bugleward

got your money's worth Sad as it may be in today's market for mounts the amount you paid is about right for a slap-happy job from a commercial taxidermist like you obviously used. How many mounts is she doing in a year? Holy cow. No wonder it looks kinda crappy. All of our quality taxidermists out west here are $500 plus for deer with an average of probably $550. At $325 I would have to say you got what you paid for. I try to tell all my clients the Taxidermist is not a good place to skimp on a once in a lifetime trophy. Just like using a $100 scope on a rifle you intend to take on a $25,000 sheep hunt. You may get lucky a time or two but for sure -- unhappiness is in your future. If you want good quality you need to do your research and then tell the Taxidermist you want a competition quality mount and ask how much he/she charges for that. Good luck with it. Maybe you can hang it in a corner with subtle lighting and it will still look OK then.

macbook Mine is awesome. My old Imac lasted 7 years and then the ethernet card went out. at least 6 hours a day running for 7 years or so. then I got an emac its about 5 years old still going strong. Then I got my macbook pro about 3 years now had a bus die on me. 1 week for a complete rebuild - no lost information only $170 including shipping to repair. Just bought the kids a super smoker Imac 27 its unbelievable. Wife has a Dell and that sucker is about once a month getting in the shop. So for the most part I've been on macs since the 70s. Only two needed repair and the one didn't need it until it was 7 years old. My wife's dell averages more repair per month than all my 9 or so macs and thirty plus years put together. There used to be a lot of problems with compatibility with macs. that really seems to no longer be a problem. Only time I see issues is with AOL. They still are hooked on the PC world and don't realize that the real smart people fix PCs for a living and go home to use their macs.

thanks x Hey X thanks for the plug bud. Yes we do guide for the deer and antelope part of that. I will also follow that with a bit of advice for you John. For the most part an elk hunt is pretty rough. Unless you are hunting a game ranch, an elk hunt may not be the best choice for a first time out west for someone who is not a fairly strong outdoors person. They can be very tough emotionally and physically on a less experienced hunter. We are a REALTREE recommended outfitter and do quite well at it. You can take a look at our site and probably answer a bunch of your questions. There is quite a bit of information in there. I also have a DVD/brochure pack available. Even if you do not choose to hunt with us I would be happy to answer your questions. One very important piece of advice you should always adhere to; always check as many references as you possibly can before you book with any outfitter. If you end up on a bad outfitted hunt and did not check references -- it's your fault not the outfitter's. Generally any outfitter that produces bad results sinks his business in a short time. But there are some out there that shouldn't be and checking references is a pretty good way to eliminate the bad luck with outfitters.

Game ears Hey guys: I use the digital game ears. Fantastic - I love them. I use two of them and can detect direction. I also can hear tons of elk bugles and turkey gobbles that the guys without them can't hear at all. I am a professional hunter and got them in the first place to be able to hear my clients and still not suffer hearing damage when I happen to be close to the muzzle when the gun goes off. I ended up loving them because I can hear so well. I have heard folks say they are too noisy in the wind. Wheat they don't realize is the darn things are made to amplify that frequency range on purpose. Also if you really think about it and concentrate... your ears hear the wind noise too, most just don't realize it until they use a Game ear or something like it. I hate having muffs on my head but I am sure if you can stand them they are a very good item. Oh ya and by the way -- they are each adjustable so you can balance the sound to your own ears. Just remember to turn them off when you turn the key on the truck. The fasten seat belt beeper will drive you nuts with them on. lol

Hey Bud: I will be in Gillette from time to time. I have a bunch of ranches leased around Gillette. Pop in and say hi. You can get ahold of me through my web page listed here. I would love to get together with you sometime. Congrats on the new job.

thanks Steve Thanks a bunch Steve. I appreciate that. We will be having another TV show filmed just about 3 weeks ago... airing next week (supposedly) on The Sportsman Channel. It will be on FAMILY TRADITIONS TV show. He took a nice buck and they say its a good show as well. Check it out if you have the channel. Thanks again Steve.

thanks Hey guys thanks a bunch. They are really great people. One thing I will tell you though, they are very busy and are not real good at getting back to ya when you contact them. Even their lifelong friends have trouble hearing back from them. They are really busy. I will tell you though, they are as good of folks as you could ever meet. I sure like them. There should be a full episode of the hunt coming up sometime soon on BEYOND THE HUNT. They sure did a good job for me in that short segment. Thanks for the good words guys. I liked it too.

