Hey guys,
I am just starting to look into your Hunting Regs and i am new to hunter hosting. The responsibilities of the host and the hunter are pretty much black and white but i guess I dont quite have a grip on the entire situation.
Is a host always someone you personally know or is it acceptable to trade out hunts, trips, etc... in return?
A little bit about me. I LIKE A CHALLENGE. I have a better than most oppurtunity for whitetail deer. I am basically a hired hand to control numbers on a high end ranch, the Texas department of wildlife issues "x" number of tags to the land in order to conrol numbers, the land owners harvest the trophies and as many does as they desire and its part of my job to make up the difference by harvesting mature does and 4 1/2+ year old bucks that are not wanted to reproduce. All in I dont get quite as excited as I wish I did about a "kill" anymore but there is absolutely nothing I desire more than a "hunt"!!! In my mind the greatest part about a harvest is the picture of you and your game and the story that goes with it. When you got the fellas gathered up and your telling about how you battled the elements and the terrain or how you had to stalk the animal and crawl through the mud to get within range for a shot... That is what I live for.
Most of hunting in Texas occurs on large tracks of fenced property with corn feeders and deer blinds. You may see 20-40 deer on any given sitting in your blind and you basically just pick out the one you want. Alot of hunting here has become so commercialized. If your pockets are deep enough you can spend 25,000 on a 240" deer that was practically bottle fed most of its life and released into an area hours before you arrive to hunt. Dont get me wrong, not all of Texas is this way. We have hundreds of thousands of acres that are untouched and hide some truely amazing game. The point I am trying to make is that I would consider a 140" free range that I worked my tail off for to be a better trophey than a 200"+ pet.
I wont give up my management land just because its a once in a life time oppurtunity but I am getting into and falling in love with free range. In the last week I have looked at satellite images of Alberta for who knows how many hours and I want in! I have no problem going with an outfitter but I would take more pride and doing it on my own or with a buddy who is as passionate and thrilled to be there as I am.
Im not sure this is appropriate but i guess this is kinda my future hunter host application.
*I understand and promote conservation of game
*I am enrolled to become certified to teach hunters education
*I am a Hunt Master for the Texas Youth Hunt Program (basically the outdoors version of Big Brothers/Big Sisters)
*I am a Hunt Master for Adaptive Outdoors, which runs deer and game bird hunts for folks with disabilities(most wheel chair bound)
*EMT basic certification which could be usefull in the woods
*I am the owner and creator of
www.lonestarwild.com an outdoors forum similar to this one.
Thanks for reading, I am two years out most likely for an Alberta trip but I am very interested in learning the ways in the meantime
Zack Thompson
www.lonestarwild.com
