Has anyone hunted with Monte's Guiding , or Montana Whitetails? Any advice ?
I used to Live in Seeley Lake and Missoula... I never hunted with a guide out there...
I love Montana, lived there in 1973&74 and we just returned from 2 weeks vacation in northwest MT. Fishing is great but I would strongly advise checking with a Division of Fish, Wildlife and Parks wildlife biologist in the area you plan to hunt if it is in the western part of the state. There are areas that have been very adversely affected by wolf predation.
Hello from Montana! If you are coming to hunt with an outfitter I strongly recommend doing your homework. Call the local biologists for the area you want to hunt before doing anything else. Ask them all about the area (wolves, population of deer and elk, water, food quality and quantity, winterkill etc.) After you make up your mind about where to hunt I would call the outfitters in that area and ask for a contact list of previous clientele. Call as many people as possible. If an outfitter won't give you a list then cross him off your own list. Ask the outfitter about hunting with traditional equipment, he may not want to accommodate that. When you think you know who you want to hunt with, call the game wardens in that area and ask if there have been any violations by the outfitter.
I never hunt with a guide because I live here. But I know there are some guides out there who are scamming people to stay in business.
Trust your instincts. If something triggers a little warning voice in the back of your head, listen to it!
Whatever you do make sure and talk to the local Biologists. We've lost a tremendous amount of our Elk herds to wolves. I used to hunt the Yellowstone basin before the reintroduction and after it as well and the difference is astounding. Predation by wolves has been enormous.
Lots of population loss due to wolves. As far as outfitters go, I'd check out Montana Hunting Company. Rob, the guy who runs it, is a wildlife biologist. He's a great guy and runs a great operation!
I use to guide for Tom Brogan at Big Sky guide and outfitters out of Wilsall Mt. I think Tom's son runs it now. We had access to close to a million acres and we killed a lot of animals. I'm sure it's still a top notch outfit. Always ask and check references and don't let them give you a couple names. Tom always gave a list of at least 30 names so you could pick and choose who to call. Good luck.