunting the first two days. We got there before first light and set up to glass. We saw a few elk but pretty quick heard a cow call behind us to the right. We repositioned and after a few minutes 5-6 cows showed up feeding along the edge of the timber. And then.... bull! A really big 5 point was in the back of the herd taking his time feeding. They were just under 500 yards out. Tom wasn’t comfortable shooting that far and besides there was a really heavy elk trail leading from them straight to within 75 yards of us. They didn’t take the trail but kept moving in the same direction. We decided that he best get moving to try to intercept them. I watched as he made his move like a good Pennsylvania deer hunter: Way too slow! Haha. I told him I was heading up high but if I heard a shot I’d turn around and come back down. That shot never came.

There was a front moving in so I figured (hoped) the elk would come out to feed early. Maybe by 3:30. My plan was to hike up the other side to a spot I’d carefully picked out the day before and wait for them to pop out. I got to the edge of the timber where I’d been glassing the night before around 1:30. Not soon enough! There were already elk out feeding and they were right on the route I needed to use to get to the other side. There was nothing I could do but sit and watch. Then more elk appeared out of the timber, and more and more. They were strung out from top to bottom of a grassy avalanche chute. I saw the raghorn and several spikes. They were from 900 to 600 yards away. Then some cows worked there way into the open down low at 300 yards. Hmm. Next thing I know the 6 point comes trotting out of the timber above them. He’s at 500 yards. He feeds a little and turns straight downhill to the cows. 475... 450.... at 405 he stops and turns broadside with his head on the uphill side and starts feeding again. That would be his last meal. I squeezed the trigger and he dropped in his tracks and slid into the gut of the draw and never kicked a hoof. I quartered him up in a light snow and retreated back to spike camp. A small 4x5 stood and watched me work on that elk while feeding at only 125 yards for about 10 minutes before finally walking off. I was wishing my partner was there!!!

By the time I got to base camp the next day Tom was gone. The weather was plenty cold enough up at 8500 feet to let the elk hang so I took a long nap before getting up to do some camp chores and have a couple bourbon and Cokes to celebrate. Tom knew before he came into the tent that smoke from the stove pipe meant I was back 2 days ahead of schedule and that could only mean one thing.

The next day we both headed up to pack my bull out. I was also anxious to show my partner my high country honey hole. The place is elk paradise and he was staying up there for the next 3-4 days. We got to the bull, did some more work on the quarters, skinned out the skull and got everything loaded up and headed back toward camp. I stopped for a bit and gave Tom a pep talk before dropping off the mountain.

The weather blew in with a vengeance that night. Snowed about 6 inches and the wind blew like hell. I could see the next morning that it was fogged in up top. Not good. The high country stayed ugly for the next 3 days straight. Each night I wondered if my partner would come trudging into camp. But every night he didn’t I thought to myself “This guy is going to make the cut!” After 4 days and 3 nights he finally showed up. He was all fired up about the elk he’d seen. He had been in the middle of a herd and had elk at 10 feet. No bulls though. He was pretty beat up but as determined as ever to keep giving it hell. I hunted with him for a few days then had a friend stop by camp. Another rookie on his first ever elk hunt. I had sent him and 2 other guys to an area south of us. I took him out for the next couple days and Tom hunted on his own. Then it was time for me to pack out spike camp. I went up the mountain with Tom and we split up in the dark again. At 4:17 I was on my knees packing some gear up and I heard it. Kpowwwww. Straight from Tom’s direction. Nobody else was around. Excited is an understatement. I got to camp a little before dark. Hours went by. I knew there was a rookie up there cutting up an elk for the first time. At about 9:00 he rolled in. By then I had already commenced celebrations. He told me his story with wide eyes like a 12 year old who just shot his first deer. How cool! The next morning we went up the mountain and packed his bull out. 2 for 2!

We’re going back to the same spot this year. My partner from Ohio is joining us. The last time he was there he shot his first bull from high camp and his uncle killed a big 6 point only a half hour into the first morning. I’m looking forward to those two meeting each other. Tom is getting twice as prepared as he was last season. He’s officially an elkcoholic now. We have a bear hunt for monster blackies way up in Saskatchewan next May. Back to Wyoming next fall. In 2022 we’re booked for a diy moose and caribou hunt in northern Alaska.

