Interesting how this thread has developed. You guys lost me quite a while ago, because I've never hired a guide, and I never will.

I'm different, though. At 50 years of age, I've never owned a new car, primarily because of the price (still a better deal than a $20,000 guided brown bear hunt), and also because I just hate car dealerships (easily more hate-able than big game guides; or so I thought).

I have hired air taxi operators, and I wasn't too giddy about the prices I've had to pay, but I consider that an unavoidable evil of basic access here in Alaska. All of them I've found to be great guys (the pilots), and the businesses themselves haven't been bad at all (hear me now knocking on wood).

Bad weather? What's that? I've been working outside in Alaska for the past 30 years. Throw me the worse. I've been there. Put on more clothes, get out there, and get the job done, or hunker up, pull a cork, pull out the reading material, etc.

The only time weather stops me completely is when the pilot says no.

If you don't like guides, do-it-yourself.

If you're a non-resident, and want to hunt a species for which guides are retired, I'm truly sorry. I don't like the law much more than you. You'll either have to try to find the best deal and cough up the dough, or forget the hunt.

Bear In Fairbanks: I am curious to know what did your friend do with the hunter???? You wrote:

Another story. This past Aug. this same friend was with a client up in the Brooks for sheep & the weather had been very bad - rain & lots of it. The creek where the spike camp was set up was flooded and couldn't be crossed. During the entire trip, they couldn't really hunt sheep because of the weather. Given the costs & logistics, should my friend give the client back any fees? I think not.

So did you cancel the hunt? What was done in the # of days that the guy was there to hunt sheep?

I agree with BW. There should be some type of compromise between Guides and hunters. Such as discounts for hunting in potentially bad weather months. But the potential client (hunter's) should be aware of this. I have never hunted Alaska, but as a hunter I would like to be forewarned that the probability is there. As BW states, expect that 1-2 days be lost to weather.

I think that is what SHEEPHUNTER is trying to get across. It's the knowing on the part of the guide and the not knowing on the part of the hunter.

bow777:
I'm not sure of what, if anything he he did. As I recall, the client had previouly been on a moose hunt with my friend in the Interior & wanted a sheep. My friend was guiding up in the Brooks, in ANWR. This area is controlled by the Feds and guides must apply for a specific area. My friend's father had the area for over 30 years, his dad died and so now he lost the area. Basically, my opinion is that the Feds run ANWR as their own feifdom & they don't want guides in the area. You wouldn't believe the "hoops" a guide must jump thru to get an area. My friend now doesn't really have a sheep area & is now relegated to operating on State land. A guide licensed for an area, can set up operations on state land. Theoreticaly, you could have guides operating on top of each other. To specifically answer your question, I don't know if he did anything. I do know that in the past, he's offered return trips at his cost. He did that with the client that didn't take his boots with him to sheep camp. BTW, that guy had a good shot at a nice ram at perhaps 150 yds. (guessing) & missed after 7 shots. I saw the empty cartridge cases & took him to the range before we left town. The client could really shoot & was experienced. I thought to myself that if we got him to within 500 yds., there was no way he could miss. Well, he did. No! I in no way advocate a 500 yd. shot on a sheep. Just relating what happened & I'm not knocking the guy either. Bear in Fairbanks

Bear in Fairbanks: Well you friend did give him an opportunity to harvest a sheep. He did his job some way some how! I had the impression that they saw that the spike camp was flooded so they cancelled the hunt and the guide called it quits.

If I were the hunter and had paid $10-15K for a sheep hunt, I BETTER GET ACROSS or there better be a back-up plan. Can you imagine going thru all the efforts of monetary expenses, Guide Fees,Air travel Expenses,Car Rental etc plus all time and effort for nothing...WOW! glad to hear this was not the case.

thanks for the follow-up

[ 12-05-2003, 23:38: Message edited by: bow777 ]

sheephunter;

as usual , i agree with u.

the worst screwing i have taken was the one i wrote about awhile back entitles "don't see alaska with jim h. keeline".

he too used the ever popular weather excuse to cut my hunt in half and keep all my money. When people don't want to work they will use that excuse, or find any number of other excuses not to put out for the client or just to outright cut the trip short with no refund. hunters have got too be very careful on who they book with and file reports and spread the word on the bad outfitters so others don't get screwed also.

cold zero