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Hunter Comments

Me and my 3 cousins hunted with Boneyard Outfitters on Dec. 2011 and saw lots of deer.I seen a mature 160" buck about 600 yards away and alot of does.My cousin saw about a 130" buck at daylight but decided to pass because of low light conditions.So we decided to give the Boneyard a 2nd try on the Nov. 2012 shotgun opener.Jason stated he would bust his tail to put us all on a good buck.About summer time,Jason had informed my cousin that he and his partner Ryan had a major falling out and that Ryan had leased the farms hunted from in 2011 "out from under him".Also that Ryan had taken trail cameras and treestands from the properties.At that point we had already paid for half of the hunt...so no turning back.We arrived at the Boneyard on Nov.15th 2012 and met up with 3 fellow hunters from Tennessee.I became worried before the hunt because there was no updates of trail cam pictures or scouting reports of any good bucks.You can verify this by going to Boneyard's facebook page,on the right side under recent posts there is post by people.. "where's the trail cam pictures?what's going on out there?,"where are the updated pictures?","time to put down the fishing poles and lay some deer down"...no replies.We did receive 2 pictures of 130 class bucks via cell phone taken in the area that Jason claimed were taken on his leases,but later found out from a local, reliable source that they were taken in Jefferson co. one county north.All 6 of us hunters were hunting on the same farm,I don't know the exact acreage.At 6:40 am my cousin shot maybe a 110" 8 pointer.When he shot, my ear drums busted and my treestand shook.We was hunting about 100 yds. apart.I saw little bucks and does ,no shooter bucks.The second day I was moved about 400 yards further back on a bottleneck in a creek bottom on the property line.I could hear people talking,I thought I was hearing things.At 11:30 am a hunter appears to my right waving his orange hat and throwing his hands up in disgust(I give him the finger and he went to lunch).He was hunting approx. 100 yds from me with a kid in a tree line.The last day I hunted the stand from day 1, a very comfortable big game legend treestand.I heard a atv driving thru the woods then stop.My cousin texted me that a hunter had got off a atv and climbed in a box blind about 200 yards away on the property line.He also texted Jason "the guide".Jason texted back.."tell him to beat it".That hunter shot a small buck in front of my cousin.The hunter from day 2 also shot 3 times before 9 am and yes, my ear drums were ringing again.Simply put-"reducing hunting pressure reduces deer activity on our properties" quoted under new for 2012 on the Boneyard's website homepage.The Boneyard guide told us before we arrived that"I'll be disappointed if atleast 3 of you guys don't kill a nice buck"which would have been acceptable to all of us had the other half seen good bucks.Well,only 1 of us seen a good buck maybe 130".The farm we hunted was simply overpressured with hunters,the hunters on it and the neighboring farm.I did not see 1 trail cam photo of a shooter buck before our hunt.The Boneyard guide did give all of us at least one scouting report though.The night before the opener,we were waiting on his arrival at the new Boneyard lodge,he pulled up and said "dude,I just saw a 170" buck down by the railroad tracks(close to a lease he had in 2011).I feel the Boneyard guide concentrates more on guiding crappie fishing than guiding deer hunts.The food was good although the boneyard does not cook breakfast because they're afraid you'll "poop" in the woods.They provided packed lunches and a very good supper(thanks Mary Ann!)The Boneyard lodge was also very nice.I've read on other outfitters websites that they have a buffet style breakfast for their hunters,besides it's the most important meal of the day.We hunted until 10 am on day 3.After that we headed back to the lodge,gathered our gear and left.Not one hunter out of 6 of us killed a good buck. Needless to say we will not be returning to Boneyard Outfitters for the 2013 deer season.Thanks Nick for all you did and taking Jeff fishing.

Was the outfitter notified of problems? - NO

Outfitter's Response

Well, where do I begin. First I love how people can put anything on the internet to try and destroy a person. The real story was a world different. I will try and go in order , the facebook site under my copyrighted name is not yet under my control,so sorry about trail cam pics. The monster pics i sent them were of 170 plus deer. i myself have killed several boone and crocket bucks and consider 130s nice but would not send them to impress a client. i have never put a trail cam in jefferson county. I still have the pics if anyone would like to see them. Jeff shot a smaller buck the first day. I didnt pull the trigger . i tell all my clients to shoot what they are proud of so shooter remorse is just a great lesson learned. The neighbor hunting on the bordering property has his right. All my hunters are in the best spot possible everyday, this is how i make a living. Im damn good too. He was taken fishing because i told my guide to so no problem. They didnt even tip for the fish cleaning. Jerry ,the drunk of the group , built a ground blind and sat on his rear smoking all day. This for everyone out there is not such a graet tactic for seeing big bucks. He informs me at camp a big one slipped by him because he was on the ground . I asked why, he says the16 foot ladder was uncomfortable. They night before the last hunt he gets drunk and sleeps all day. Im sure in a way it was my fault too i must have held the bottle or,nipple for him. Last but not least is tracy whom i presume made the post , one of tennessee's finest. Im sorry but i think hes trying to stand up for his special cousins. I still wish them all the best and GOD bless. This group was impossible to drag deposits out of. When i did it was not the right ammounts and late. It was also the cheapest hunt i sold in2012. MY LESSON LEARNED. Sooooo, i am an outfitter, i donate thousands every year to charity , to the DNR, and I built my business from the ground up. I will be on the outdoor channel several times this year fishing and hunting ,as well as dozens of magazines and news print. I hope this negative feed back doesnt cause anyone to not choose us . This is my first negative in 10 years of fishing and hunting for a living. On a nicer note the three others they brought were very polite and timely with checks. They are welcome back anytime. another note, one of the best outfitters in the state didnt kill a deer in first season! It was tough but the BONEYARD will be bigger and stronger every year. This should be great news for 2013 hunters, more mature bucks. so i hope all of you in bow world have a great year . Why is a gun review on bowsite anyway? Thanks yall and GOD bless! Jason Johns Boneyard Outfitters