Should you go elk hunting guided or unguided?
The answer to this question revolves around two things — priorities and abilities. Ask yourself, “Is the satisfaction gained from hunting on my own most important,” or, “Is having someone else conduct most of the business of the trip for me more important?”
Eddie Claypool
In other words, is the end more important than the means, or vice-versa?
In relation to ability, there are three aspects of involvement — financial, physical and mental.
Can you afford a top-end, fully guided hunt, or not? If you pay a premium price for a hunt, do you expect (or demand) success, or, could you accept failure?
Can you provide the physical toughness and mental determination to bring a do-it-yourself outing to fruition? Do you have the woods’ savvy to be safe and productive on a do-it-yourself, backwoods outing?
Would you be happy to invest the time and effort necessary to make one or two trips on your own — whether you kill an animal, or not — in order to, “learn the ropes?”
These are the primary questions to answer in determining, which type of outing you should choose.