# Guides



## recker (Oct 12, 2003)

Wondering what your experience has been with guides. Had a good one two years ago in Texas in the gulf dropping us off on a blind and letting us be over decoys. This last January was much worse driving with my dad to Arizona.The guide said only he would be with us. It was him and a friend and they blasted everytime before we got a shot off in the field. Sure we shot a few but left a day early as they were just interested in themselves even though we were on birds.


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## just ducky (Apr 27, 2005)

since this is a North Dakota website, I'll only give you my opinion of ND hunting...I'm a non-resident who has come to ND annually for over 10 years. I see absolutely no reason to use a guide in ND. It's a free-lancers paradise! You have to do your homework before you go, but paying a guide in ND is good money down the tube...JMO


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## jpallen14 (Nov 28, 2005)

I'll add they are not needed or welcome in either two of the Dakota states.


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## Bloodyblinddoors (Oct 25, 2006)

recker said:


> The guide said only he would be with us. It was him and a friend and they blasted everytime before we got a shot off in the field.


This is very unprofesional. What was the name of this guide service?


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## Colt (Oct 25, 2007)

Outfitters in general are ruining it for the working man.


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## Bloodyblinddoors (Oct 25, 2006)

jpallen14 said:


> I'll add they are not needed or welcome in either two of the Dakota states.


I guide spring snows in SD and was wondering why you think Guides are not welcome. I've never felt unwelcome. I'm not looking to ruffle any feathers and *will respect your opinion even if I dont agree with it*. To be honest I feel kinda discriminated against. Not all guides operate the same.

Maybe you've had a bad run in with one or few guides. I'd like to know the specifics.


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## aboller (Dec 24, 2006)

Oh Boy


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## Prarie Hunter (Jul 11, 2008)

I think guiding for spring snows is different than being a guide in the fall because most of the time the guides follow up the states so they arent a local guide. For a guide in the fall they will stay in the state where their from and lease up all the land around the area they run their operation. Spring Guides I dont hold any grudges over its the ones who guide in the fall that ruin things for Resident and NR's in ND and many other states im sure. If you come to ND your blowing your money with a guide. The only reason they stay open is the rich doctors and big wigs from out of state who are to lazy to set their own decoys and want nothing to do with the work involved.


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## Gildog (Jan 30, 2007)

Prarie Hunter said:


> If you come to ND your blowing your money with a guide. The only reason they stay open is the rich doctors and big wigs from out of state who are to lazy to set their own decoys and want nothing to do with the work involved.


since when did providing a service for a profitable fee become frowned upon in this country? I must have missed the memo forbidding answering the door when opportunity knocks!


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## Bloodyblinddoors (Oct 25, 2006)

Prarie Hunter said:


> For a guide in the fall they will stay in the state where their from and lease up all the land around the area they run their operation.


I also operate my own guide service here in MN in the fall and I dont lease up all the land in the area. There are two fields that I lease every year. The reason for this is the landowners of these properties absolutly will not let anyone hunt without paying them a fee.

The properties I hunt, I've been hunting on for many years. I've developed strong relations with my landowners through the years. Never offer any of them money or gifts when asking for permission. I do treat thier land with the highest respect though and they can see this.

Another thing I dont do is drive around pre-season and try to sew up property. I scout the night before each hunt and when I find what I want I knock on the door. When they answer I ask if I can hunt the next morning and the next morning only. I never ask If I can hunt for the season.

One such landowner called me the other day to ask If I'd be hunting his property this season. I said yeah I'd love to. He said Ok theres a guy who asked to hunt my wheat field for early season. I said give it to him for opening weekend, cause I know where I'll be hunting already, And If I want to hunt after openr I'll come talk to you the night before.

How many of you have good hunting on properties and drop a case of beer off on the landowners front step or offer to paint thier fence ect...? I'm guilty of that.


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## Old Hunter (Mar 8, 2002)

Bloodyblinddoors Dont take it so personal. I would guess that most people on this site realize your a good guy and a good hunter. They have heard your reasons and rational many times before and you wont change the mindset of residents or 25,000 nonresidents that visit each fall. We have seen outfitters gobble uo 80,000 + acres for one operation. The fact that you dont do that does not change opinions.The farmers and ranchers here are very generous and most of them allow free access for many reasons.One thing that landowners do not like is when they find out that they have given free access to a guy that then charges money for the days hunt. This is happening in my area .This will close doors fast. 
I'm sure that you dont operate this way but there has been many people that have. In the past 10 years North Dakota has had a problem with illegal guides buying a cheap house and operating underground. They have been from all over the country, and thought it was the wild west and could do whtever they wanted. The NDGF has done a great job of closing these operations down.The worst offenders have been some of the resident operations with the biggest and most well known often being the worst violators.
Forty years ago I spent few years on your side of the fence. Like many young men I thought owning a guiding operation would be the good life. I leased land,advertized,had a house for a lodge, good fields with pits, did the whole gig. After 2 years I decided the pressure of producing high quality hunts was not worth it. It took the fun out of somthing I loved. 
I believe that you are a very ethical guide and do a great job. I hope you understand why many are gun shy of guiding operations.
Good Luck OH


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## Gildog (Jan 30, 2007)

Old Hunter said:


> Forty years ago I spent few years on your side of the fence. Like many young men I thought owning a guiding operation would be the good life. I leased land,advertized,had a house for a lodge, good fields with pits, did the whole gig. After 2 years I decided the pressure of producing high quality hunts was not worth it. It took the fun out of somthing I loved.


that's it right there for me...had dreams of guiding on LOW and outfitting for waterfowl, grouse, and deer...but my passion was to do those things myself, not to get paid for helping others do those things.


