Game farm hunts

I couldn't find anything on this subject so I figured I'd start a thread. Just wanted to see if any one has done some of these hunts. I'm looking at going to superior game ranch in the UP. I normally wouldn't consider a hunt like this but my father had a custom flintlock made for him and really wants to take a buffalo with it. And since ill be there I figured I might as well do a hog or ram hunt. The ranch is 2100 acres. I'm just wondering are these hunts really just like going and shooting a cow in pasture or can they be a bit challenging. I know the buffalo isn't the most challenging but would the ram or hog hunts be worth my time? Feel free to tell me your experiences if you've done any of there kind of hunts. Thanks

I went to 'high adventure' a few years back, for a $800 cow elk hunt.. not a good time, the animal had a ear tag, I knew.. the elk knew..the guide knew.. that a animal would die,(no game,no pay). I will never do that again, it was a harvest..not a hunt. Bob...Rhinelander

Personally I like hunting game farms for only game birds such as quail, pheasants, and chukar. But if you don't have time and have money there is nothing wrong with hunting on a game farm. A hunting experience is in "The eye of the beholder" Personally I LOVE the challenge of hunting animals with my bow like white tails, hogs, and elk on public land. It makes it that much more special when you bust your ass and bag an animal on highly pressured land. It is doable but you need to spend a ton of time and do your homework. I know guys who pay 5,ooo dollars and hunt high fenced areas in Texas and guaranteed a good buck. They have ear tags in them and come into feeders. Not my idea of a "hunt" but like I said if you don't have the time and have the money more power to you. Now that I look back on a lot of my hunts its many of my best memorable experiences were when I was close to bagging an animal and actually messed up or missed. I called in a coyote once in 2 feet of snow and watched him for 10 minutes come into a call on a January morning and seeing the steam from his breath and the sun rising behind him. I was with 2 of my long time friends and needless to say we completely missed that yote but we all looked at each other after wards and laughed. Will never forget. Awesome hunt.... One moe was same situation with 2 of my good buddies and this time we were about 5 miles in the mountains in Colorado. All sitting next to each other looking below us. I was calling and heard rocks rumbling above us.. My buddy looked up behind me and his eyes were WIDE open. A nice 5x5 elk came charging in on us and stopped about 10 feet from us behind a tree. We could not draw our bows or move. He ripped out an ear pearcing bugle that shaked the whole woods. In another moment he crashed out of there an never seen him again.Awesome... Cajun

Trapper Jed, My dad and I went up to Bear Mountain in upper Michigan about 3-4 years ago to do a Russian Boar hunt. It was terrible. Our guide was actually the owner of the local Dominos Pizza franchise who "guided" part time. I say guided very loosely. He had no idea what to do, didn't listen to our hunting requests (we wanted to use archery tackle and not sit over bait), and talked on his cell phone constantly to his wife (his truck got stuck in some marsh and he was making arangements to get it out). The outdoor channel did a segment at this ranch and it looked to be pretty legit. However, when we started hunting, I knew this was going to be a waste the first second we began our spot and stalk. There were 3 sick boars litterally within 3 feet from us that didn't move at all. It was the least challenging hunt I have ever been on in my life and the price was outrageous. My dad foot the bill for it as a spring break present for the both of us. He got one the second day with his bow and I followed it up with a shotgun shot after a 3 hour long blood tracking session. My dad ended up clipping one lung and it was just a big chase around their fenced lot until I put a slug in its neck. I was so disappointed with the hunt, I told the owner the next morning that I had enough. He insisted that I try to get my trophy, but instead we packed it up and headed home. The kicker was the 100 tip that was required to our guide. Never again at that place.

I've gone to Renegade Ranch, very north part of the lower Peninsula. Had a good time - hogs were still a challenge.

I have gone to 2 boar hunts the first one was at Caryonah which was great huge acreage, hills great experience. The second was High Adventure ranch, it stunk literally. The hunting area was so small that it was like a hog wallow. Will never go there again. http://www.caryonah.com/index.php

We hunted Shiloh ranch in Stonewall, OK a couple different times. Overall it was a pretty good hunt. They have about 500 acres and about 10-12 feeders and stands. There was nothing easy about the hunt, the pigs had great noses and seemed to see pretty well. They have a local locker that can process your pig over night and the meat was awesome, well we did shoot younger sows and not any boars. We were told the boars were not that good to eat. My sow was about 225 live weight and was great on the grill.