Hey guys Realtree recommended outfitter ANTELOPE OUTFITTERS is on BOWMADNESS tonight. Rick and Julie Kreuter from BEYOND THE HUNT are hunting with me for antelope in Wyoming. Check it out and let me know what you think. I have not seen it yet either but have been told its a good one.

lopes Hey bud: Our property is around Boise City. Not even sure what direction from Boise City yet. My partner just got it leased last weekend. Tons of lopes there though. If that will work for you -- let me know. Being the first year we might want to get into it a bit and just be sure of what we have. My best guess is you would be with my partner Brodey Davis. He is a very sharp hunter and will be a good guide. Please feel free to call me in the evening. I would be happy to help out.

oklahoma lope hunts Hey bud: We have some great lope hunting property in Oklahoma. We just leased somewhere around 17,000 acres with lots of lopes. My partner is running that for the time being. It's very new to us. I do know there are a lot of good bucks. We are also a Realtree Recommended outfitter. Please feel free to visit our web site and give us a call if you are interested. http://www.antelopeoutfitters.com/ If you choose to go it on your own, best of luck to you buddy. Lopes are great fun. Be sure to post pictures of your hunt as well. Again, good luck and have fun.

emberassed Geez you guys; I took a $27,000 a year pay cut to move out of Colorado. Now I am less than $40,000 a year. I have 3 jobs, the second and third really do not make any money but momma works and we get by. I am just as broke as I have ever been but I / we are happy here in Wyoming. However, I am working in the hunting industry for my second job. In 11 years the best profit has been $7,000 / year. It's truly a labor of love cause we really don't make any money at it. So I guess it depends on where you are coming from and where you want to go. And I don't mean exactly what state, more like state of mind.

Check out the Big game forum. Take advantage of the bad economy and maybe you can be hunting for some great hunting in Colorado and Wyoming this fall.

Hey fellow Realtree dwellers: I am offering a chance to join us for a free Colorado mule deer hunt. To qualify you need to book a hunt with ANTELOPE OUTFITTERS ( a Realtree recommended outfitter) before the end of the day Aug. 10, 2010. We are offering $200 off any hunt booked by then and you could also be drawn to join us for a Colorado mule deer hunt. We are not guides in Colorado so you will just be joining us in a wall tent camp with all the trimmings. We will see as many as 30 bucks on a good day. You can check out our site at http://www.antelopeoutfitters.com/ Hope to hear from you soon. I will be in the field all weekend so call me on my cell and lets get your Wyoming adventure booked. 307-401-0718. You could be joining us for a great Colorado mule deer hunt as well!

Hey all I got good news and bad news. the bad first. I did not draw any trophy tags in Wyoming. The good news is -- my baby girl did. She drew and area 3 sheep tag. OK now, I have three kids. Oldest drew her sheep tag first try at age 12, my son drew his at age 13 second try, baby girl drew hers age 13 second try. For those of you who are trying to figure the math on this. My kids are 60% success on sheep tags. That's five applications for sheep and three tags. While that is very exciting and fun for me cuz I get to go, why the heck can't I draw a tag? I honestly have 47 unsuccessful sheep apps. I guess the good lord is wise and has a reason why I can't get one. On the bright side WOO HOO I get to go sheep hunting again. WOO HOO i do love to hunt sheep.

good to see you Chris Hey My friend: Its really good to see you back my friend. Now its time to start planning a hunt out west.

good unit Congrats on the good tag. I have never hunted elk there but have a buddy who says its very good. I am jelous. Be sure to post pics. Good luck.

Hey all you Realtree hunters. I am sure there are a couple of you out there that have some expertise in web design. I am having trouble with my web site and need help asap. The meta tags are messed up, the contact page is messed up and I cannot get it to work the way it's supposed to. I would also like to get some video put on it. If you can help I have a great western trophy hunt with a Realtree recommended outfitter, in exchange. My site is: http://www.antelopeoutfitters.com/ If you can help, Please send me an email through the hotlink at the bottom of each page on my web site or to [email protected] Thanks a bunch Ward

