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This is a detailed account of my hunt with Jack Hume Adventures. I can say that it was a trip of a lifetime and there were very many good things that happened. It was not a guaranteed hunt, nor would I want one, but all did not go as expected either. The purpose of this is for someone booking a hunt to have a heads up on things you might not think of. Shortly after booking and getting a contract I was contacted by Richard or Amanda Hume that they were trying to compress their schedule and would I be willing to change dates. I had no issue with this and they threw in a bear license, fishing licenses, and knocked a couple hundred dollars off what I owed. A week before the trip I contacted them asking about if they had located caribou and they named 2 camps that had caribou. Upon arriving in Montreal we met the other hunters in our group and had our orientation. We were being sent to Camp Amanda which was not one of the 2 camps mentioned the week before, but it was supposed to be the best camp of 2008. Upon arriving in Schefferville I met Richard who said there was a huge herd of caribou about 15 miles from camp and they could be there anytime. No issues on the flights and we met our guide and cook when we got to camp. Our guide and cook were both wonderful. For the first 4 days of camp no one saw a caribou. My son and I saw a wolf on day 2. On day 5 I saw a cow and a calf and my brother saw a small bull which ran past the other father/son combo at a distance. My son and the last hunter still had not seen a bou. That night they said that they were going to move us to another camp if the caribou did not arrive the next day, however we would only be allowed to shoot one caribou, which is something I had not noticed when reading brochures or websites and will touch on later. On day 6 at 10:00AM Richard contacted the guide to see if the caribou had moved in which they had not. They said they were in the process then of setting up the other camp and that we would be moved the next day. That day my son filled our bear license for the first kill of the camp. We also saw one calf that day. (my brother, my son and I, no one else saw anything) Early on day 7 they informed us they would pick us up at 2:00 pm. However, by noon there was 50 mph winds and they said they could not fly. The day before had been beautiful and we could have hunted while they set up camp had anyone bothered to check a weather report, or maybe this was how they planned it. My son and I saw a cow and a calf that day. On day 8 the wind had subsided some, but they said they could not fly due to snow in Schefferville. At this point I told my son that the next day when the hunt was over, they would find a way to pick us up under similar weather conditions. At 8:30 that morning the other son I mentioned previously killed a respectable bull and by evening had limited out with a cow and his dad got a cow. My brother shot a cow that day, and my son and I saw nothing. When news of the bull got radioed back to headquarters our move was history. On day 9 which was our day to pull out we were hunting by 5am. My brother got his second cow, my son and i got one each. Just before quitting time the other father got a bull similar to his son's. Even the guide said no one comes up to shoot a cow, you can get one of them in a pasture for way less than $5000. My son and I and the one other hunter had not even seen a bull and he did not even have the chance to pull a trigger on a cow. Upon arriving back at Schefferville Richard went directly to the other father and son and told them he was glad it worked out for them. He told the rest of us to go up and register our caribou and when the one hunter said he had none, Richard took him aside. He later told me that he was told they would "work with him" if he rebooked. We did fill out surveys which I did not give him good marks due to never getting moved, but as of yet have never heard back. I learned on the way back to Montreal that 2 camps had caribou, with one camp killing 9 bulls and a cow for 5 guys. 2 camps also got moved with each hunter killing the one allowed bull. The other camp had kills, but I never heard how many. Upon arriving back at Montreal I was astonished at how few nice horns there were. Many were far less nice than the ones we took at Kisk on our winter hunt and some hunters even kept cow horns. Now I would like to touch on the 10 reasons listed to book a hunt with Jack Hume Adventures. 1. Experience: in our case it was the guiding and cooking that showed experience! 2. High ratio of spare camps: meaningless if they have no caribou. The camp they moved people to and promised us was in Labrador and not even one of Hume's own camps. 3. Access to both herds: Not in our case, the Leaf River Herd was too far north yet to help out. 4. Customer satisfaction: Let's not go there in our case! 5. Mobility, Richard Hume has his own plane and is a pilot: The cook told us that he is not licensed to haul passengers, only cargo. I told her to pack me in a box and have him take me to the caribou! Also, no mention here of only shooting one animal if they have to move you. 6. Success over 90%: Even counting cows which is not what we were after we were at 75% and less than 20% on bulls. The people that got moved were at 50%. With these numbers, it would seem difficult to pull out 90+% this year. 7. Owner operated: No argument on this one. 8. Safety Cessna available for emergencies: Perhaps Richard is allowed to haul passengers in an emergency? 9. Fair chase hunts: Again no argument, it may have been more fair for the caribou than for us! 10. Competitive Price: As long as you get what you paid for! bob in pa is online now Report Post Edit/Delete Message

