Hunting in Saskatchewan: Your Questions, Answered

Our guided whitetail hunt is $6,000 USD per hunter, plus 11% tax and the current licence fee. A spring black bear hunt is $4,000 USD per hunter on the same terms.

Our whitetail hunts run November 1 through December 7, timed to the November rut.

Our spring bear hunts run late May through early June, hunted over bait sites we tend year round.

Hunts are 5.5 days, arriving Sunday afternoon.

Whitetail weeks take six hunters at most, so stand pressure stays low. Bear weeks are a small group as well.

Yes. Saskatchewan requires every non-resident big game hunter (whitetail, black bear and wolf) to hunt with a licensed outfitter and hold a guided licence. We set up your licence as part of the hunt. Source: Government of Saskatchewan.

If you were born after January 1, 1971, yes: you need a recognized hunter education certificate. Bring your state hunter education card. If you’re unsure whether yours is recognized, the Saskatchewan Association of Firearm Education can confirm it (306-352-6730, saskhuntered.ca).

Yes. Archery hunters are welcome on spring bear hunts; bring your bow and case. Archery and muzzleloader bear hunters may wear full camo.

Right now, as a by-chance add-on: a wolf endorsement can be added to your whitetail tag, though a shot opportunity is rare and never guaranteed. We’re also considering dedicated timber wolf hunts; register your interest there.

Most hunters fly into Saskatoon (YXE), about a 3 to 3½ hour drive from camp. Edmonton (YEG) is about 4 to 4½ hours away and, being a larger airport, often has better flight options from the U.S.

Yes. Non-resident hunters bring their own firearms using a Non-Resident Firearm Declaration. We send you the online link every August. Fill it out ahead of time, but don’t sign it until you’re in front of the Canadian border officer. The fee is CAD $25, paid at the border, and the confirmed declaration is good for 60 days. Declare every firearm and weapon you’re carrying.

Official details: RCMP: firearms for non-residents and CBSA: firearms at the border.

Handguns, automatic firearms, silencers and spring-action knives are prohibited. For spring bear hunts, leave semi-automatic rifles at home as well. Canada’s firearm rules change from time to time, so check the RCMP’s guidance for non-residents before you travel, and ask us if you’re unsure about your rifle.

• A valid, current passport.
• Your Non-Resident Firearm Declaration (unsigned until the border) if you’re bringing a firearm.
• Your travel insurance documents.

A criminal record, including an impaired-driving (DUI) conviction, can make you inadmissible to Canada. If that applies to you, contact a Canadian consulate well before your trip about getting permission to enter.

• Pack the rifle unloaded, with a trigger lock, in a locked hard case in your checked luggage.
• Pack ammunition separately in a marked container, up to 5 kg (11 lb).
• Declare your firearm and ammunition when you check in with the airline.
• Wrap knives and pack them in checked bags.
• Keep your firearm declaration with your passport.

No. Bear spray and animal repellents aren’t allowed in carry-on or checked luggage, and Thermacell gas cartridges can’t fly either. Pick them up on the drive to camp (Walmart or Canadian Tire). Bear spray is for emergencies only.

Saskatchewan lists the non-resident guided licence at CAD $360 for whitetail, $240 for black bear and $200 for wolf, and other provincial fees can apply on top (in 2022 the deer licence came to CAD $480 at camp). You pay in U.S. cash at supper on the first evening, and we’ll confirm your exact total when you book. Current fees: Government of Saskatchewan.

Bring U.S. cash for your hunting licence and tips, and a card for anything else.

Tipping is a gift and is never expected. If you’d like a guideline:

• 10% for a standard hunt
• 15% for a great hunt
• 20% for the hunt of a lifetime

Around $120 is typical for the kitchen and cleaning staff. Guide tips go directly to Walker. If anything about your hunt wasn’t right, please tell Kathy or Walker.

No, but text Kathy before you arrive and she’ll pick it up for you. You settle up when you get to camp.

• Bedding and towels
• Toilet paper, tissues, shampoo and soap
• All meals, plus non-alcoholic drinks
• Thermoses and soft gun cases
• On whitetail hunts, heated treestands with VHF radios to stay in touch with your guide
• Boxes for packing meat and capes
• Cell coverage and Wi-Fi

• Rifle: the one you shoot most accurately, ideally .270 or larger.
• Ammunition: 150-grain ballistic tips or heavier, in a plastic case. You may bring up to 200 rounds.
• Stand clothing: warm boots, a hooded coat, head cover, gloves, face mask, neck warmer, layered socks, and chemical hand and foot warmers.
• Legal hunter orange: see the next question.
• Camp clothes: a light jacket and slippers. Boots aren’t worn in the sleeping cabin or the dining house.
• Medications: enough for the whole trip. U.S. prescriptions can’t be refilled in Canada, and there’s no overnight delivery to camp.
• Toiletries and shaving kit.
• A lidded urine container for the stand. Please don’t ask your guide to carry it.
• Phone chargers.
• A duffel, insulated bag or cooler for taking meat home.

Rifle hunters must wear an outer vest or garment in scarlet, bright yellow, blaze orange or white (camo patterns don’t count), with any crest no larger than 15 square inches, plus headwear in scarlet, bright yellow or blaze orange, with any label no larger than 7.8 square inches. Archery and muzzleloader bear hunters may wear full camo.

The whitetail list covers the basics. For bear season, add:

• Your bow and case, if you hunt archery
• A safety harness (or use one of ours)
• Camo face paint
• Rain gear, a warm coat, rubber boots and a second pair of footwear
• Bug protection: a Thermacell (buy cartridges near camp) or DEET, plus a head net and gloves. Expect mosquitoes and sand flies; there are no black flies.
• Sunscreen, sunglasses and lip balm
• Bear spray for emergencies, bought on the way to camp

Free afternoon? There’s a golf course 20 minutes from camp, and you can rent clubs at the pro shop instead of paying airline fees.

Yes, there’s cell coverage and Wi-Fi at camp. Bring your chargers.

Yes, but only in person. Meat can’t be shipped or mailed. Camp has a freezer so it’s frozen before you leave; if you’re staying in a hotel the night before your flight, check that they can keep it frozen.

Deer meat is donated and always used. Bear meat is rarely wanted, so it’s disposed of.

• Use a Saskatchewan taxidermist. Drop it off in Saskatoon (or wherever your taxidermist directs), or we can deliver it to Saskatoon for $120.
• Take it home frozen solid. Check with your hotel about freezer space before your flight.

Leave a $500 deposit (cheque or cash) before you leave camp. Decisions are due by the end of your hunt week; without a deposit we can’t hold your spot.

Yes. Ammunition and bulky gear can be stored at camp until you’re back next year.