I love telling this story. It’s as good as any successful hunting story gets because it’s not about punching tags. It’s about lining up a solid partner. That’s priceless. You can do it too if you put your mind to it. There are guys like me who have experienced and realize the value of a dependable partner. If you can’t find one maybe you can be the guy with the master plan. I can help you with that. If you’re interested shoot me a PM and we can talk. I love teaching. I also know of a website with a section for elk hunters who are looking for partners. Good luck to you! There’s still time to apply in Montana!

 

[pk_]

I have exactly 2 good hunting buddies outside of family.

1. I met on a forum. I have hunted with him a handful of times in the last few years and I am starting to believe he probably isn’t a serial killer (jk, (I don’t mean jk he is a serial killer, (I mean jk about him maybe being a serial killer)))

2. I met face to face, continually in some very hard to access areas of public land over the course of a couple years. We helped each other drag deer out of the woods a few times and subsequently became friends.

 

[Marble]

I could get behind a "Tinder for Hunters" app! How make sure the wife knows it's legit first though...

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I would never hear the end of that from my wife...

 

[Marble]

I have two guys that I would consider to take on a back country hunt, back packing only. But both have their issues. One doesnt have much time off, the other is hard to read and flaked on me.

My dad is still going, but is much slower and more into just going than anything else. I feel torn between going solo and bringing my dad. But I am rooting on the side of taking him. After all, i would not be who, where or nearly as successful as I am without him.

My wife, well, she's great to hunt with. But like drinking booze, I can't hunt while she is hunting. Daily truck trips are okay, but days hunting together in the backcountry is difficult.

 

[Marble]

The issues I find with people that ask to go with me, or I want to go with me but wont take them:

Money
Time
Personality
Expereince
Physical conditioning
Flakey in general

I have a trip I do every year on horseback. We do it all ourselves and not only have great adventures, but are really successful. I have had people commit to go and then pull out the week before the trip. It really screws us. Not only for hunting reasons. But for money. Its happened a few times where guys bail last minute and no one can fill the spot.

It only takes one time four someone to do that to me. After that, its a long time before they are let back into the circle.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Living in OC (So. Cal.) I am far removed from those who hunt. Most of my contacts were made online. Now my best hunting buddies are people I first met online and met IRL later. Bubblehide on this site has taught me a ton of stuff over the years. I've met others that I didn't care for but that's to be expected. One good friend is worth 10,000 acquaintances. Meet Bubblehide...he's crazy at makin' bacon.

 

[Squamch]

I have one main hunting partner, I met him in grade 6, on the first day, when I pulled out a hunting magazine. That was over 20 years ago.
There are 2 other guys I hunt with. One I met playing house league soccer when I was 4. He is making big changes this year after a divorce. Getting fit, quitting smoking...hoping he is wanting to go hard during hunting season.
The third I've known for about 10 years. He was a friend of a friend, I'd known him a little through mountain biking when we were teens, and we went dirtbiking together in our early 20s. That was where we really became friends. One day he asked me "How do I own guns?" He now shoots sporting clays, 5 stand, and skeet every weekend, hunts, and is fully committed to the outdoor lifestyle....except that he has a management job that he works 10hr days on the low end, and was working 8 days a week last season setting up a new factory. Still a great friend, who I enjoy hunting with though.

 

[SteveCNJ]

One hunting buddy I know since 6th grade (I'm 63) and the other I met in 2010. There's a piece of woods I wanted to hunt whitetail in. It was owned by the Audubon Society so I reached out to them and finally the woman I should be speaking with. She said a couple of guys already hunted there so I needed to coordinate with them. I emailed him and got the email addresses of the other 2 guys. Sent out an offer to discuss, I'd host with appetizers and beer. Only one guy showed up. We've been hunting buddies since then. Hope to do our third western hunt this year.

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[mooretitan]

Part of the problem is that I don't have a lot of friends to start with and then when you narrow it to someone who wants to go its basically to zero. Lucky for me I have kids who never say no. Doesn't matter what we are doing they are game.