Lope Hunting Hey buddy: We are a Realtree recommended outfitter. Take a look at our site and please feel free to contact me from the hotlink on the bottom of each page. Don't use the contact page though it doesn't work very often. New servers all the time keep screwing it up. You can feel free to call me on the toll free line. Bugleward

camera pod Hey muleyman: The tripod tree-arm advice is good advice. However 90% or more of these guys are filming hunts from stands or blinds. When in a blind or stand that is an easy task to accomplish. The difference is when you are hunting or stalking instead of waiting in ambush, it's just not that feasable. You will miss a lot of important footage and even could miss the kill shots if you are mounted on something stationary. My advice to you is to make sure you use the image stabilization device and run off your shoulder. Be sure to practice a lot at holding it steady. You can get three points of contact to keep it steady hand holding. Sink the eyepiece into your eye socket as much as possible then hold with a wide handle (elbows out) as much as possible with both arms. There are also shoulder pods available that will fit any camcorder. You can find them on ebay from time to time. That can give you four points of contact and you can get very steady (with practice). It does take some work and practice to get steady without a tripod or tree arm, but it can get you footage you will miss with the solid mounts. All that being said... Absolutely get the tripod and tree arm and keep them in your arsenal. They really are a necessity. And always if at all possible get your camera on a solid mount. Shoulder shooting will never be as steady or as professional looking as tripod shooting but with some effort and practice you can do very well so that you do not miss the good stuff. Another thing, if at all possible get your own editing software and make your own movies or videos. Then watch your own stuff with a very critical eye. Also watch all the TV shows you like on outdoor programs and try to duplicate the things you like and eliminate the things you do not like. My big thing is the stupid walk up shot where the hunter comes waling up to the dead trophy and says "Oh there he is," and then proceeds to poke the trophy to see it the animal is dead. Cmon now guys thats just not acceptable. I do however try to film the walkup but try to portray the realism by filming while I move quickly around the animal to get the expression on the face of the hunter while he walks up for the first time. You also will not be out there with more than one camera usually. So with that I feel re-enacting something that truly happened is OK. However be very accurate to the truth in the re- enacting. Always tell the truth no matter how real or phony the truth appears. Always tell the truth with your camera. If at all possible try hard to film the kill shot and then pan back to the hunter without a cut in the video. Of course the best way is to film over the shoulder during the shot if at all possible. Best of luck to you. Just remember always tell the truth with your filming. The folks nowdays are much more sophisticated that they used to be. They will find out if it's not the truth. Another thing to think about. Lately some of the film producers are trying to make their filming a bit edgier. They have taken to filming some of the hero shots or the how-to segments while hand holding and moving around the subject and going in and out and up and down to change the camera angle. Every person I have asked and there are lots of them. Absolutely hate it. Including me. Some careful and steady movement during that type of segment looks pretty good. Again, try to duplicate the stuff you and your friends like. Do everything you can to eliminate all the stuff you do not like. There is more to do with a hunt than just the tree stand and the kill shot. Film it all. Flat tires, gas stations, convenience stores, fast food, the hunter sleeping in, anything you do to make the hunt possible. Game recovery is another thing that could be interesting. Good luck and post your results. There are lots of folks that will give you an honest opinion. Bugleward

more on western hunting Hey brudaman: I fully understand the desire and economics of DIY hunting. I personally cannot afford to go on outfitted hunts and I do like the satisfaction of DIY. However, I do know the industry very well. You said you had to be successful. In that case you should go with an outfitter and pay the extra bucks. If you are willing to pay your dues and learn the craft of western hunting then by all means start with the pronghorn. It is the cheapest and probably the easiest to be successful on. Most of the states they live in are abundant with them and public land to hunt them on for a DIYer. However, bear in mind the tags for the good DIY spots are usually fairly difficult to come by. Our tags where we outfit are 100% and usually there are plenty of left over tags available even into the season. And yes we have been !00% successful for over 40 years.

