My son and I were after the Grand Slam. Phillip and his crew delivered. Not only did all 4 hunters…read moreget their birds the first morning, it was our favorite hunt of 2026. Thank you Phillip

After having saved for over 5 years, reviewing the reviews, hunt was booked. Communication was…read morefair prior to hunt with no notification of where to meet. Camp was good, cook and food was great. Not much communication from Phillip and all decisions of where, when to hunt were made by Phillip. Guide was good, but appeared to be limited by orders from Phillip as morning hunts were from before sunrise and ended no later than 11:00 am, evening hunts were from 2:15 pm to sunset. Saw several groups of elk almost daily. Guide appeared to be more content driving gator around with some walking/hiking to try to locate elk. A large hurd was located on the second full day of the hunt in the evening on another ranch not leased by LWGS. Phillip was notified of the large hurd that was located while glassing by not only the Guide but also myself. Finally on the fourth full day of the hunt the entire hurd was located on the leased property, at guide was instructed to leave the hurd and take us to another part of the property, words relayed to us were "going to leave them so we dont blow them out off of the property." Phillip, who was with a hunter who has hunted with LWGS multiple times, paid for his son this trip, ended up with the son taking a bull that was in the area. Father/son were nice people and father had been on several trips with LWGS including a bow hunt this year and an out of country hunt. Tuesday morning another hunter harvested a bull on a different part of the lease. Both were nice guys, very personable, the second hunter also knows Phillip quite well and had been to MT with LWGS multiple times this year to include a personal trip arranged for Phillip and his wife in MT. Phillip advised, as the web site states, 5 hunters, we started off with 6 one had to leave for a problem back home. It was clear that two of the hunters had been using LWGS for years, had been on multiple hunts with Phillip/Josh, hunting assignments were discussed privately or quietly regarding where each guide was to take the hunters. When we asked if we could stay in the field all day to increase our chances, we were told no. On Wednesday morning I stayed with my guide and my relative went with Josh and the last remaining client went with Phillip. We went to a location we had been to multiple times over the last few days. After glassing for a while, I located one hurd to the SW, which I had also located two days prior. I also located another hurd to the NW. My guide said he didn't see anything, I pointed out the two hurds closest one was approximately 15 elk two 6x6, 3 rag horn, 3 spikes and some cows. My guide advised Phillip of the hurd and they were headed towards a location on the LWGS and that we were going to head that direction. While in the gator we came around a corner and I observed them alert to the noise of the gator and seeing it but also observing it from approx.1200 yards. My guide asked me if I was up for a hike to try to cut them off, and I advised definitely. My guide called Phillip, I believe, then I was advised we were headed to another location no where near where the elk were moving in. It became apparent that there was to be no elk harvested at that time and that my guide was not only having to check in, couldn't make direct decisions and was being instructed on what/where to go and do. What was to be most likely a once in a lifetime hunt for a chance to harvest at least a rag horn or larger, had turned out to be a hunt that appeared to specifically cater to wealthy friends. Having hunted elk and deer for the last 41 years and harvesting many. Knowing there are no guarantees with hunting is one thing, however, limiting the actions of the guide as to where to go and what to do sure gave the appearance for the desired outcome, this coupled with the definite commerodery with friends who have returned and plan to return time and time again, gave the appearance and effect of our one time deal being insignificant. I was charged the "out of state" $ 50 fee when I have been a resident of MT for 34 years and LWSG was advised of. It was not only the control of our guide, but also the overall manner/secrecy and blatant difference in how the wealthy "regulars" were taken care of compared to the one timers. It could have been that I was honest about my career, my son's employment, which sparked a conversation. One thing is for certain, there was a definite difference in how we were handled and how the friends were handled. Really a disappointing experience on several levels. But there was a consolation prize, a deer call made by Phillips newly acquired company, thus the trip was not a total loss as we got a $9k deer call.

Wow! What a great experience. Phil was so knowledgeable and seemed to know where to find all the…read morebest wildlife. We spotted wolves, deer, elk, sheep, mountain goats, pronghorn and so many bison. I will say, although Phil has a long list of great qualities, my favorite moment of the trip was when he step up the scope for us, and then proceeded to pick up litter from the surrounding area. It's these small acts that show that he really cares about the park and wildlife that call it home.

There are lots of guidelines for Yellowstone. We were reminded to stay safe that the hot springs &…read moreanimals are wild and dangerous and we should be 25 to 100 yards away. We saw the bear spray could be rented for the day as it's expensive and can be returned if it's not used. We were reminded never to feed the animals store food properly, pay attention and be respectful. Hands and feet need to stay out of the water and we should be on boardwalks and designated trails. We were told that there are videos online of Tormons a mixture of tourist that are morons and do stupid things here

Long time client, first time post. We have been float fishing with Gallatin River Guides for years!…read moreWe have been fortunate to have the same guide year after year. Like this guide taught my youngest how to fly fish when he was little. We originally was going to go with Wild Trout Outfitters a few doors down but they were so rude that we left. We are so thankful we did. The staff is great, we love the guides, even the lunch they get is delicious. We cannot say enough about Gallatin River Guides! If you are looking for fishing, look no further!

While in Big Sky visited Gallatin River Guides for a half-day Fly Fishing trip. Extremely helpful,…read morepatient and great selection from head to toe in what our group of 5 needed for an outstanding memory! Price was right in line with what you'd expect and a great value. We had a blast, and everyone caught plenty of fish! Lindsay was our particular guide, a MT native, who went above and beyond.

A great day fishing the Lower Madison River with guide Ashton Russell; followed by another great…read moreday on the Gibbon in Yellowstone National Park with guide Jamie White. Appreciate the staff at Sweetwater in making all of the arrangements, adjusting around a heavy rainstorm that prevented us from fishing the Yellowstone River, and providing good guidance in helping us plan our travel.

The staff at Sweetwater might be some of the best people we've ever met. We walked in completely…read moreclueless about fly fishing. They spent time educating us - the lesson was amazing! The adjusted their schedules to also take my husband and son out on the water for private fishing. Within 10 minutes my son had his first fish. The service was out of this world. We are forever repeat customers!

Extremely sad. These people should not be allowed to own horses. This is animal abuse. Horses…read moreforced to lay in their own waste and drink disgusting water. not a single area of ground that isn't half a foot high in horse poop. The horses were sinking into it and slipping in it. I've never seen anything this horrendous at a stable in my entire life and I've been to many. This place is disgusting and these people should not be allowed to own animals.

Highly recommend this experienced outfitter for pack trips into the Yellowstone. They take great…read morecare of you, and they're a great team. I learned a bit about how it works from them, from the gear to the horse pens, the mule bells, and how to order your group. We spent 3 days in the beautiful mountains, riding up 9,000 feet to a lake, saw wildflowers, gorgeous views and even a bison. Trip of a lifetime.

Just finished a fabulous 2-day tour of Yellowstone Park with Cara from IN-Our-Nature. Even though…read moreI had been to Yellowstone in the past, and thought I knew the sites fairly well, with Cara's in-depth knowledge of the park, its wildlife, the geology and natural history, all together made for a memorable trip. Of course we did get to see a lot of wildlife, and some that I would not have seen on my own, like the wolves and mountain goats, but I came away feeling like I not only had a great time , but learned a whole lot at the same time.

Had a great tour with Cara as our guide. She was knowledgeable about the wildlife and seemed to be…read moreable to see bears with her naked eyes that we were barely able to see with her spotting scopes. The tour started with hot coffee and we got a mid-morning snack as well as lunch. We saw so many animals and birds. It was really one of the best trips we'd been on!!