Just read about this in the Austin American Statesman.
__________________________________________________ _____________
If trophy hunt sounds too good to be true, it probably is
Mike Leggett, Commentary
__________________________________________________ _____________
World-class hunts for trophy game animals. Step right up.
Exotic fare such as zebras and water buffalo. We got 'em.
Rare finds like mountain lions. Even hogs and gophers. Come on down.
Unfortunately, as they say in the real world, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And the Texas Attorney General's office says now that the Candelaria Ranch was too good to be true.
The AG's office announced Wednesday it was charging Candelaria Ranch owners Paul and Angela Candelaria with running an unlawful Internet-based hunting operation. The state was granted a temporary restraining order against the ranch and froze all assets controlled by the Pasadena couple. A hearing on continuation of the order is scheduled Friday, according to AG spokesman Tom Kelley.
"We took (a number) of depositions and felt they were totally misrepresenting what they had there," said Kelley, who added that the state is pursuing the case as a deceptive trade practices situation.
With a quick Internet search last week, I found a bunch of complaints about the Candelaria Ranch, which is located in Gonzales County. People said, among other things, they were treated rudely, weren't provided guides on "totally guided hunts," were placed on a 250-acre parcel of land that was advertised as 2,000 acres and weren't provided food that was advertised in ranch advertisements.
Hunters were crowded into small areas, the court documents stated, and may have participated in canned hunts for animals that had been recently trapped and placed inside the small area.
Hunters also said the hunts were offered for small fees as package hunts but that they were asked later for guide fees, skinning fees, freezer storage and corn charges. All of those fees were required in cash, documents stated. The case touches on some interesting issues.
One is what ranch owners and hunt operators offer and deliver. Most are honest and truly try to give their customers full value for their fee.
Another is hunters' responsibilities. I saw online notes complaining about "ram" hunts at Candelaria Ranch, where hunters were promised two rams for $150.
A "ram" could be a male sheep or a male blackbuck or an Impala. The price for any of those would have been 5-10 times more than the advertisement. The cheapest sheep, mouflon, for instance, would be at least $750. You could easily pay $1,200 or more for a blackbuck.
If you are promised two rams for $150, are you going to believe they weren't released from a chute just before you got out of the truck?
I know there are people who don't have any idea about the value of a true "open range" hunt for trophy animals. And I also know that the desire and need for hunting access and space can lead us into situations where we ignore otherwise obvious warning signs.
That happened to me on the very first elk hunt I ever made in the early 1980s. We were put up in the venerable Little Creel Lodge in Chama, N.M., and were supposed to be hunting in the mountains just north and east of town.
"Because of a mixup," though, my little group of hunters was sent way south of town onto some land that we got to by going through three or four gates, at 3 in the morning. And we left the property by a different route after dark each day. And we were told to be really quiet there, so we didn't "spook any animals."
On the drive back, we spoke the words we'd been afraid to speak until then, that we weren't supposed to be on that property. Luckily, we killed no elk and saw just a single cow during a five-day hunt.
__________________________________________________ _____________
If trophy hunt sounds too good to be true, it probably is
Mike Leggett, Commentary
__________________________________________________ _____________
World-class hunts for trophy game animals. Step right up.
Exotic fare such as zebras and water buffalo. We got 'em.
Rare finds like mountain lions. Even hogs and gophers. Come on down.
Unfortunately, as they say in the real world, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And the Texas Attorney General's office says now that the Candelaria Ranch was too good to be true.
The AG's office announced Wednesday it was charging Candelaria Ranch owners Paul and Angela Candelaria with running an unlawful Internet-based hunting operation. The state was granted a temporary restraining order against the ranch and froze all assets controlled by the Pasadena couple. A hearing on continuation of the order is scheduled Friday, according to AG spokesman Tom Kelley.
"We took (a number) of depositions and felt they were totally misrepresenting what they had there," said Kelley, who added that the state is pursuing the case as a deceptive trade practices situation.
With a quick Internet search last week, I found a bunch of complaints about the Candelaria Ranch, which is located in Gonzales County. People said, among other things, they were treated rudely, weren't provided guides on "totally guided hunts," were placed on a 250-acre parcel of land that was advertised as 2,000 acres and weren't provided food that was advertised in ranch advertisements.
Hunters were crowded into small areas, the court documents stated, and may have participated in canned hunts for animals that had been recently trapped and placed inside the small area.
Hunters also said the hunts were offered for small fees as package hunts but that they were asked later for guide fees, skinning fees, freezer storage and corn charges. All of those fees were required in cash, documents stated. The case touches on some interesting issues.
One is what ranch owners and hunt operators offer and deliver. Most are honest and truly try to give their customers full value for their fee.
Another is hunters' responsibilities. I saw online notes complaining about "ram" hunts at Candelaria Ranch, where hunters were promised two rams for $150.
A "ram" could be a male sheep or a male blackbuck or an Impala. The price for any of those would have been 5-10 times more than the advertisement. The cheapest sheep, mouflon, for instance, would be at least $750. You could easily pay $1,200 or more for a blackbuck.
If you are promised two rams for $150, are you going to believe they weren't released from a chute just before you got out of the truck?
I know there are people who don't have any idea about the value of a true "open range" hunt for trophy animals. And I also know that the desire and need for hunting access and space can lead us into situations where we ignore otherwise obvious warning signs.
That happened to me on the very first elk hunt I ever made in the early 1980s. We were put up in the venerable Little Creel Lodge in Chama, N.M., and were supposed to be hunting in the mountains just north and east of town.
"Because of a mixup," though, my little group of hunters was sent way south of town onto some land that we got to by going through three or four gates, at 3 in the morning. And we left the property by a different route after dark each day. And we were told to be really quiet there, so we didn't "spook any animals."
On the drive back, we spoke the words we'd been afraid to speak until then, that we weren't supposed to be on that property. Luckily, we killed no elk and saw just a single cow during a five-day hunt.
Comment