sid
Oregon,#2Author of original report
Thu, February 01, 2018
5 YEARS ago I went on a black bear hunt at Sunrise Ridge Outfitters in Maine. After 5 years someone who was allegedly in camp the same week that I was there ? Amusing to say the least.. There were only two groups in camp that week. My wife and I and another group that showed up and bunked together in another cabin. if "Smith" was indeed there at that time he had to either be the hunter that Sunrise put on top of me at my site or be part of the group that was. There of course could not possibility be any bias involved. "Birds of a feather flock together" as is evident by his siding with this want to be outfitter! I stand behind every word of my complaint. It was the truth then and it's the truth today.
The fact is that I have hunted with over 20 various bear Outfitters over the years, 15 of which were before the hunt in question and the rest after. Surise Ridge Maine is the only outfitter that I have ever felt compelled to file a complaint on as it was the most poorly operated facility that I have ever had the displeasure of hunting at! That said, the issues could have been remedied with a bit of effort and in fact they had the opportunity to do so but instead choice to go down the adversarial path of no return. Their choice not mine. I just refused to go away quietly as they had hoped and expected I would. As for "Smith" he doesn't know me nor was he present for any of the discussions that I had with the owners and one of his guides.
I never shared my issues with him or anyone from his group. He only knows whatever he was told and all of his name calling will not change the facts. I had no reason to distort the truth then or now and never resorted to name calling. He has attempted to make this personal when in fact it was never anything with me other than business. As a fee paying client I am entitled to my opinion/s and the sharing of same. This was not my "first rodeo" and I know what I should be able to expect from an outfitter. They didn't have to like me nor send me Christmas cards. They did however owe it to me to hear my concerns and and at least attempt a professional correction.
Smith
Jersey City ,#3Consumer Comment
Tue, January 30, 2018
The former complaint could not be further from the truth. I was at the same camp the very week he was and could witness how HE acted first hand toward everyone there. This is the most accommodating family owned guide service operation I have dealt with. This gentleman came in from day 1 thinking he was a big wig, being arrogant, disrespectful, overly negative about everything, and utterly rude. His complaint could NOT be further from the truth. Some of the bait sites are about an hour away. On Day 1 the guides generally like to leave camp at about 12:00 PM to make sure everyone get set at their site with plenty of time before the bears start moving. Each day we tend to depart camp later and later, getting to the bait site around 2:00-3:00 PM to have a good amount of time in the woods. After all, when you go hunting, you have to sit in the woods not hangout at camp wasting time! The family that runs this operation could not be more knowledgeable about guiding and hunting in the North Woods of Maine, I find it VERY hard to believe they or one of their guides would throw someone’s gear on gasoline cans.
All of the bait sites at Sunrise Ridge are at the very least 5 miles away from each other. I have been coming here since 2012 and have become very familiar with the setup. There is no way that the video footage captured after legal shooting time was clear enough to confirm that the same bear was taken by the other hunter. Even if this was the case, you shouldn’t be sour over a fellow hunter’s success at the same camp. The hunting community is generally filled with great team players, not sore losers.
When you pay for a free-range type of hunt, there are no guarantees. I don’t blame the guide service for not wanting this man’s business any more. He thinks who he is and tried pulling that stunt with a hardworking, stand-up family.
As mentioned earlier, I have been coming to Sunrise Ridge every year with the same group since 2012 and have nothing but love and respect for Sunrise Ridge and all their customers with the exception of this guy who tried to ruin their reputation by posting on these websites about falsehoods. If anyone is looking to book a trip with Sunrise Ridge, don’t take that person’s review seriously, because I can assure you it couldn’t be further from the truth.