Has anyone ever booked a Mexico Goulds trip through CG International Outdoors? Taking a trip there next year and interested in hearing how others trips have gone.
Sorry I can't help you haven't hunted them YET, but can bring your post back to the top. Have your name marked down to talk to you sometime in the furture to see how your trip went. I have seen a few YouTube video on Goulds hunts that were guided, you could look at them, maybe same place.
If you had said "Gould's with El Halcon" I could tell you all about it and it'd all be good............... Manuel Enriquez es el hombre !!!
Look up Rio Sonora outfitters. They thump them.
I went last year with an outfit. My vehicle broke down in Saltillo. Didn't find out where I was going til 4 days before the hunt, no time to book a flight so I drove. There was no meeting at the border or anything .... you were expected to get yourself there and back for about the same price as any reputable outfitters. Anyway I didn't make it, vehicle broke down, had some locals help me swap a fuel pump , and drove back to the states . I got no refund either , no rebook..... nothing. With that said , you better go with somebody reputable , who has some method of getting you there and back. Mexico is 4th world...... I've had a few friends use Rio Sonora.... they seem to be the going outfit for opportunity and safety. My guide couldn't even speak English .....and barely write it.
Gould's Turkey Hunt/Colburn and Scott Outfitters (Jay Scott and Darr Colburn) offer some of the best Gould's hunting anywhere. Rio Sonora with Brad Faulk is also good.
Haven't heard of them either, but whoever you go with make sure you get several references. If the outfitter won't give you names and contact info for a few of his former clients to speak with, be leery of them. Could be that the outfitter in question is new to hunting Mexico Gould's. Regardless, if they can't give you some names of folks to contact, beware.
Also, make sure you understand what the conditions are under which you will be hunting. Some of the outfitters have rules about how you can hunt that might not be what you are looking for. In addition, they should be able to clearly answer any questions you have about the various legalities involved in hunting down there regarding border-crossing requirements, the licensing and the permitting process, and getting your birds back across the border.
The good ones know what they are doing and will know the answers to all of those questions and concerns. The actual hunting is the easy part. Of all of the subspecies, Gould's are the easiest to hunt.
Quote from: GobbleNut on February 26, 2020, 03:29:06 PMThe actual hunting is the easy part. Of all of the subspecies, Gould's are the easiest to hunt.
Just remember this.......... Henned up gobblers are henned up gobblers no matter WHERE you find them.
The terrain on a Gould's hunt can be the most forbidding, nasty stuff you'll ever hunt turkeys in. Hunting at 7500-9000 feet also has its issues for some.
I had to carry the second bird of my Gould's hunt out 4+ miles to the truck. The first 1/2 mile of that was a 1000 foot elevation gain. And about everything you step on either slides, rolls or jags.
Now.............. Not EVERYONE in the lodge hunted as hard. Not all were able and Manuel is EXCEPTIONAL at accommodating ALL reasonable physical limitations.
Quote from: GobbleNut on February 26, 2020, 03:29:06 PM
Haven't heard of them either, but whoever you go with make sure you get several references. If the outfitter won't give you names and contact info for a few of his former clients to speak with, be leery of them. Could be that the outfitter in question is new to hunting Mexico Gould's. Regardless, if they can't give you some names of folks to contact, beware.
Also, make sure you understand what the conditions are under which you will be hunting. Some of the outfitters have rules about how you can hunt that might not be what you are looking for. In addition, they should be able to clearly answer any questions you have about the various legalities involved in hunting down there regarding border-crossing requirements, the licensing and the permitting process, and getting your birds back across the border.
The good ones know what they are doing and will know the answers to all of those questions and concerns. The actual hunting is the easy part. Of all of the subspecies, Gould's are the easiest to hunt.
I won it in the live auction at the NWTF Convention, so surely they would only let a reputable outfitter into that. I have also reached out to some who have left reviews on his Facebook page (all glowing, of course). Everything I have read and seen looks great. I guess I am just a naturally skeptical person..
That's a big negative....you don't have to be reputable to have a hunt auctioned off at the NWTF convention. Don't ever let them make you think that.....Not to say the guy you are going with isn't reputable, not saying that at all....but don't think because anybody shows up to an event makes them good...because that's the furthest thing from the truth.
Quote from: MShillhunter on February 26, 2020, 07:43:29 PM
I won it in the live auction at the NWTF Convention, so surely they would only let a reputable outfitter into that. I have also reached out to some who have left reviews on his Facebook page (all glowing, of course). Everything I have read and seen looks great. I guess I am just a naturally skeptical person..
