Guided hunter... or shooter?
 

After years of watching hunting shows, a switch got turned on in my head.
If a person is on a guided hunt, is he actually hunting? Or, has he just paid for the opportunity to shoot something. Something that another person has actually put in the time to pre-Hunt / research the animal. Find it on the day of the hunt and then the “hunter” only has to follow the guide and shoot.

The sights, the smells, the view, glorious sunshine, crappy rain or snow, nice easy climbs or steep shale slopes, the Bucks & Does, Bulls & Cows, Rams & Ewes, man at one with nature, bad food, long days, short nights. All put in by the guy with the bow or gun, whether he has help or not might not really mean much. To me hunting is MINDSET, whether I'm watching for a buck crossing on the four-lane or watching my wife/kid still hunting a patch of old-growth along the river.

I have been on my share of guided hunts. I have suffered/enjoyed the challenges that all presented. The best hunts are like hunting with your friend. It is a team effort. Thats what I am looking for. Sometimes I actually knew more than the guide. Most times I learned so much from him. It's a slightly different experience but not once did I feel like I wasn't hunting.

Go try it some time. The experience is amazing.

Some times you work hard and get nothing. Sometimes your a triggerman.

Sometimes it can be as easy as riding around with, and following a guide, but that isn't always the case. Go and do a guided backpack hunt in the mountains, where you and a guide have to carry your tent, your food , and all of your gear on your backs for a week.

This

OP you need to try it and get back to us.
Basing your opinion on the idiocy called “outdoor media” is not fair to the hard working outfitters who provide amazingly fun/memorable times to their clients. Never had a bad experience yet whether hunting or fishing with a guide.

This x1000👍

Sometimes you lead, sometimes you follow, sometimes you have the tag, sometimes you don’t.

What about waterfowl hunts?