[IBDBOSS]

OK, here is the deal. My dad is retiring from his job this fall and as a nice gesture my mother and I have discussed getting him a guided hunt somewhere. We were thinking of Moose, but I'm sure he wouldn't turn his head at an Elk tag either. Has anyone had experience with guided hunts? Where to book through? Cost? Experiences? Etc.?

I need to decide soon to see if this is going to be feasable or not, so any help you can give a fellow AT'er I would appreciate it.

 

[pegasis0066]

If you are talking about this upcoming hunting season it may be a too late. If so and he is an archer then you may want to call Mark Buehrer (419) 943-3743 of Bowhunting Safari Consultants to see if there aren't any last minute hunts available. Also check with the folks at the Huntin Fool http://www.huntinfool.com/ as they have last minute hunts as well.

A guided elk hunt ranges from $3K to over $10K and I would estimate guided moose from $5K to well over $10K.

Good Luck

Rob

 

[teal325]

It really depends on your budget. An elk hunt can push 6 to 7 thousand dollars easily. I have heard of Alaska mosse hunts running 20 thousand dollars. You tend to get what you pay for. Good areas cost good money. Many places require a guide so you are at the mercy of what their market will bear.

I think it's really cool what you want to do tho. IIRC the most inexpensive guided hunt I know of is antelope. You can really get on some good trophy speed goats in the 3k range.

I would suggest picking up copies of "Successful Hunter". It's a Wolfe puplication and they also do "Rifle" and "Handloader". SH is all about hunting - their stories are good and it's a start to see what is and isn't available at your price. Whatever that may be.

You may want to look into exotics in TX if thats his thing or perhaps Africa. It can be cheaper than Alaska. Some places charge you a flat fee per day (which isn't too bad) and then you hunt - if you tag animal X then its Y price. You get to pick and choose. And you only pay for what you kill. A guy can EASILY drop 20k on a Kodiak bear hunt and never see anything worth killing. Africa this way lets you spend less cuz you only pay if the animal dies.

Good luck.

 

[pegasis0066]

Oh, just thought of the fact that all US tags for moose and elk are pretty much already gone for this season - you may find a land owner tags, but prices can be steep. So you will probably only be looking at Alberta, British Columbia, the Yukon, and Alaska for elk or moose. Generally the farther north you go in these areas the more expensive.

Again, good luck.

 

[IBDBOSS]

Thanks for the tips. I am looking at booking this hunt for next fall because he isn't planning on officially retiring until the end of the year. Have any of you gone on guided hunts? Is it worth the money? I was also thinking about a trip to Europe (Italy) for 10 days. I think this could also be done for about the same price. Which of the two would you guys rather do?