Was the outfitter notified of problems? - NO

Outfitter's Response

Dear Mr. Mosier, I was a bit surprised to receive a poor rating from you. It is our first poor rating and it kind of took me by surprise. I'll be the first to admit that it was tough week but I don't agree with the rest of your comments. I do wish I would have contacted you earlier but unfortunately I didn't get around to doing so. In your report you say that we told you of two camps which had caribou in them the week before your arrival, which is very true and all our 8 hunters tagged out with 16 bulls that were hunting at Merville and McCabe the week before your arrival. Unfortunately caribou tend to move "migrate" and they might be at one camp during one week and then another the following week. This is the reason why we have 5 spare camps for every camps booked. It was very unfortunate but the caribou avoided almost all of our 25 camps located in Quebec as they were either located above the 57th north (Leaf River Herd) or in Labrador (George River Herd) with just a few resident caribou left to hunt in camps that had been very productive the week before. I sent your group out to Amanda Lake which was our best camp in 2008 and which did have caribou headed directly towards it. The caribou were very close to the camp and only 15-20 miles away when I decided to send you there to hunt and they could have arrived at Amanda Lake that very day I flew you in. I think it is important for you to understand that it would have been much cheaper for me to send you to one of my camps 50 miles out from Schefferville than it was to send you 150 miles. I would not have sent you to Amanda Lake had I not thought that you stood a very good chance at that camp. I can't be held responsible for the caribou deciding to hold up in Labrador and for your information the group that went into Amanda after you departed tagged out with some great looking bulls. You also mention how you were upset at the fact that I didn't move you into one of the camps I was setting up in Labrador as you could have been able to hunt while the guides set up camp. I really don't think you understand what these guides were up against as they were sent into Labrador to set up camps that had been abandoned for 10 years. There were no longer any roofs on the camps as they had tarp roofs and they were long gone, bears had almost destroyed the inside of each of the camps with stoves over turned, pieces of foam mattress scattered everywhere and doors that were ripped off their hinges. It would not have been a smart move on my part to send anyone into a camp such as this one while it was in such a disasterous state. I did move one group from the camp I had sent them to into the first camp to be set up in Labrador (Crystal Lake) but they were not seeing any caribou and no hopes of seeing any caribou and there were no longer any caribou headed their way and therefore that group warranted being moved more than you and your group who were in fact seeing the odd caribou and also were positioned directly in front of migrating caribou that could and should have arrived but unfortunately didn't arrive on time. FYI- Although I may have done poorly during the week you hunted with us, I went over and above what should be expected of me. I actually rented and repaired 2 camps that had been abandoned for 10 years in order to save as many hunts as I could. Other outfitters who also hunt in Quebec sent their charter flights home empty without any caribou aboard. Also my intentions were to move your group but I have to start with the group who is doing the poorest and/or who stands the least amount of chance of being successful. Mr. Mosier on average I have 10% of my hunters who are unfortunate and do not shoot a caribou and you were well aware of that. Normally the week of August 20-28th would be one of our most dependable weeks but as luck would have it 2009 wasn't like other years and the caribou didn't cooperate. Now in reponse to your top 10 reasons to hunt with JHA: 1. Experience: I'm not certain what you expected of me but I did exactly what I felt was required. I am glad to see that you enjoyed the guide and cook. You do realize that all the expereince in the world could not have changed the fact that I unfortunately can't control the weather nor the caribou. 