Looking for a guide near milton, brampton, halton or 1 hour east of toronto

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Originally Posted by TurkeyRookie

That seems absolutely fair.

On the other side, if during your scouting (the couple days before clients arrive) and you aren't seeing anything, is a call made to give them a heads up and let them decide? hold off until another day and re-schedule, or, come and take your chances?

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most assuredly TR. if they decide to come after all and like I said we get skunked I still charge but will do the reduced rate deal.

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Originally Posted by Cintax

You both should check out Luther Marsh. It's open to duck hunting now, and its $15 admission (honour system). I hunted there on Saturday and we had a great time. There are plenty of places to hunt in there. Lots of small ponds off the main marsh too. I'd bring chest waders because some places are deep. If you have a canoe or boat, there are islands in the main marsh you can get to.

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I have not been to Luther but i have heard good things. I only do a duck hunt occasionally and don't mind spending the money with a guide as long the guide is honest and doesn't treat you like an ATM machine.

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Originally Posted by bardern

most assuredly TR. if they decide to come after all and like I said we get skunked I still charge but will do the reduced rate deal.

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Can't ask for any better than that!

If I lived in Toronto, and just had to hunt waterfowl, I'd probably invest in a boat and use up my vacation days in the fall to travel to some ducky destination in Ontario during the peak season. If I didn't have vacation time like that, I'd probably not take up waterfowling. But being the wing shooting type, I'd make some shorter trips up north for grouse and rabbit, with my principal investment being an upland dog of some sort.

Personally, I like the aspect of hunting, not shooting. So I'd never consider a guide. I would just feel like a trigger man since it's the guide who it technically doing the hunting.

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Originally Posted by mosquito

I have called and emailed several and if you are a single hunter then don't even bother calling the guides, if they aren't going to make $400+ for a morning they don't care and aren't interested. The one good guide my Dad knew charged 1/2 what those guys are (what you considered fair), you always got geese so I can't say about the guarantee and had a huge spread and great blinds.

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Yeah and I bet gas was .70c/litre. The guys charging this much are trying to make a living too and believe me, there's not much profit in it....

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Originally Posted by mosquito

So what.... your dreaming about there not being much money though is easily shown as false though.

Let's say they only charge for a full day (not separate morning and afternoon) just $250 * 2 people to have a minimum and say only 20 days out of the about 90 day season it is still $10,000. Now if the land owner and insurance and gas and taxes took even as much as half that is $5,000 for a part time job. They can also write off gas and expenses against the revenue so the gas statement is silly.

For a person to make that same $5,000 in cash with no CPP,tax with holding etc. they would have to work 250 hours at $20 an hour.



I took this off one page, I won't say which one because I don't want to be insulting buy....

Pricing:

Early Canada Goose
$400.00 US per person per morning
Limit 8 Cananda Geese (6 hunters max)
Regular Canada Goose/Duck
$350.00 US per person
3-5 goose limit, 6 ducks (6 hunters max)


$350US * 6 Hunters = $2100US PER day * that same 20 days..... $42,000 US
and throw in say 5 early hunts with 6 hunters and you can add another $12,000

$42,000+ $12,000 ... $54,000 in US dollars... looks like good money to me... for maybe 3 months actual work exceptionally good!

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LMAO, You should definitely go do it then, you have an obvious insight into that business, let's see how you make out.

Do the guys you know who do it seem like millionaires to you??? The ones I've met don't seem that way. Honestly. To think that a guide actually makes $5k out of every $10k he turns over is ridiculously optimistic.

Sure you can write off expenses, but if expenses come close too close to your gross income, well there's no business in that is there......

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Originally Posted by mosquito

No interest and no time, I work full time + overtime and want to spend time with the family so I wouldn't do it on weekends. I have looked into small businesses etc. and helped others look into small businesses etc. so I am familiar with write offs, taxes, depreciation of assets, expense etc. and prefer the more reliable income stream.

I also don't know anyone that does it anymore... but to think they don't make atleast 50% that is ridiculous, they aren't stupid and any book keeper will bring it up to atleast that. They will have more than the 2 I used (some combine groups if they are less than 4) and more than 20 days so take a look and use some common sense.

4 hunters at $250 (that's $100 less than my example) is still $1000 a day, just 20 days and you are talking $20,000. Given that bookings are possibly doubled to 40 days of the over 90 day seasons and you are up to $40,000 revenue.


So once again back to my statement on the original question.

1 Canoe - $300 to $500 used and can be used all year round.
1 dozen decoys + maybe a pair of geese, weights, lines etc. say another $300

So $800 or the same as 3 hunts and you have a canoe for the rest of the year, can go to Luther or Rondeau multiple times and even bring another person at a minimum extra cost.

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I will let you in on a little trade secret. Top line and bottom line are two different things.

Well there you go, you wouldn't give up your steady stream of income to earn $40k in three months (best case, your numbers), which are not right by the way, but using those numbers you wouldn't do it..........but you believe that they are charging too much, the ones that are worth their salt, work hard dude and there is risk, no doubt, you make it sound like they are ripping people off!!!

You know how much you are paying, up front, if you do your research you know what you will be getting, up front. People pay it, I've paid it, don't know why you would criticize that.

So.....does anyone know a good guide??

S.

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Originally Posted by Sinker

So.....does anyone know a good guide??

S.

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Not for $150 a day LOL, point taken though.....