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## Colt (Oct 25, 2007)

Try getting a NR deer or elk tag in Montana. It's almost impossible to draw for a do-it-yourself hunt. If you hire an outfitter, you are garaunteed a tag. That's my big beef with outfitters.


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## Chuck Smith (Feb 22, 2005)

> The only reason they stay open is the rich doctors and big wigs from out of state who are to lazy to set their own decoys and want nothing to do with the work involved.


I beat you that outfitters have more Resident clients than people would think.



> One thing that landowners do not like is when they find out that they have given free access to a guy that then charges money for the days hunt. This is happening in my area .


When knocking on doors this past spring in SD. I had a landowner ask me point blank....."You are not charging people to hunt with you". I told him it was me and some buddies and a few more guys might join us over the weekend. He told me no problem and said I could hunt the 20,000 acres he had in that area and if the birds move just give him a call and he has land to the north.

But the area I was hunting is has about 4 guide operations running out of it. So I can see where this is a problem.


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## jpallen14 (Nov 28, 2005)

True some of the guides/outfitters clients are residents but their is no way they could survive with out the majority of their clients, NR's. Their isn't enough people in SD or ND that a dumb enough. It's a freelanc paradise.

In NE SD if a land owner finds out your charging people to hunt on his ground it can be very ugly situation. And if an outfitter offers them money 99% of them will tell you to get lost.


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## jpallen14 (Nov 28, 2005)

I guess residents of SD and ND are just really protective of their resources. Which they should be. They have seen what most other states have done and don't want to see it happen here. Just look at SD and pheasants. The state has totally pimped it out to highest bidder. It all starts with leasing by guides and outfitters.


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## Double Cluck (Feb 19, 2008)

jpallen14 said:


> I guess residents of SD and ND are just really protective of their resources. Which they should be. They have seen what most other states have done and don't want to see it happen here. Just look at SD and pheasants. The state has totally pimped it out to highest bidder. It all starts with leasing by guides and outfitters.


At the same time however, at least the Dakotas have resident only seasons which occur before the NR can come in. I understand it's only a weekend but some of us don't have that luxury in our states.


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## Prarie Hunter (Jul 11, 2008)

> At the same time however, at least the Dakotas have resident only seasons which occur before the NR can come in. I understand it's only a weekend but some of us don't have that luxury in our states.


Maybe you should take that up with your state politicians and quit crying about it.


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## USAlx50 (Nov 30, 2004)

A couple years ago I knocked on a landowners door to ask permission. They told me someone beat me to it about 5 minutes ago, who happened to be a guide. They knew what he was charging clients and they didn't like it, but they were too non-confrontational to not grant him permission. They told me "they're not our birds, the belong to everyone, as long as people continue to respect our land." They told me to beat the guy to the field the next morning and if he had a problem, send him their way.

It seems like Bloody is one of the better ones out there in the way he does things, but I'm still not fond of guides in the dakotas.


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## Bloodyblinddoors (Oct 25, 2006)

I guess the only problem I have is when people lump all guides into one pile. I dont realy feel attacked personaly. I just dont appreciate it when people generalize.

I would never look down on the "freelance hunters" Cause they go around getting "exclusive rights" to as much property as they can before the season even opens, Before the crops are even off, Before the birds even start flying and can be patterned, Before they even know if they plan on hunting the property. IMO The time to scout is the evening before each hunt.

I treat people as indeviduals. Each indevidual has thier own way of doing things. Some I agree with and some I dont. But I will never see the word "Guide" or the phrase "Freelance hunter" as a four letter word.


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## Mrmallard (Aug 9, 2008)

I agree with bloodyblinddoors on the statement on scouting or recieving permission. I think that is the most important thing when meeting land owners,is the fact that you are looking for one hunt not the whole season. I think everywhere either here in MN or the dakotas, that there are too many hunters that ask for permission with out specifying when they want to hunt it. It would make everybody around happier to hear "yeah go ahead the other guys just wanted to hunt last weekend" Other wise we've all heard "well a guy stopped in 2 months ago, so I cant let you on" Mean while that guy is in canada for two weeks not even around to hunt. I also try to scout with in a day or two before the day of the hunt. As far as guides, research and word of mouth is the best way to fing a good guide. Especially in these economic time I believe there will be more inexpierenced guides out there. JMO


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