good quality Hey Guys: One question was how big are we taking. Quite possibly the best overall outfitter for antelope in the state. I would stack our average up against any outfitter in the state. We do not take a ton of hunters so we can regulate the age class of the bucks we take. Last year was a bad year with a series of of three spring snow storms that put a huge stress level on the animals. Compound that with a record breaking summer infestation of grasshoppers and it makes for a tough season. The 08 season did not produce any B&C lopes for us, however we did send all of our archery hunters home with true P&Y trophies. Our rifle bucks this year most likely averaged mid 70s. That being said... last year we did take 6 true B&C lopes. Most years we do take several Booners. Now about the cost. One guy here stated that was too much money. While $1950 seems like a lot of money, I have done the research on the market. OUr hunts should be selling for $2500 for what we have to offer. One of the most popular RT Prostaffers in the forums can tell you how good the area we hunt is. Ask Steve B. about our quality. I usually do not say much in the forums about our hunting operation because it seems that no matter what you say... when an outfitter says something in a forum where there is the annonimity of not having to talk face to face and justify one's statements, almost always produces someone who has better, bigger, tougher, meaner, prettier, cheaper or some other superlative. The fact is this guy asked for help and I believe so strongly in the lope hunting being the best fit for his question. We truly are the best there is at the best hunt to fit his request. Hands down, without controversy, a Wyoming pronghorn hunt is the best fit for a first western big game hunt. The cost is very acceptable comparatively speaking and the excitement is always there because you are always seeing game. I know of no other big game animal that is out and about all day and sleeps nights like humans. That is accessable to the everyday hunter. OK sure the mountain goats and bighorn sheep but how many folks have a tag for that one in their wallet. Like I said accessable. All of this being said... Antelope Outfitters is a Realtree and Bone Collector recommended outfitter for a reason. You can come out and take your chances on a DIY hunt and some will do quite well. However think of this; public land DIY hunters average right around 9 inches on their lopes. Statewide average including outfitted and private land hunts is 11 inches. Our average at Antelope Outfitters in a bad year is 13 1/2 and in a good year exceeds 15 inches honestly. OUr 08 season produced 2 lopes over 17 and 5 others over 16. Outfitted hunts are not for everyone. Some folks can't afford them and some folks won't afford one. Studies at Montana State university have proven the outfitted hunt is best hunting bargain available. The average number of hunters years to kill a 6x6 bull elk is 99 years for a DIY hunter. It's less than 5 for outfitted hunts. The first elk harvest for an outfitted hunt is less than one third the cost of the first DIY elk harvest. I know there are exceptions but this was an 18 year study, Last I was informed any way. So you can take your chances. One key thing to remember, if you go on an outfitted hunt and have a bad hunt and you did not check references, its your fault. Also there are things in nature that can mess up a hunt. CHECK AS MANY REFERENCES AS YOU CAN, NO MATTER WHERE YOU GO OR WHO YOU GO WITH. Antelope Outfitters has been in business around 40 years. In all that time the hunter harvest rate has been 100%. Where else can you have odds like that. Good luck to you guys. Bugleward

lope hunting Hey buddy: I have the answer for you. Pronghorn antelope in Wyoming. Reasonably priced, tons of critters and if you go with the right outfitter or the right place on your own you will have a blast. We are a Realtree Recommended outfitter so they let us post our address in here. http://www.antelopeoutfitters.com/ Toll free number is listed on the site if you are interested in talking about it.

chris is shooting Hey Airman: I just got a picture text from Chris's mom. It was a picture of Chris in a wheelchair and getting assistance shooting a gun. The title was CHRIS AT THE GUN RANGE. So I am assuming the rehab is well on its way. Bugleward

update as I know it Hey all: This is truly horrible news. My heart is broken for Chris and his family. I just got off the phone with Chris's mom. She said his spinal injury is either C5-C6 or C6-C7. The doctors have said he will never walk again due to permanent spinal cord damage. He has no movement below his chest and minimal movement in his hands. My understanding is Chris is already talking about hunting. I told his mom to tell him he is welcome in my camp at any time. I also understand he is in a very good spinal injury hospital and rehab center. Also to Kyle -- I'n not sure which Kyle but the one who sent Chris the bow. He wanted his mom to let us all know he did kill a doe with The bow you sent him. She also said he took a 6 point with black powder gun before his accident. He was on his way hunting when he wrecked. She said he thinks he blacked out because he has no memory of it. She also said he was a careful driver and always wore his seatbelt. I promised a prayer for him from the mountain top around the campfire next week in Colorado. Chris my young friend I wish you were still going to be there with us. Bugleward

hang in there my friend Hey Chris: We are all praying for you here in Wyoming my young friend. I have been looking for you in the chat room for a while. I was wondering what happened to you. I just now was told by hunt in the chat room while I was trying to track you down. You hang on there buddy. I will send you pics and maybe even a video from the Colorado hunt. I am truly sorry you could not make it. But I will make you a promise -- I will have a spot for you any time you can make it. We will have a prayer around the campfire for you. I promise you will be there with us in our hearts and hopefully yours. If you get the chance you may be able to get a refund on your tag. Just call the Colorado DOW before Wednesday when the season opens and they may refund your tag fee. This is horrible news Chris. Please let me know if there is anything I can do from here in Wyoming. If you get on here and can get into the web... my baby girl shot a really nice buck last Sunday. Take a look at the pics on my camospace page. You take care my friend. Our prayers are with you. Bugleward and the whole Anderson family