Ok I'm sorry I should have been a little more clear when I started this discussion. My goal wasn't to get peoples moral objections on the subject I was just looking for some personal experiences at places like these. The fact of the matter is I will probably never be able to afford to spend thousands of $s on a ram hunt and this is just a chance to do something I would never be Able to do while also spending time with my handicapped father completing one of his lifetime dreams of hunting a buffalo. So if that makes me such a horrible person so be it. If your the one who will judge me in the end I'd rather be dammed.

I've done some hunting on game farms and it's different. Depending upon the animal you're after, it can be a hunt or it can be a shoot. I've taken two different species of sheep, several hogs, a bison and a water buffalo. The sheep were the easiest and I'd call them a shoot. The hogs were darned tough, especially with a bow and I'd say that I hunted them. The bison was another shoot, although I did worry about being charged by another bison. And from what I've seen on western hunts, bison even on the open prairie aren't much tougher to shoot than the one I shot on a game farm. The water buffalo was a high "pucker factor" hunt because they are known to charge hunters and I'd never killed an animal weighing 1,400 pounds before with a bow. Game farms are what they are. They are a fun way to spend a weekend with family and friends, getting some game meat in the process. Then you have some tusks, some horns to hang on the wall... Game farms can be a great place to give a newbie a taste of hunting, allowing them to stalk or outwait and animal, align the sights and take a life. If you have an underage potential hunter, it's a great way to allow them to get some blood under their fingernails. If you have a handicapped or elderly hunter, it's a way to get out in the field maybe one last time. And it can be a great way to hunt something that you normally couldn't get a chance to shoot. I don't care if you only hunt free range or if you hunt inside a fence. Do you enjoy yourself? If the answer is yes, then I'm fine with it. Formerly Steve @ G & S

I don't think I ever bashed anyone, and if that's the way it was taken I appologize because that's not the way it was intended.

That's fine if you don't consider this hunting but I'm sure for buckrub and his young boys it was a HUNT they'll never forget. Just because you don't like something doesn't mean you should bash someone else. There's an old saying " if you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all". Lot of people have many different opinions on what is and isn't sporting. And I'm sure however you hunt there's someone that could pick it apart and say your an unethical hunter also. For me and many other hunters a hunt is more than just a dictionary definition. It about spending time with family and friends enjoying the outdoors putting some meat on the table and doing something new and exciting, so that's fine if you just want to go shooting ill make mine a hunt.

Well you're going to get it when you taint the name of hunting by calling this hunting instead of shooting. I've been to places like this (although not this particular operation) and to call them a hunt is a big stretch. I don't care if you want to do it and like I said if you enjoy go right ahead and have a blast! Just please don't call it a hunt.

It is a canned hunt. I hunted there and the pen we hunted in was a big donut. Cover around the perimeter and wide open field in the middle. I would not go back. We were packed in with several other crews even though we were told we were the only ones. However, the cabin was nice, the food was good and the company with me great. Most game could be walked up to and they let you come within 50 yards before moving off. Some animals just laid on the ground and stared at you as you walked by. Pigs were the only thing that acted wild. Won't go back, or do it again.

Buckrub The first pen right by the house, where you check in is where everyone was going into. (sorry it should of said 400 ac pen) As far as the farm house it is where the Son lives on the farm. After leaving the ranch and driving through the woods and back on the main road you turn to the left and go down that road 1.5 miles. This is where they house the big russian boars. We saw the cabins, but since they over booked we were SOL on a place to say except for the basement of the farm house. I spoke with other on here who said it was a good place to hunt, but we got screwed. As you said 5 different cabin that sleep 11 people and they did not have a place for us to stay, kind of sad.

Ditto no one asked for your opinion.

If you want to go shoot an animal on a game farm like this go right ahead and if you enjoy it great, but please don't call it a hunt. It's a shoot. buckrub, let's see a picture of your Dall Sheep, I'm betting it's not a real Dall Sheep like they have in Alaska but instead a white domestic sheep or a Mouflon of some type. If you could shoot a real Dall Ram for $750 they would have people lined up to shoot them. Have you been on a real sheep hunt? I haven't and I couldn't do it due to the physical requirments. If you think all you have to do is walk up a mountain (which isn't that easy to begin with) and shoot one you're mistaken big time.