The main problem that I have is even getting someone interested in going. Living in California doesn't help but I live in an area that is very hunting friendly. I run into a few opportunities every year where I come in contact with people that hunt. But when we get to talking they just seem more like guys who go out once a year to camp, drive and drink. Which I am not against but I save that for fishing season. Hunting and being successful means getting with it and paying a physical toll. These guys know that I am pretty successful but it never seems to go past small talk even though I always give them an invite.

I have a couple guys that I see around my kids sports. They like to talk hunting and have killed a couple small bucks the last ten years. They are always surprised at the quantity and quality of bucks my kids and I get into. But they never take me up on the offer.

I do a guys week fishing trip in the summer. Pretty easy going, great food, great fishing, cards, corn hole. Everything is set up great but getting guys to go is like pulling teeth.

I have another trout spot that I have taken a people into and even though they catch more fish then they ever have they never come back. The 50 min hike out breaks them and never again. My kids have all done the same hike at 8 years old and never say a word.

I just cant seem to get into the right group of guys. I either cant find someone, the guys I can find are not the people I want my kids around. I know there are couple groups of guys that are pretty serious about hunting but it seems they have there small group of guys and don't want any new into the group.

So it ends up being me and my kids running around the mountains having a blast and putting game and fish in the bag. My dad keeps going and has been a great partner but I know that he is slowly starting to slow down.

Who knows??? My wife and I always joke that their must be something wrong with me. Like the guy in high school who cant seem to find a date.

 

[rtaylor]

My hunting partners are friends that did not grow up hunting but I introduced them to the sport. Now they are addicted and call me to go hunting. I would try to pick out some of your better friends and take them on a high success hunt to get the bug in them. If they won't go book a guided duck hunting trip that is nonrefundable to put the guilt trip on them. A hunt that is part social and stuff is dying will get the hook in them for sure.

 

[Indian Summer]

Have you thought about taking a non hunting friend? They make great sherpas! Lol

 

[Bärenjäger]

Have you thought about taking a non hunting friend? They make great sherpas! Lol

True statement! My hunting partner has a guy that works for him that grew up in India. He wanted to experience the "American hunt" and didn't have any desire to pull the trigger. He loved it, loved packing extra gear/food and being part of the team. He even referred to himself as the team Sherpa!

We're shooting for Idaho (live in Indiana) spring bear in mid May, and he is seriously trying to budget his available time off to go along again.

Those non-hunters may eventually catch that bug and go all-in... If you can't find a hunting friend, maybe you can slowly build one.

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[Indian Summer]

I hunted with two guys I met in the internet. Total disasters. The first was a guy from Kansas. He wanted to elk hunt and agreed to take me deer hunting for some big Kansas bucks. I think he was terrified of riding horses in general let alone in the dark and also wanted me to be by his side the entire time even though I told him we’d be several hundred yards apart. I put him on a nice 6 point bull on the first day. He missed 3 times. That night he had three different reasons why he had to leave the next morning. He was sick. Then he said his wife needed him to come home. Then, after telling me that he was self employed and was able to stay as long as he wanted, he said he had some important customers that he had to get back and take care of.

The other was from my home state of Pa. I had researched a moose hunt area in Alaska for years and couldn’t find anyone with the funds to go. He turned out to be addicted to some pain medication, smoked 2 packs a day refusing to do it outside of my tent. He was miserable to be around. He picked a spot to hunt on the lake and claimed it as his private property because that’s where we’d seen the moose. That was fine with me and he dropped me off in a different spot and took the canoe. A few hours later I was about to shoot a bull when bullets started buzzing past me. Lots of bullets! I was face down in the dirt while he completely unloaded his rifle. He hit it once... in the ass. He broke a hind leg and we chased it around in the canoe. He used all of his ammo. I gave him my gun and he shot it once through the antler and missed a bunch of times before I told him to stop. He paddled back to camp for the rest of his bullets and came back to finish it off. When I asked him what he was doing on my end of the lake he got really mad. We didn’t talk much after that. Worst hunt ever. No more internet partners for me!!!