Stalking Virgin

kieran222

Well-Known Member
Hi All, here goes, after a year of reading everybody’s posts I need some advice so have the following general question.

I intend to book up a day accompanied Roe stalking and as it would be my first I was looking for any general advice, e.g. what sort of tip (£s) do you give, and anything else that I should know. I have used rim fire and centre fire 222 but do not have a deer calibre rifle. I live in Shropshire so unless I travel my choice is limited but I have managed to get two sets of contact details (in Hereford) from various threads on here.

All advice welcome.
 
just my opinium mate .....your guide will probably ask you to shoot on his range first with the estate rifle helps calm yr nerves ,get used to the calibre ,and see your safe reasonable shot ,should you then be lucky enough to stalk a roe deer and get a successful shot you may find you would like to show yr gratitude by giving your guide ''a drink'' be it a bottle or a crisp ''note'' your choice not expected,by all guides ;)
wish you good hunting
regards norma
ps be honest about yr experience good guides will go all out to help you they can smell a blagger a mile away !!!
 
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Kieran

Good luck with first outing - just be aware of how addictive it is!

Tips are an emotive subject and as with everything there are two sides to the argument. There are still a good number of stalkers who are paid on the basis that their wage is 'made up' from tips. Equally, today there are quite a number of owner/operators - so the outing fee you paid has gone to them in any event. Bottom line it is a measure of thanks.

If your stalker makes no effort then dont tip. If he goes flat out and you have a great day - regardless of whether anything bagged, then do give something. Whilst it is often much nicer to receive a gift - bottle etc as it has the personal touch; many stalkers remain in the position where cash is king.

The paradox from the stalkers side is that the miserable lumps of useless that you have to break your back for tend to be the poorest ( or not at all ) tippers. The guys that are so great to be out with that you have to keep reminding yourself 'this is work' are the ones that tip - when you really dont want them too!

Figure that out

For any outing with a new place try at least to talk to them by phone. Everyone has a bad day, but if they dont come across well then, its worth wondering whether things will be better on the day. Particularly for a first outing you want someone who will boost confidence - not stomp around muttering under their breath like Mutley on PCP. But you’re in the best place - I am sure there are loads of guys on SD that can give you a good steer for places in your area.

I can tell you that things will work out - just from what you ask. You have the right mindset - and thats 99% of it. And generally you will shoot a sensible centrefire better than you can shoot a 22RF.


Finally ( honest ) - be open with whoever you book right from the start. Make it clear you are a new guy and are looking for help and guidance. Everyone has their own way of doing things and experienced genuine professionals really love to take someone out fresh - 'so no one else has had the chance to muck you up!'

Happy Hunting.
 
Tipping is a controversial subject and you will get a lot of different answers, what I would say is tip depending on the service you receive, if you think the stalker has gone that bit beyond what is required of him tip accordingly.

Some will say don't tip, in my opinion as a professional stalker that is not a good idea, as word travels fast such and such does not tip, then you find more it and more difficult to book a days stalking.

Of course if the stalker has been unprofessional then don't feel obliged to tip. Tips are for services rendered not a right.

Remember not getting a shot is not a reason not to tip , the stalker may well have tried his hardest and still not managed to get you a shot.

Some will suggest a bottle rather than a monitory tip, this is OK up to a point but your favourite tipple may be different from theirs, I have had a cupboard full of bottles strange liquids I would never put in my mouth.

The stalker may even be tea total, I did hear of one but think it was just a nasty rumour.:rofl:

Also tip according to what you can afford,we are not heartless and can usually sum a client up.

As to the actual amount to tip that is more difficult, you say a days Roe stalking, are you talking of a day or an outing

I apologise if I am trying to teach my granny to suck eggs, but Roe stalking is normally two outings per day AM and PM
traditionally an outing is around three hours long.
Are you talking Bucks or Does if Bucks are you looking for a cull Buck or a medal Buck, all these things will make a difference to the tip.

There is no hard and fast rule but this is what I receive on average Bucks blank outing £20 Bucks up to medal status £40 if lucky and a second Buck shot on the same outing probably half of that IE £60 tip for the two Bucks.

Medal Bucks are a different scenario expect to tip depending on quality, however as you are just starting I would imagine you are not thinking of medal heads at this time.

Roe does, £20 to £30 per outing tipping on Does tends to be by the outing not the beast.

These are my thoughts and what I receive on average, no doubt others will have other ideas.
 
My feeling on this .If the chap that is taking you out is the chap that runs the agency then the tip should be small but should still be there if he makes and effort. A bottle of whisky cost around £20 and is a very nice add on to a successful outing. If unsuccessful and the chap has worked hard and you know he has eg you have seen plenty of Roe Deer and have stalked unsuccessfully a few then a nice crisp £10 on his fee will be welcome. If you have walked all morning or evening and not seen a deer and the chap looks as if he don't care then no tip and do not re book with him.
Also the cost of the outing is important, If you have paid a very high price for a Roe deer stalk then go easy on the tip you have already paid enough.

3-4 Hour outings cost from £50 to £80 on the doe,s

3-4 Hour outings cost from £65 to £100 + on the buck,s

Who you go with now that is your call and you will need to work out the cost for the trip because you could loose out. A local stalk might cost £100 and seem expensive. Compare that with a Scotland stalk of say £50 but the cost of fuel BB Food etc and you will always need to take whisky to a jock it can work out more expensive.
 
Thanks for the responses. I intend trying to get out for the Roe Does. I have been given a rough price of £60/half day which I thought was reasonable. Thanks for the feedback on the tip, as I didn't want to ruin my chances of rebooking if I enjoy it (which I am sure that I will). Made a couple of calls the other night and nothing available at the moment, they said call back in January. Obviously not as simple to book up as I thought. Still learning.

One other question, is it worth doing a half day stalk late December with the days being so short?

Thanks again.
 
stalks always seem to be 3/4 hours generally, so you if it goes dark at 5 in the winter you will go out at about 2pm ,if its the summer and it does not go dark til 10pm you will go out about half six etc etc and so on.


Dave
 
Thanks for the responses. I intend trying to get out for the Roe Does. I have been given a rough price of £60/half day which I thought was reasonable. Thanks for the feedback on the tip, as I didn't want to ruin my chances of rebooking if I enjoy it (which I am sure that I will). Made a couple of calls the other night and nothing available at the moment, they said call back in January. Obviously not as simple to book up as I thought. Still learning.

One other question, is it worth doing a half day stalk late December with the days being so short?

Thanks again.
my first ever outing was a half day on roe does mainly because the guide asked if i could turn up at lunch time so he could take me to his range to shoot some targets before we went for a shot in the afternoon .there should be a few guides on here who could guide you sooner than DECEMBER thats ages to wait !!!! :D
 
Thanks to all for your replies.
Norma 308 : Yes I was surprised that I would have to wait until January so may have to book further afield. had a couple of PMs with contacts. Still making calls.

Finbear270 : thanks for the PM I will give them a call to see about availability. PM sent.

Thanks,
Kieran222
 
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