If that is the case, I would be pretty confident that your hunt is on the up and up. I'm pretty certain the NWTF would vet any hunt like that pretty thoroughly. You should have a great time,...we'll be expecting a full report!
Quote from: Yoder409 on February 26, 2020, 07:33:17 PM
Quote from: GobbleNut on February 26, 2020, 03:29:06 PMThe actual hunting is the easy part. Of all of the subspecies, Gould's are the easiest to hunt.
Just remember this.......... Henned up gobblers are henned up gobblers no matter WHERE you find them.
The terrain on a Gould's hunt can be the most forbidding, nasty stuff you'll ever hunt turkeys in. Hunting at 7500-9000 feet also has its issues for some.
Very true. Catch them under the wrong circumstances and they can be a challenge. On the whole, however, they are generally much easier to call and kill than the other subspecies and are not nearly as wary. And yes, depending on where you are hunting, the terrain can be challenging for someone that is not used to hunting that sort of country.
Quote from: GobbleNut on February 26, 2020, 11:34:26 PM
Quote from: MShillhunter on February 26, 2020, 07:43:29 PM
I won it in the live auction at the NWTF Convention, so surely they would only let a reputable outfitter into that. I have also reached out to some who have left reviews on his Facebook page (all glowing, of course). Everything I have read and seen looks great. I guess I am just a naturally skeptical person..
If that is the case, I would be pretty confident that your hunt is on the up and up. I'm pretty certain the NWTF would vet any hunt like that pretty thoroughly. You should have a great time,...we'll be expecting a full report!
Quote from: Yoder409 on February 26, 2020, 07:33:17 PM
Quote from: GobbleNut on February 26, 2020, 03:29:06 PMThe actual hunting is the easy part. Of all of the subspecies, Gould's are the easiest to hunt.
Just remember this.......... Henned up gobblers are henned up gobblers no matter WHERE you find them.
The terrain on a Gould's hunt can be the most forbidding, nasty stuff you'll ever hunt turkeys in. Hunting at 7500-9000 feet also has its issues for some.
Very true. Catch them under the wrong circumstances and they can be a challenge. On the whole, however, they are generally much easier to call and kill than the other subspecies and are not nearly as wary. And yes, depending on where you are hunting, the terrain can be challenging for someone that is not used to hunting that sort of country.
I know not so good outfitters who have hooked up nwtf big wigs with birds and got reputable feedback and very good outfits who an nwtf big wig couldn't kill a bird at and got bad feedback. so....just because you have a hunt auctioned doesn't mean crap. it just doesn't.....and nwtf branding on something doesn't make it quality. Im by no means anti nwtf either....been a member for years, doesn't make me a fool or a bootlicker either though
Fair enough. I don't want to belabor this discussion. I will just say that NWTF is, or should be, aware of the liability issues involved in auctioning a hunt to someone without fully vetting it beforehand. Getting a few thousand dollars for a hunt is certainly not worth the risk to the organization either financially or reputation-wise.
As for the hunting itself, folks would probably be surprised to learn that the Mexican government has some fairly rigid policies in place regarding its turkey hunting. Any property that wants to have hunting has to have an assessment done by Mexican wildlife biologists to determine whether the property can be hunted and the number of permits that will be issued for that property. From my experience, the number of permits issued for a property was pretty conservative based on the number of birds. (I know all of this because I have been through the process myself)
The point being that if a property is being hunted, there are going to be turkeys on it,...and probably plenty of them. In addition, any outfitter that hunts those properties will/should be fully aware of the parameters under which they operate and the repercussions they may face by straying outside those parameters.
For me personally, the bottom line is that I would expect MShillhunter to have a really good turkey hunt with little concern about any complications or having anything other than an outstanding experience.
I have had a few conversations with him and, by all means, he seems like a true professional. He'll be meeting us in Houston to fly with us into Mexico City to make sure we have no issues. From there will be taking a small plane to a city near the ranch. The ranch is 160,000 acres and the pictures on his page look incredible. When we are leaving he has someone cape and salt our birds and gives us disposable coolers to carry them back into the states. He also has meetings arranged with the US Fish & Wildlife so we can properly bring the birds back into the states.
All that being said, I am sure that it will be great I just wanted to see if anyone here had been with him. I'm very much looking forward to it. Wish it was this year instead of next!
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sounds like you got a legit one man. good luck. check out all the usda regs on transporting the bird across and find you a usda approved reputable taxidermist .