So if I'm filming a TV show, I'd get a better tree? I'm jealous!

thats how it works at some places. Not all though

I'm surprised some of our resident outfitters haven't chimed in. They must be in the weeds:

Well, BTDan. I made my brief comment. We try to refrain from bashing the other guy to prop ourselves up. Really no need for it. I will even say this about the mentioned outfitter. They are doing something right to book the number of hunters they book. Very visible with advertising. However, it is our right and belief to think we offer a better hunt, and I stated that. We may not be the best at advertising, but our re-book rate can't be ignored. If a guy is interested, we just want the chance to tell our story.

The above has been my personal experience with a top end outfitter in Pike Cty IL. I paid a premium price to do a 5 day hunt with the outfit. Not once in 5 days did I have an opportunity to kill a mature doe little less a buck of any size. I did however see a 160+ plus in a cut corn field on the way out 3 consecutive days. I asked my guide to get me a stand put up on that corn field ASAP. My guide and I got the run around from the owner of the guide service. He refused to put me on that cornfield and even moved me further away from the area just in case to buck decided to come by me. I through a fit and demanded my money back...no such luck in with that. I later found out from my guide that they had a big time film crew coming in right after my hunt was over. Guess what....they were set up on the deer I had seen. Not sure if they killed the deer but I sure got screwed over in the deal. I WILL NEVER us an outfitter again for a whitetail deer period.

I have always been leery of them too. When BOHNTR (Chris) and I hunted up in Pike County we simply paid a guy for access to a piece of land and then scouted and hung our stands where we wanted them. That I would do again in a heartbeat. But trusting some big outfitter to put my nobody non-famous @$$ in a prime spot? Sorry, I just don't. And from the stories I read like yours apparently my fears are not unfounded. The simple sad fact is that the TV hunter/crew coming in and killing that 160 class buck would be big advertising for the outfitter. Much more bang for the buck than any word of mouth you would have given him if you had killed it. That is why average folk like me or you are always apt to get shafted at such places.

Im sure there is some good outfitters out there, but I would stay away from the "spot light" type. Greed can be a SOB

Plenty of Great Bucks on public access land in the midwest......
Just do your research, less expensive too..

All outfitters are not created equally.

Just saying.

The two biggest knocks on Hadley Creek are: Most of the guides work strictly for hunting privileges without pay. If a hunter spots a monster, he's moved to another stand, and one of the guides will hunt that area in his off time, and shoot the buck. The other big knock is that HC doesn't pay their bills to vendors. They've been sued numerous times and lost - do a Google search under "Hadley Creek lawsuits" and you'll see. When I see the Drury brothers pimping for them on their numerous shows, I lose all respect for them. Terry Drury is OK, but Mark is a smug arrogant jerk IMHO.

x2.
The only outfitter I ever had a chance to deal with is TCO.And it was Great.

I was at an outfitter in Pike a few years ago and one of the ex guides pulled up to the camp to show off a big buck he killed on his own lease. Well the next year his pic with the buck shows up on their website as if he killed it there. my friend just happen to win a free trip back with this outfitter so I went along and at the end of the trip we filled out a survey and I mentioned about putting false pics up on their website. Probably ticked them off

I guided for Trophy Class Outfitters for several years and can honestly say it didn't matter who you were we always did our best to help you kill a nice deer. The rebook rate spoke for itself as most of my hunters paid for the next year before they were out of camp. If the guides were hunting and spotted a nice buck a client would be in that stand the next hunt.I have no ties whatsoever with them now so there is no reason for me brag on them if it were not true. RL did his best to make sure each and every hunter had an opportunity to harvest a 125" deer or better. Many hunters passed on bucks up to 140" because they knew the potential of what these farms had on them. If you want a fair chase quality hunt and don't want to do all the leg work yourself TCO is a great outfit to book with.

15 years of hunting public land

I'm not talking about outfitters in general....I'm talking about Hadley Creek particularly. WAY, WAY, WAY too many horror stories from that place. Plus, I will not knowingly help keep a company stay in business that operates the way they do (i.e. without any integrity whatsoever....just ask the banks and locals in the Pike County area what they think about Hadley Creek!).

No Celebrities get to hunt, Clients get to sit in stand and watch deer "just out of range"... Allot of place like Hadley will not let you leave your stand or hang a stand to get in the spot you need to be...

Semi-guided hunts are the way to go...

You nailed it right there my friend. Semi or self-guided is the only way to go if you want to actually HUNT and be in some sort of control over your situation. If you go on a FULLY guided hunt, you are at the mercy of a guide and his decision making, good or bad, to put your hard earned money to work.

I hunt with an outfitter in Kansas. I get 2 farms for the week all to myself. He has a few stands, but I usually hang several myself. I have been hunting with him for 5 years and killed a 140+ every year, including a 161 in 2010 and a 157 in 2011.

If you can hunt, you don't need a guide. No, you just need access and lack of pressure.

It blows my mind how paying hunters don't know about HC. I have NEVER heard anything positive about HC. I used to hunt in Pike Co with BucksBeware Outfitters and Tom Ware was the best and I had GREAT hunts at BB. Tom's since sold his operation so I don't know how BB is doing.

Nonetheless, it goes to show you that if you're going to go on a paid hunt, you'd better do your homework!!!

HC holds areas closed until the filming crew shows up and then that's where the celebrities hunt. It's a rip off for the average Joe Blow.

Some of you guys should checkout south Dakota. Randy at the link below will make you a deal on a bow hunt. Awesome archery turkey hunting also. I have no gain in plugging this place. Just greatest free range hunting I have seen.

http://www.huntmajesticranch.com/about.html

Where in Kansas do u go