Anyone on here have any recommendations for Merriams outfitters or options in SD or NM? I'm not ruling out NW Nebraska but really like to get a "pure blood" if possible and option for at least 2 birds... I know duck season is just around the corner but I can't get turkeys off my mind still.

I've seen birds in Nebraska that looked whiter than some birds in South Dakota. They've all been diluted

Go with an outfitter in south South Dakota and hunt birds in NE and SD.

I killed some white birds just west of niobrara, ne on the South Dakota border, but would not recommend the outfitter. Great turkey hunting in that area, however.

Don't overlook WY. It's only a 1 bird state but it's easy to combo SD or NE in there too. WY has been the best Merriams hunting I've been on so far

Let me know when you get it figured out and when we are leaving.

It will be hard to beat the Rosebud Indian Reservation in SD and Mike Marshall for your guide. The only issue with the Rosebud is they have hybrid mix and some pure merriams. Just depends on what part of the Rez Mike takes you. This is a fairly cheap hunt for the quality.

If you try to hunt NW Nebraska on public just be prepared see a bunch of burnt up property and a lot of dead falling trees. It has gotten pretty bad since the forest fires hammered that area. A lot of the burned trees are now falling.

We killed Merriams in an area this past spring with no hybrid mix.
Some of the Rios I have killed were more white than these birds.
Just really depends on where you are at.

We had a great hunt with Mike on the Indian Reservation, highly recommend him if you want to hunt SD. He's just VERY hard to get in touch with.

Like Squeaky said, the hunting in NE was rough as hell with all the dead trees from the fire. It made walking through the woods tough and we hunted 4-5 days with 30 mph winds which was knocking the tops out of the trees. It was an adventure for sure.

You got any contact info for Mike? If so will you please pm that my way?

I just looked through my phone and I don't have his number anymore. Squeaky may still have it. You can probably Google him and get it. He's a pain in the arse though as far as getting in touch with him but he's a great guide.

thanks for the help guys... I need to get this figured out now so I have 6 months to look fwd to the trip.

If you're interested in New Mexico reach out to Chris at Compass West Outfitters. He guides all over the state for everything under the sun and is the guide Cabelas uses. I'm not sure if he advertises turkey's on his website but I'm sure if you shoot him an email he can point you in the right direction. I myself was planning on reaching out to him about a possible Merriam Hunt in the future. He also has a couple of camps in Colorado you might be able to do a multi state trip since he's got some land around the border.

If you're considering just Colorado Zarry Zaponti of C Bar Z outfitters does semiguided and tresspass hunts. I Bow Hunted for Pronghorn out there 2 years ago and saw hundreds of birds. My pronghorn hunt was unsuccessful because it was pouring raining so waterholes weren't productive but I'd definitely go back. He can be a little rough around the edges and some people don't get along with him especially if you don't want to listen to his advice when hunting on your own. I had no issues what so ever.

ID doesn't allow guides to guide for turkey but you can bear hunt and if you tag out a lot of them will let you go after turkey's. Mike Branson of Windriver Outfitters would be who I'd talk to in Idaho.