Guided Hunts & Trophy Dreams at 10 Gauge Outfitters

American Outdoor News & 10 Gauge Outfitters

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Chris Evena: All right, I’m Chris Evena with American Outdoor News. 

Today, I’m here with my friend Tim Weddington from 10 Gauge Outfitters. Tim, thanks so much for taking the time to speak to us today!

Tim Weddington: Appreciate you having us on, Chris!

Chris Evena: Now, as I mentioned earlier, I had gone through your website and man, you really have a beautiful operation. Your lodge is really nice and the spectrum of game that you outfit is really unbelievable as well. How did you get into outfitting?

Tim Weddington: Well, that’s a funny story, Chris. It really is, you know, the only way to explain is this is where God put me because there was no plan for this. I mean, if you would have asked me 30 years ago, hey, are you going to have an outfitting business? I’d have told you you’re nuts. Because I never, I never really thought about it much. 

We started out by renting ground just for us and kids and family to hunt on. And then we decided, hey, we’re going to move over to try to recover some of that cost by selling a few hunts and sold a few hunts and from there it just bloomed. And one year you have 4 guys, next year you have 16 guys. And, and now, now we’re just swamped. But that took 20 years to do. 

And the logs that you’re talking about, we built ourselves. It wasn’t a contractor. I designed it with my wife. And we built everything in there. The lodge, the furniture, the beds, you name it, we designed it all and built it all, you know, with the outfitting business in mind. You know, like, it’s like our beds. I’ve been – One of the biggest things I’ve seen is I go to outfitters and they buy these bunk beds that are made for kids.

Chris Evena: Well, they don’t really make them for adults. You got to kind of make them yourself.

Tim Weddington: Yeah. So we built our own beds and they’re built for 350 pound guys and they’re comfortable. But so we put a lot of thought into this and it’s paid off because a good 80% of our clients are repeat clients. They come here one time and then they come back every year.

Chris Evena: Well, building anything, building a shed takes work. What does it take to build a lodge? I mean, how many people does it hold?

Tim Weddington: The lodge holds 26 people. 

Chris Evena: Wow! 

Tim Weddington: It’s a little over 7,000 square feet. And you know, it took us about eight months to build it complete.

Chris Evena: That’s not bad.

Tim Weddington: That includes the furniture and everything. And it was just us and the kids, you know, and a couple employees. But it was designed with our, you know, with our hunting totally in mind. We don’t live in that lodge. That lodge is strictly only used to entertain clients with. And it was built. And all of the decor and all the layout was built that way with them in mind. And I don’t know if you had a chance to look at that promo video called the Whisper.

Chris Evena: I did.

Tim Weddington: That gives you a really good layout of our mindset and what we try to provide for clients.

Chris Evena: Now people think you’re an outfitter, that’s great. You get to hunt every day. That’s the furthest thing from the truth, isn’t it?

Tim Weddington: There is a lot of work that goes into being able to have a client out and giving them the greatest chance for success at the game that they’re chasing. So it’s a year round deal. We don’t, we are not farmers. I don’t have a second job or this is not my second job. This is the only job I have. And we do it year round. 

We prep for pheasant, we prep for deer, we prep for turkey, we have prairie dog shooting, we have some coyote hunting and we prep for all of that. Building food plots, feeders, cameras, water stations, you name it, it goes into this. 

And you have to do this if you want to have enough numbers of birds or quality deer, you know, or whatever game it is that you’re pursuing. You know, if you’re going to do it on a commercial basis, you have to really take care of the animals to be able to have enough animals, quality animals to be able to chase.

Chris Evena: Yeah, you need to give the animals a reason to stay on your property. So that actually gives a lot more work to you. Especially with deer. Deer, you know, they’ll roam wherever the food source is.

Tim Weddington: Yeah. I mean, deer are probably the hardest ones because our deer are not high fenced. They can go wherever they want to go. And you know, 20 years I’ve been hunting since I was a kid and I’ll be quite honest with you, I still don’t understand what makes a deer tick. 

I mean, really, I don’t. I mean, and I’ve talked to thousands of people in the industry and I listen to all of their, to their points and then I take those points and I put it back into the field and I look at what the deer are doing and I’m like, yeah, possibly, but not 100% on that. 

