My Montana hunt was a complete bust

[bearhunter59]

Reading all these great Montana success stories really gets me depressed after the "GREAT" adventure I had there this year....

I was invited to go to Montana with a co-worker early this year, and since I have always wanted to hunt there, I looked at it as an opportunity of a lifetime for me to go.  So we put in as a group and got drawn for our combo elk and deer tags.  I also put in for and got drawn for a Muley tag in the 250 unit, and an anterless in the 270 unit.  Well, about a month before we go this co-worker tells me that the guy from Montana we were going to hunt with, now wasn't going to beable to be there during the week to hunt with us, so we would be on our own most of the time.  (That was strike one).  Then it turns out the other guy that was going with us from Spokane needed to delay the trip a week or so becuase of Guard duty.  (Foul ball).  It actually worked out better for me, because I had just broke my left (shooting) hand, and needed the extra week for it to get out of the cast. (Actually cut it off the second day it was on).  Then a week before we are to leave the co-worker tells me the wall tent we were going to take is out, becuase it belongs to his father-in-law, and he has decided he was going to use it this year. (Strike two).  So I get on Craigslist and pickup a used military GP 16x16.  Then 3 days before we leave he tells me the utility trailer we were going to use is out....bent/broke tongue.  So I get on Craigslist again and pickup a trailer.  Friday (Halloween) he calls and tells me something has come up at home and we can't leave Saturday becuase he has to watch the kids.  (Strike three).  He assures me he will be at my house o'dark-thirty Sunday morning though and we will hit the road.  I really expected to get a call early Sunday morning and have him back completely out, but he showed and we made it to Darby, MT in about 10 hours.  Quicker than I thought we would get there.  I thought it would take between 12-14 hours to get there...We were supposed to call the Montana guy when we got to Missoula and he would meet us in Darby and take us out to the camp.  We started trying to get a hold of this guy from the time we hit Missoula, and for the next hour and a half to Darby. Even then we had to sit around in Darby for another couple hours until the guy finally called us and then showed up to take us out to the camp.
They had a wall tent, with stove setup for us already, which was great.  Now, we could use mine for storage, cooking and general BS.  We spent Monday setting up and waiting for the Spokane hunter to show up.  He showed up about 9pm.  For the next 4 day, we would get up early and hit the woods, and they would be ready for the truck and camp by 9-10 o'clock.  Even when the co-worker was actually out of the truck, he was so far out of shape and we were at altitude, that we had to wait 10 minutes for him to catch up to us, up the first hill, and we had only been walking 2 minutes...It was like this all four days.  By the fourth day, when I had been hoofin' it around, up and down those mountains all day, and couldn't raise them on the radio once, I had had enough.  When I got back to the truck, I threw my stuff in it, jumped in, and told them that we could go home tomorrow if that was the way the rest of this hunt was going to go, because I didn't consider this hunting, and we were never going to see anything with the way they were hunting.  We went back to camp and I wouldn't talk to them the rest of the day.  They did actually go back out that afternoon, for the first time, but I refused to go with them...Turns out, that afternoon, the co-worker had a shot at a whitetail buck and he decided at that moment, he wasn't a hunter.  They came back to camp that afternoon, and the co-worker said he decided he wasn't a hunter, and we could pack up and leave tomorrow....which is what we did.  We packed up and came home Saturday.

This was truly the worst hunting adventure I have ever had.

I came home and decided to see if I could at least fill my deer tag during late buck, so I headed up to the Satsop Center and hunted the Wynoochee area Thursday, Friday, and Saturday morning.  By Saturday morning, after the third time of having someone drive up a road I had been walking up for 2 hours, I decided it just wasn't ment to be this year, and packed it up and came home....

I'm so depressed....trying to decide whether to give it all up or maybe take up bowhunting...anybody got a cheap left-handed bow they want to get rid of???

[Houndhunter]

hit the national forest

[bobcat]

Sorry to hear about the terrible Montana hunt. It's hard to find good hunting partners. Maybe you ought to hook up with some of the dedicated guys on this site for next year.

[wrangler]

huh. too bad about that but i sure wouldn't have let em ruin my hunt. who cares if you can't get em on the radio or they can't keep up. haul ass off in to the sticks an hour before light without em and come back when you please. don't really get the whole holding hands the whole time thing? iv hunted with folks like that but it always worked out cause me and my dad would never see em cause we'd be out huntin while they were sittin on a stump 20 feet off the road or takin a nap at camp. too bad it spoiled everything for ya.

[jadeball1]

well, consider it a learning experience. My Montana hunt wasnt much better, but I did use the time to research for next year. Maybe we could start a support group?

[croix]

bearhunter59-
that's really too bad. the people you hunt with can make a poor hunt a lot of fun, but unfortunately the opposite is true. keep me in mind for next year. i would love to hunt montana and i'm not afraid to put in the leg time. maybe jadeball1's support group idea could result in a pretty good group for that trip. even if i don't get in on it, i hope your next year is better.

[tmike]

Anybody that still has a deer tag and time should hook up and GO. It's prime time right now and trust me we left plenty there for you to take. Get the block management maps, make a few calls and go shoot a nice buck. The monsters should be making an appearance as we speak.

[1bowhunter1]

I would of came back to camp with "MISTER BIG RACK"  And said to them....That was a hunt of a life time!!!  Sorry you guys missed it!   

[X-Force]

That's one heck of a story. I'm sorry to hear how it turned out. Its true that the guys you hunt with can make or break your season. hopefully you get another trip to Montana soon.

[huntnphool]

Anybody that still has a deer tag and time should hook up and GO. It's prime time right now and trust me we left plenty there for you to take.

  There is still plenty of time for you to go, don't burn the tag. Get together with someone else on here that still has a tag, split the fuel and drive time. If you drive straight through it will go fast, just take turns. That 250 tag should be a no brainer, seriously!!!

I am sending you a PM

[Bronson]

Bummer on that trip, bearhunter59. 

[Dameion]

That sucks bro....I guess those of us that have had a hunting crew forever take this type of stuff for granted!! Take a couple of these guys up on their offer and get a solid crew together, just my 

[MountainWalk]

Thats pretty tough man. But really the hunting was pretty tough this year. But we picked up some deer. Too dang hot.

Yeah its tough to find good dedicated hunting pals. I'm kinda in the same boat sometimes.

[270Shooter]

That sucks and a waste of a great tag . Hopefully your next trip will be better.