Bowsite.com

Hunter Comments

The ranch was advertized as a Day Lease with "lots of hogs". They do not have lots of hogs at all. They have a few hogs that are very spooky because the hogs are overhunted by the ranch management! This guy had the nerve to actually come by our camp and ask where we were hunting because he liked to hunt the hogs by slowly driving the roads with his headlights off and then stalking them from his truck! He was doing this on property we had leased from the ranch owner! We had four very good hog hunters, and only managed to kill two hogs in four days! We only saw six hogs on the entire hunt. Needless to say, we will not be returning to this ranch, and would not recommend it to others. The manager's name is Nick Anderson.

Was the outfitter notified of problems? - NO

Outfitter's Response

First of all, we hate to hear that ANYONE that hunts with us didn't have a good time; but it is "hunting" and not "killing" and we are a low fence, fair chase ranch. Second of all, the hunters that posted this review did kill 2 boars in the 175-200 pound range. 

Now, as to me over hunting the hogs on the ranch- it's kind of laughable considering we have 13,000 acres and we couldn't kill all the hogs on this ranch even if we tried and even if we helicoptered them! Smaller neighboring ranches that are high fenced are not even able to eradicate the hog population with trapping, gun hunting dogs and helicopter hunting combined! I do hunt the ranch myself- it's a perk of the job and who wouldn't? Besides, my own hunting makes me a more successful guide for my guided clients and helps me to advise hunters of what game is moving and where. That said, I am only permitted to hunt when there are no clients hunting in a particular pasture and, if I'm lucky, I have time and freedom to hunt 1-2 days per month. I also offer semi-guided and fully guided hunts (for an additional charge) which these gentlemen chose not to do. 

This review said I, "had the nerve" to go up to the camp and tell these gentlemen that I hunt the same 7000 acre pasture and how I spot from a truck and then stalk the hogs.  You be the judge whether that was inappropriate. Part of my job as the ranch manager is to check on the hunters and to try and offer them advice on where to find the game they are after and how best to set up for them; because most people have never hunted a piece of property this large and we try to help them out. So, that's what I did. I went to camp and marked their map with all the spots that I know (from personal experience) to be good areas for hog hunting and I shared with them my favorite method of hunting hogs during the full moon (which it was) - in the hopes that they would do the same and be successful. If that was inappropriate or rude, I don't know what to say. Our other hunters always seem to appreciate the advice and many hunters use the same method or hire me to guide them and teach them how to do it. In the case of these gentlemen, though, they chose to ignore the advice and to take offense at the offering of it; despite the fact they live in another state and are not familiar with hunting in Texas or this property. In addition, the gentlemen that posted this review did not use tactics or setups that are commonly used here and are known to be successful. Another hunter that hunts with us regularly throughout the year and is VERY successful at hunting hogs, and who is from the same region of the country as the gentlemen who posted this review, even tried to help these hunters by offering his advice; and it was (somewhat rudely) dismissed. 

Finally, in regard to the comment posted about hunting in the area these gentlemen "leased" - as they stated, this is a "day lease" property and they only leased it for the time they were here; but, during the time they hunted with us, NO ONE hunted in the 7000 acres that we gave to them to hunt!  In addition, 4 hunters would normally be given access to 2-3000 acres but since we did not have many hunters that week, we gave them 7000 acres to hunt! 

We are not a "canned hunt" and because we are a large low-fence ranch that is hunted year-round, the hunting is not as easy as it is at a small, stocked and high-fenced ranch. Perhaps that's what these gentlemen were expecting; but our website (www.BrushyHill.com) makes it very clear that we're low fenced and fair chase. We have a large population of deer, turkey and hogs but there is no way to guarantee success to each hunter. However we do have a lot of successful hunters who come back year after year because the hunting is good and the price is right. This includes the Lone Star Bowhunter's Association that hosted their 9th annual "Grunts & Gobbles Fellowship Hunt" in the same pasture the day these gentlemen left. Our 15 year track record as Texas' biggest bowhunting-only ranch is evidence of the quality of the property and the hunting. Unfortunately, we can't make every hunter happy or successful - especially when our advice is ignored. 

Nick Anderson

P.S. This group of hunters never came to anyone with a complaint or to ask for help, while they were on the ranch and the first we heard of them being unhappy was an email from this website notifying us of a negative review and offering a chance for us to respond. Even the gentleman's own review shows (at the bottom of the review) that they did not notify us that they had any problems; in spite of the fact that I stopped in every day to check on them. AND, I forgot to mention that these gentlemen knocked a powerline off one of our cabins with the RV they brought and never mentioned a word to us- they simply stayed in the other cabin. We only found out when another hunter mentioned that he pointed out to them that the power line was wrapped around their RV when they were complaining about the refrigerator not working in that cabin!