You know, the biggest thing we have is, you know, in the state of Kansas, we bait and I hear all the time, the negatives about baiting. And I can tell you this. The only thing that baiting does for us is gives us the ability to tell you how many deer are on the property, what the age structure is. That’s pretty much it. 

The mature deer, they’re smart enough not to avoid those feeders during hunting times. Why that is, I don’t know. I don’t know. They have a biological clock that tells them, hey, hunting season is coming around. I’m not sure how that goes, but you can watch them on camera. They’ll frequent that feeder or the water stations during the daylight hours when it’s not hunting season. But as soon as cool weather starts coming, they start pushing that back farther and farther. How they know that, I’m not sure.

Chris Evena: They’re big for a reason.

Tim Weddington: I can tell you there is one – absolute.

Chris Evena: It is what it is. So, you know, you primarily started out as a upland bird hunter?

Tim Weddington: Primarily started out as a deer hunter. And then as time went by, we figured out that that bird hunting is much easier and less stressful because we have way more pheasants than we do deer. The reason that the state of Kansas has such good deer is because we don’t have that many of them in comparison to, you know, to a highly populated areas. We’re just, you know, we’re still pretty spread out around here, and the deer can go wherever they want to go. 

And on a section of ground, you might have, you know, there might be 20 deer, you know, in a section is a mile by a mile. Whereas, you know, back where, you know, in your area, you measure how many deer an acre you have, we measure how many acres per deer we have. So it’s just not that big of numbers. 

And because of that, the genetics are really strong, but you just don’t have that many deer to hunt. So it’s not. It’s not that – Not that easy to do. And it’s very stressful. So we got into the bird hunting because the bird hunting was less stressful and much easier. And that’s pretty much what we – That’s our niche now is bird hunting and prairie dog shooting.

Chris Evena: That’s always fun to shoot prairie dogs.

Tim Weddington: Oh, yeah. That’s an absolute gas to go out there and sit up in a field and play whack a mole. And that’s exactly what it is.

Chris Evena: Now, I have to say, you are really in the thankless business. Somebody fills their tag. You’re supposed to. They’re supposed to. Because they wear an outfitter, they don’t fill their tag. Oh, this place sucks. How do you balance that?

Tim Weddington: Well, the thing that we always try to tell clients is that you’re purchasing a service, and that service is to provide you with excellent lodging, excellent meals, and a place that has a very high potential for the game that you’re chasing. 

And from that point, it’s all about the experience. And we try to get them not to look at it as. It’s only based on success because it shouldn’t be. It should be based on all of the factors involved in it. Because when it comes down to hunting, Chris, Mother Nature controls that. I mean, it can be the best hunting spot in the world, but if the temperature is wrong or the wind is wrong or the weather is wrong, that really messes it up. So it’s out of our control. 

So we try to control all the things that we can control, and then the ones that we don’t control, we just explain, hey, these, these things are out of our control, but they really don’t – Shouldn’t make what your hunt is about.

Chris Evena: Yeah, there is that misconception and it’s hunting. If you wanted a guarantee, you go to a high fence operation.

Tim Weddington: Exactly. And that’s the only way you’re going to do it. And you know, and there’s nothing wrong with that either. I mean, that, that there’s a place for that also. And I understand that. But yeah, the experience is what has to be the memory not, not holding the animal that you were chasing.

Chris Evena: Well, to me, that’s a big part of hunting. It’s not just filling your tag. It’s the camp, the people you with, the experience you’re sharing, the relationships you build. It’s all a big part of the outdoors in the hunting industry. It’s, you know, people who don’t understand it, they say, oh, you just killers. It’s the furthest thing from the truth.

Tim Weddington: Yeah, I mean, that’s the hardest point to get across to people is we study our animals and, you know, I understand that my animal is the commodity in my business. This is how I make money. And if I don’t take care of that, I’m not going to make money. So I have to go 10 miles farther than most person does in the conservation of the game to make sure that we have the numbers to hunt that can make us money. 

You know, a lot of people don’t understand how to go to a really good outfitter, it takes that money. The money that that outfitter spends is enormous. People don’t realize that. People always ask me, how do you know which outfitter to pick? 

And I generally tell people most of the time you get what you pay for. And the best way to look at it is look at the amenities and the money that that person spends on their operation. And then you’re going to figure out, you know, are they putting money into the business or are they just trying to get as many people in there as they can and that’s the best way to look at it?

