I see Winterhawk Outfitters has an advertisement in the issue of Compton's magazine. They have a fairly impressive website. They hunt elk in the High Tops of Colorado.
I have a friend in Grand Junction who has advocated for Larry Amos' Outfitting services. So, their general reputation is probably good. But I didn't see any recurves or longbows there, nor any mention anywhere of traditinal bowhunters.
Does anyone have any experience or knowledge about these folks? I've learned to be pretty weary of outfits that don't specifically cater to trad bowhunters. Any advise would be appreciated.
I did a guided base camp hunt with them in the 1990's and a drop camp hunt a few years later. Camps are very professionally run by owner Larry Amos. He is an honest, hard-working person. A fair number of elk in the Flat Tops Wilderness area but not really a good spot for a really big bull as the Flat Tops is a popular public hunting area and gets hit pretty hard. Good place to go if you would be satisfied with a cow or small bull. The drop camp is a good option for the more-experienced hunter that wants to be placed in a good area with game and camp already set up. I would not hesitate to return and hunt with Winterhawk in the future.
I'm from NY and just returned from an archery hunt with Winterhawk. We were in the Big Springs camp (there are 2 main base camps) and I was the only trad guy in that camp. I spoke with Larry and Laura a few times about trad gear before booking and got a good feel from them about it. For the most part, they respected your choice of bow and challenge involved. In camp my guide and other hunters and guides were overall very supportive. They seemed genuinely interested and curious about it and were respectful. It didn't hurt that they could tell I practiced quite a bit, had great equipment, and took the responsibility and hunt very seriously. I also was very impressed how much more emphasis was placed on getting close and arrow weight as opposed to type of bow, and that was from everyone there (compounds hunters and guides). In general, people seemed more impressed than skeptical of my recurve.
The hunt itself was very tough due to the terrain and very warm weather. The flat tops are spectacular but the area does receive quite a bit of pressure and you really have to work for the elk. Although we did not kill an elk it was quite a wilderness adventure. Overall, Winterhawk is a reputable outfitter that runs a good operation
I hunted with them in 2004. Came very close to taking a decent bull, just couldn't get him out of heavy brush.
From what I remember, the guides and Larry watch the hunters practice on the range during arrival, talk to the hunters and them match the hunters up with the best guide possible. While practicing, I had a guide ask me to retrieve my arrow, walk briskly for 20 paces, then turn around and fire an arrow as fast as possible at the 3d elk.
We rode horses to a tent miles back. I saw one public hunter during the 10 day hunt.
I'd hunt with them again in a heartbeat.
I've hunted with Winterhawk 3 times. I would recommend them to anyone.
Since I've started DIY I probably wouldn't go back to an outfitted hunt unless it was a trophy type tag/operation (if I ever had the money).
Good luck!