Big Game outfitter recommendations??

[dixidawg]

My uncle and I have decided to take a hunting trip, but have no idea where to begin. At this point we are open to most anything, most anywhere. The main stipulation is that it can't be real tough going. He's 70 and can't ride horseback or climb up and down the Rockies etc. I have a bulging disc in my back and wouldn't do so well on horseback either.

Can be for Elk, Moose, Caribou, Deer, Antelope, Bear,,, whatever. We're open to suggestions.

I have been looking for awhile, and there is a mind boggling number of outfitters to choose from. I'd prefer to hear from someone who has actually gone and has first hand experience with an outfitter operation.

Ideally we wolud like someplace with a good chance of seeing game and having a reasonable chance at success. Not necessarily a "trophy", but the possibility of a "trophy" would be nice. We are not looking for 5 star accomodations, but we don't want a total dump either.

Anyone here have any first hand experience?

Anyone know someone that has first hand experience that I can talk to?

Thanks!

 

[JoeT]

are you looking for a "fenced hunt" (preserve)? or an actual hunt?

I took a pig "hunt" for meat in NY a couple years back. On their property they did have Elk, big whitetail, ram, pig, and other stuff.

Although these aren't actually "hunts", it may be what you want. The place is in Homer NY, and they guide and owner were really good guys. the cabin was "rustic" but comfortable and clean.

If interested I can get you the name of the place

 

[dixidawg]

Well, we finally decided on these guys in Colorado:

http://www.trophyclassoutfitterscolorado.com/

They came highly recommended by a friend that has been hunting with them since they started the business over 20 years ago. It is a family operation run by the nicest and hardest working people you will ever meet. I can HIGHLY recommend them....

My Uncle and I both drew Cow elk tags and flew out last Saturday. Saturday afternoon we shot a few rounds to make sure our rifles were still zeroed after the trip. We started hunting on Sunday morning, and by Wednesday, we both had filled our tags. I got home around midnight last night. What an absolutely incredible experience! I saw more game in those few days than you will see in years around here.

I made a couple of hand held videos while out there. The first was just around the camp. The camp was originally built by Mike Lawson's grandfather in 1904 when he homesteaded it. His 79 year old mother was born in it. The original structure is still the main base of operations today. It sits at around 9,000 feet elevation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6DJGTqhnls


The second video is pieced together over 2 days, ending on Tuesday afternoon with a very happy hunter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMBJg9J_m-Y


A happy hunter:

The next evening was my turn. I didn't get any pictures or videos as it was late and I was too excited to think about a camera. We had just gone around the rim of a canyon hoping to surpirse some Elk coming out for the night. When we were nearly back at the truck, one of the other guides was already there and signalled for us to stay low and come up to him. We did a low crawl for about 100 yards back to the truck. He had seen 2 cows and a calf waaaaay out in the pasture where we had left the truck. Range finder showed they had moved to 375 yards, and were slowly working their way left to right and slightly towards us. We wanted to intercept them as they crossed directly in front of us. We did a belly crawl for 75 yards as they slowly meandered along unaware of us. We reached a small pile of rocks just as they were directly in front of us. Mike said "showtime". Range finder said 302 yards to the big lead cow. We only had about 10 minutes of shooting time left.

I rested my pack on the rocks and lined up the crosshairs as I mentally calculated the bullet drop of my 30-06 at 300 yards. As the crosshairs settled high on her shoulder, I could hear my Appleseed instructor, dwarven1 in my head saying SQUEEEEEEEEZE the trigger. I touched off, but with the recoil, I lost sight of her so I didn't see what happened. A split second later I heard that satisfying THWACK when the bullet hit home and knew I had connected. Mike had been spotting for me and I asked if she was down. After what seemed like an eternity, he said.

"Damn,,,,, I guess SOME of you Yankees can actually shoot. She was dead before she hit the ground!"

We got her home and skinned that night. The next morning Mike took pictures as he has done for all his successful clients. Everyone has a picture on the ceiling of the cabin.

I ended up with just shy of 200lbs of boneless steaks and hamburger. My uncle got slightly less.

Now I have to save up my pennies so I can bet back out there again!

 

[arlow]

Great recap!!! Nice video! Congrats on the success!!!!

 

[dixidawg]

Thanks. It was a blast and I highly recommend these guys. It was way above our expectations. The numbers of quality animals we saw was unbelievable.