Chris Evena: Sure, yeah. They don’t look at the off season, they just look at what it’s going to cost them to go and hunt. But in the off season you’re investing a lot of time, a lot of money cultivating the property, investing in the conservation, giving the animals a reason to stay on your property and maintain a presence. Without that, you just have a plot of land.

Tim Weddington: Exactly.

Chris Evena: So what can somebody expect when they come to 10 Gauge Outfitters?

Tim Weddington: Well, what they’re gonna – what they’re going to be treated to is we’re going to cater to making this a hunt of a lifetime for them. That’s what we, that’s what we, that’s our motto. And we’re going to bring them in, we’re going to make sure that all of the things that we control are done to the utmost. That means the place is clean, the room is prepped for you, the bathroom is ready for you, the food, the drinks, everything is top notch. 

And, and then when we tell you that we’re going to head out at 8 o’clock in the morning, we’re going to head out at 8 o’clock in the morning. If we tell you we’re going to pick up at, you know, 8:00 at night on a deer hunter or 07:30, whatever it is, then that’s the time we’re going to do it. So things that we control you take care of. 

And when you do that, people look at that and say, wow, this guy is really doing what he says he does. And then the rest of it just falls into place. Because I’m willing to do all that, then I am willing to do all the prep work too to try to make it as successful as possible for you. And you’re going to get to see whatever game you’re chasing, whether you get to harvest it or not. That’s a tough one to, you know, you never know.

Chris Evena: Yeah. You got to give your best effort. You got to take control of the hunt. You can’t let the client guide the guy. And it’s never going to work. It’s your property. Nobody knows it better than you.

Tim Weddington: That’s the greatest point to hit on right there. I always tell people, because you have it. You have guys come in and say, hey, I want to hunt here. I want to do this or I want to do that. And I always tell them, I said, okay, I want you to look at this analogy. 

I just hired a fishing charter, and I show up at the dock, and I got all my tackle and all my maps. And I tell the fishing cab, the boat captain, hey, I want to go here, and I want to fish with this bait. I want to use this rod. And he looks at me and he goes, well, what’d you hire me for? And it’s exactly that. 

You know, if you’re going to show up with all your own tackle and all your own maps and this is where we want to go, then there was no need to hire that fishing guide. And it works same way at a hunting guide. You know, you’re paying me to have all the knowledge to know where those animals are, what time to hunt them, when to go. And it’s all about that. 

And that’s what we try to make sure that we can ensure is that we know what our game are going to do in an environment that they’re in. And when the weather changes, that changes it a little bit. But it’s. We still have a good idea.

Chris Evena: Sure. So what is your favorite season? You guide pheasant, dove quail, deer, turkey. What do you prefer?

Tim Weddington: Personally to hunt, I prefer chase turkeys. That’s my bag. I mean, I love it. I still do it. I don’t really big game hunt much anymore. I go on a few hunts every once in a while, but turkey hunting is still one of those things that kind of trips my trigger. 

As far as what I still enjoy watching hunting. I like bird hunting because I like to watch the dogs work. I like to watch them work. I like to watch the clients, you know, watch the dogs become part of that, start understanding it, and it’s just a fun thing to watch.

Chris Evena: Now, I’m going to put you on the spot here.

Tim Weddington: All right. 

Chris Evena: I’ve guided, and there’s always a story. What was the most f***** up client you’ve ever dealt with?

Tim Weddington: Well, the first thing that you can tell is when you walk in the morning at 05:00 am to make sure coffee makers running and you walk in there and the TV is on CNN.

Chris Evena: CNN?

Tim Weddington: CNN. You know, you got a problem. That’s the first red flag. Then that person right there watching CNN, you know you’re going to have a problem. And I know that’s. You just don’t – People don’t believe it or don’t understand it. But I can tell you, it seems every time that there is a problem arises in camp, whether it be a dog getting shot.

Chris Evena: Yep.

Tim Weddington: Or somebody wanting to take over a hunt and not pay attention to guides, it seems to always start out that I walk in there in the morning and they got CNN on, watching that stuff in the morning. And you know, I’m. I hate to be like that, but I’m just telling you how it is. Am I conservative? Absolutely. I mean, I can’t. I wouldn’t be in this business if I wasn’t.

Chris Evena: Yep.

Tim Weddington: And I don’t mind having debates with the other side. I enjoy it. It’s fun when someone will actually have a debate with you and you go over your views and their views and you either come to an agreement or you come to agreement not to agree. But it always seems that that’s how the hunt starts out. Is that okay? And then it always leads into other problems. 