2. High ratio of spare camps: You stated that it is meaningless if there are no caribou in them and that the camps I moved people to was in Labrador. Mr. Mosier I believe that the fact of the matter is that this proves more than ever the great importance of choosing an outfitter who does have many spare camps and who does go the extra distance even if it means renting camps from other outfitters if and when required. No other outfitter spent money renting camps in Labrador even though that is where the caribou were for much of 2009 but I did and I will again if I have to. 3. Access to both herds: You state that "Not in our case" Do you actually think that just because the Leaf River herd was not intercepting any of our camps while you were hunting with us that it is not a huge benefit to hunt with an outfitter who has the option of hunting either herd? I hunted off the Leaf River Herd from the first week in September through to the end of our season in 2009 and had I not had access to the Leaf River herd many of my hunters would have had to return home empty handed. I even held my trophy hunt at Coursolles and where we had over 7000 caribou go through in 4 days! So, yes having access to both herds is a big bonus for anyone that chooses to hunt with us. 4. Customer satisfaction: Although you don't seem to be too happy with our services it would seem that the only thing you complained about was that we did not move you. You enjoyed the guide and cook, the food was good and you were flown to camp when you were supposed to be in a timely manner. I've explained why you were not moved and we certainly didn't purposely send you to a camp 150 miles out so that you wouldn't be able to shoot a descent bull. To the contrary I placed you directly in front of a herd of migrating caribou. They could have very well arrived the day you were flown in but unfortunately they held up and arrived a couple days after you departed camp. I can't control them! You should call one of the hunters who replaced you and hunted with us from August 28-September 3rd and see what they thought of our services and Amanda Lake! 5. Mobility: Yes, I do have my own float palne and I am a pilot but I also have a 1000 Hp Otter leased through Air Saguenay. My Cessna is licensed private/business and therefore it is strictly used to transport my staff and to bring equipment to and from the camps along with scouting for caribou and of course in emergency situations it can be used to haul out a passenger. It just makes more sence for me to lease a 6 passenger Otter to move my hunters when required and therefore I have one leased. By having an Otter leased it is the same as if that Otter was mine for the duration of the season. I can do what I want with it when I want. Flying into snowstorms or 50mph winds is not something any bush plane pilot should be doing and it's not because we couldn't get an aircraft that you were not moved. 6. Success: I have our week to week statistics posted on our website. It clearly shows how poorly we did the week you hunted with us but fortunately that was our worst week and we did better throughout the rest of the season and also prior to your week. You didn't have much to say about #7. 8. Safety: Not only would I fly my Cessna for emergencies but each of our employees along with myself are trained in wilderness 1st aid. 9. Fair Chase: Yes, perhaps it was more fair for the caribou than for you but at least you seen and went home with a caribou not everyone else can say the same. I recently came home from an elk hunt and guess what I didn't even see a bull. I don't yet know what they look like! I slept in a wall tent where my wet ones (which were lying directly under my cot and I might add were all I had to clean myself) were frozen stiff in the morning. I hiked from 6:00am until 5:00pm each and every day and glassed every mountain within walking distance of the campsite. I rode a horse called bonehead who I thought was going to kill me and I often though of killing him but you know what I enjoyed my trip all the same. I enjoyed the company I had at night back at camp, I enjoyed the experience and beauty of living in the Montana mountains, I enjoyed seeing a Lynx chase down a rabbit, two Mule Dear sparring together over a doe and I enjoyed just being outdoors without any stress at all. Had I shot an Elk it would have been icing on the cake but you know what I'm still happy I went on my trip and I will probaly do it again. It is my experience that there are two classes of hunters and I am sure proud to be in the class that is reffered to as a Sportsman. Bob, I am sorry that you don't feel that our hunt met your expectations but we (I) did our best and I don't think I could have done anything differently that would have changed anything for you. I am however sorry for not taking the time to call you before now. You do have my toll free number and you are more than welcome to call me at your convenience to discuss your hunt further if you'd like.

Richard Hume Jack Hume Adventures Inc.

Richard Hume