Open Post #3

I found this video on what a client should look for when searching for a hunting guide.  I choose to put this video up on my blog because it gives good information on what a good guide should be.  It gives ways that one should factor in when choosing a guide and a guide can use this video to see if they have and do everything that a good guide does. 

http://youtu.be/rDI_LumqeOI

Observing Community Post

The closet club on campus that I found was the Fisheries and Wildlife Club.  This club is about conserving the wildlife and environment in the world that we live in.   Being a hunting guide you need the wildlife and environment to have a job.  If there were no organizations like this the environment would be struggling by the way that we humans live today.  Which in turn would hurt the guides and outfitters because with no wildlife there would be nothing for people to hunt.  The mission of this club is to further enhance the education and professional development of students that are interested in natural resources, through hands on experience in management, research and public outreach.  Being a hunting this would be very beneficial to be a part of to further your skills and give you an edge on others in the field.  I have not been able to attend a meeting for this program though because the meet at 6:30 on Thursday nights so I hope to attend a meeting soon

Open Blog #2

This week I found a school that is specifically to teach you how to become a good guide.  The school is called The Colorado Outdoor Adventure Guide School and is located in Mesa, Colorado.  At the school they offer a variety of different programs from basic guide skills to even an advanced backcountry horsemanship program and all the programs are usually 2 weeks long.  The main point of the school is to teach the essential skills of the outdoors for you to become an expert guide.  They say that they are the premier outdoor guide school in the country and want to help you learn the essentials to having a good career in guiding.

Interview Blog

The person that I am going to interview for my Blog is Jim Dieckmann.  He is a P.H. in Australia, where he owns his own hunting operation called Havago Australia.  By the way, a P.H., or professional hunter, is another name for a guide.  My family and I have gone hunting in Australia with Jim and his wife Debbie and, to this day, still remain good friends with them.  Jim is a very experienced guide and hopefully by asking him some questions I will learn some good information in becoming successful at being a hunting guide.

Questions:

How did you get into this line of work? 

What made you want to become a hunting guide?

What is the worst part of the job?

What is the best part?

What education do you need to have to do this job?

How many years of experience do you feel you need to have to be proficient at your job?

Delivery & Style

     I came across this blog written by a hunting outfitter that is about hunting elk in Utah.  In this blog as you read is clear that they are trying to persuade the reader that Utah is the best place for you to go and hunt elk.  They go on and say that in Utah you can find some  the biggest elk that you have ever seen and that they are the second most abundant species in the state.  They also talk about how the terrain of the state make it so that the elk are very abundant.  At the beginning of the blog they include some facts about the species of animal so that it catches the readers attention so that they will keep reading further.  The whole style of this blog is such that these guides that wrote it are trying to persuade people to come to Utah and hunt with them over other places in the country.

I also found an article a hunter wrote about goose hunting in Canada.  In the article they talk about the effective ways to set up decoy spreads and where the blinds should be placed.  Also it talks about what most be done  the offseason of hunting so that during the season you are effective at hunting the geese.  It is a good article to read on goose hunting if you are looking for ways to better improve your hunting.

http://www.leederhunting.com/guided-hunts/elk-hunting-guides/utah-elk-hunting-guides/

http://search.proquest.com.proxy2.cl.msu.edu.proxy1.cl.msu.edu/docview/230407180/1392282EB4636D8082D/3?accountid=12598

Open Post #1

A question that I was not able to answer earlier was how much do hunting guides make. Depending on where you are hunting and what you are hunting for all factor in on how much guides make but I was able to find an average price for how much they make.  Rookie guides usually make about $75 to $100 a day plus tips which typically are $50 to $200 a week.  While experienced guides usually make any where from $150 to $200 a day and tips from $200 to $500 a week.  Also another factor in how much guides make is that they get free meals and lodging while they are guiding.  

Also a question that i was asked about my career was what type of animal would I like to guide for. There really isn’t one particular animal I would like to hunt.  I would probably say though that I would like to guide in Alaska where I could hunt black bears, grizzly bears, caribou, moose and the many other types of animals that Alaska has to offer. 

10 Questions about being a Hunting Guide

1.  Do hunting guides work year around and if not when do they work?

Hunting guides do work year around but not doing the same thing.  During the season of which it is open to hunt the species of animal they are after hunting guides take there clients out hunting the animals.  The other parts of the year of which the hunting season is closed the hunting guides are scouting for the season that is coming up and they also are trying to find clients for their upcoming season.

    

2.  Where are hunting guides employed?

Hunting guides are employed all over the world.  Wherever there is a species of animal that is available to hunt there is sure to be a guide there.

3.  What are some types of skills that are involved in being a hunting guide?

One of the most vital skills to have is communication skills.  They are a vital part of the job because as a guide you are dealing with many different types of peple from all over the world.  Also the guide needs to know the area that he is hunting for the safety of himself and of the clients that he has with him.

4.  What types of things does a hunting guide need for his job?

The guide needs to have the essential gear for his area where he is hunting and have an understanding of what the client needs to make his adventure enjoyable and safe.

5.  What type of schooling do hunting guides need?

There is no particular degree requirements or education qualifications to be a hunting guide beyond that the guide needs to have an understanding of the area that he is in, understand the animals that they are hunting along with the dangers that arise from that and have knowledge of what to do in an emergency situation. Along with this though there are guide schools that guides may go to.

6.  What must a hunting guide do to do well in his career?

A guide to do well must have his name out there so clients are able to find him or have heard of him to go hunting.  Along with this the guide must have a good reputation otherwise clients are not going to want to go with him if he cannot be trusted or does not know what he is doing.

7.  What are the physical qualifications for a guide?

The guide must be in the physical condition needed to tackle the terrain that he is in.  For example if the guide is located in Alaska he needs to be in good physical condition to be able to scale the mountains of which he will be climbing to go after the animals located there.

8.  Why is it important for a guide to have an understanding of their clients?

The guide also must have an understanding of there clients so that they know what the clients are capable of both physically and mentally so that they avoid being put in bad situations which could both hurt the client and the guide.

9.  How much do hunting guides make?

10.  What are the downfalls of being a hunting guide?  

Especially with the economy the way that it is now, people are struggling for money and a hunting trip would be the last thing that they would be thinking about. Hunting trips for most people are a vacation, a time to get away from there jobs or the rest of their lives at the moment and with people struggling for money trips are not being taken.

Kirk, Amanda. Outdoor Careers. New York: Ferguson Publishing, 2009. Print.

About Me

        My name is Alex Schultz and I am currently a freshman at Michigan State University majoring in Agribusiness Management.  I come from the small town of Newaygo, Michigan that most of you have pry never heard of.  I grew up on a farm and have always had a fondness for the outdoors.  I love to hunt and fish and that is where my dream job comes into place.  If I could have any job I would love to be a hunting and fishing guide.  Just to have an office like the Rocky Mountains in Alaska or the vast plains of Colorado would in my opinion be the greatest job on earth.  I have grown up hunting and fishing since as far as I can think back.  A combination of these two would, flat out, be the best job.

        As for some more about me, I loved sports and played soccer and golf; not the   exciting sports, I know but I really enjoyed playing them. 

I am going into a degree with farming because growing up on a farm i really enjoyed it and always wanted to pursue a degree in it.  As far as writing goes you could say that we don’t get along.   problem is not that I  don’t like to write, but it is that there is always something that I would rather be doing.  I’m not the type of person that can just sit for long periods of time and write or stare at a book but I hope to get better at it.