You know, we’ve had dog shot after going over and generally it’s a quail hunt when the dogs get shot. But there’s really no sense in shooting a dog. You just have to pay attention to what’s in your backdrop. And of course, then they don’t want to take responsibility. They’ll try to deny it. Well, then you bring the dog over there and the dog’s got shot in it. And how do you deny this? You’re the one that pulled the trigger.

Chris Evena: Yeah.

Tim Weddington: I’m not going to get into the – Some of the, some of the worst things, but I can promise you this. It seems like it always starts out with CNN on the TV in the morning.

Chris Evena: I don’t disagree. So here’s a story for you. I was guarding in Pennsylvania and my friend who’s guiding had this client who would go into the woods with just a whole bunch of unnecessary gear. So the guy asked him, can you help me carry the – Carry my gear in? So he’s, yeah, he’s carrying some of his stuff. He has his bucket. They get into the stage. What’s the bucket for? Oh, that’s my shit  bucket. So he had my friend carry a shit bucket into the woods for.

Tim Weddington: Yeah, well, hey, I guess somebody told him that was the best way to go. I mean, you know, me and you both know that big bear craps in the woods. Be the big bear. Yeah. Having all that stuff, I mean, it’s, you see that a lot. I mean, unfortunately in this industry, marketing tells a lot of people that they need all this stuff. And when it comes down to it, maybe not so much. So you can see that a lot, you know?

Chris Evena: I think we’re about the same age bracket. And I could remember before there was any of this product, any of the technology, any of all of this stuff that everybody thinks they need right now is a lot simpler. You know, we had our plaid pants and jacket. Yeah, and that was it.

Tim Weddington: That’s what you went out and had a good time with. That’s the thing that we’ve gotten away from, is that you think back with those plaid pants and a jacket, how much fun you had then. Now you got all of this stuff that you thought you needed. You towed all of it around and it really took away from how much fun you had.

Chris Evena: Yeah, it’s true. You know, you don’t need to drag your Ozonics into the woods and, you know, connect it to the tree that either you’re going to be successful or you’re not. You know what you’re doing or you’re not. The technology is not going to make you a better hunter.

Tim Weddington: No, no, spending massive amounts of money will not make you a seasoned hunter.

Chris Evena: So you’re building up to what, deer season starting by you?

Tim Weddington: Yeah, we just kicked off. Deer season opened up yesterday. Muzzleloader season did. So we have that going on right now. And then we move right into pheasant season and then we run pheasant all the way to the end of January.

Chris Evena: All right, well, it sounds like you have a well oiled machine and you know, this is our time, this is our season. This is what we work all year for.

Tim Weddington: Absolutely. This is where we try to get all of the fruits of our labor to come together, you know, so we’re really looking forward to it. The bird population is crazy this year, Chris. 

I’ve never seen so many young chicks running around this summer while we’re out, you know, getting everything prepped, putting food plots in, putting trees in, you know, all the stuff that we do, we get to see, you know, what’s out there. And I have never seen so many young birds. And it doesn’t matter if it’s quail or pheasant. They were everywhere. And I’m really excited about getting out in the field and chasing them because the numbers are going to be insane.

Chris Evena: All right, so if somebody wants to book a pheasant or a quail hunt with you, how do they find you?

Tim Weddington: Get online. Just go to 10gaugeoutfitters.com and everything is right there on the website. You can handle your booking. You can shoot me a text message from the website. Hey, these dates available, I’ll get back to you immediately and you can book it right there on the spot. Very simple!

Chris Evena: Is it the number 10 gauge outfitters or a t-e-n?

Tim Weddington: That’s the number. It’s 10gaugeoutfitters.com.

Chris Evena: All right. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to us about your operation and what to expect! I look forward to possibly hunting with you in the future.

Tim Weddington: Sure. Chris, come on out. Join us here at 10 Gauge Outfitters. And hey, we’ll get with me again and we’ll do another podcast sometime soon. Okay?

Chris Evena: Thanks again for your time and look forward to meeting with you.

Tim Weddington: Thank you, sir! Have a good day!

Chris Evena: You too!

Check the Kansas Dept of Wildlife and Parks website for License requirements. You will need a general Kansas hunting license to hunt pheasant

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