Bad Experience with Nakoda Runners owner Randy Pooyak
12-19-2023, 04:27 PM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2023
Posts: 1
Bad Experience with Nakoda Runners owner Randy Pooyak
I just returned from my first Mule Deer Hunt in Saskatchewan Nov. 11th - 16th with Randy Pooyak owner of Nakoda Runners Guide Service in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. I found Nakoda Runners on the same website "Book your Hunt" he contacted me right away offering a Trophy 180" plus Mule Deer 6-day hunt for $ 4500.00 plus $ 500.00 for the license. Travel Hotel and food were extra. I asked him for references. He provided me with 2 references. I spoke to both references, and they provided me with great reviews and photos of big Mule Deer they had taken over the years. ( I believe them to get big discounts for providing great references)
Randy sent me a contract and I sent him a $500.00 deposit for a 6-day hunt November 11th- 16th. I asked him for a Guide named Sonny (His Bother) but when he met me at the Gold Eagle Motel In North Battleford, He introduced me to a young 23-year-old Native and said that he would be my guide. My first red flag! He told me that he was an experienced hunter and knew the reservations well. I objected, but he told me that he was shorthanded and had no other guides available. I agreed to give it a try. Right from the first day, I discovered that this was his first guiding experience, and I knew more about Mule Deer hunting that he did. He was a college student on holiday for a week and Randy offered him $ 1000.00 to be my guide for 6 days. He had a Little Pine Reservation Mule Deer Tag with him. I discovered that he had never even been on the Little Pine Reservation land, let alone hunted on it. He was from the Sweet Grass Reservation. My second red flag was that I was not allowed to keep the tag and my guide would take it home with him every night. My conclusion was that if I did not shoot a mule deer, Randy would keep it for the next group of hunters. The guide also drove an old Dodge Avenger SUV that was not capable of traversing the terrain, had mechanical issues and did not have enough clearance to drive through picked fields. So, Randy told me to go ahead and use my 4x4 truck and he would reimburse me for gas. Sound Familiar? The first day of Driving around scouting, we saw a nice Bull Moose. My guide called Randy to see if he could get a tag for a Moose. He said yes, for an additional $2000.00. I agreed. The next day my guide had a Poundmaker Reservation Moose tag. We found the Moose on Poundmaker land and I took the moose. We tagged the moose and Randy took it to the Meat processor. The rest of the week was tough hunting. The Mule Deer were not moving, we had no snow on the ground, and it was 52 degrees during the day. The Little Pine Land and reservation had been hunted hard! you could tell by the number of truck tire prints in the fields. We had only scene 3 does all week. On Friday, we got lucky and found a 5X5 130" Buck with a doe bedding down in some grass we were walking. It was out last full day of hunting, so I took this Buck. Tagged him and Randy's guys came and took him to the meat processor. That afternoon, I followed Randy to the meat processor to pick up my Moose meat and antlers. I asked Randy if the tag on the Moose and Mule Deer antlers and meat were export tags. He told me yes; I would have no problem taking them into the US. But the Mule deer had not been processed yet. So, I donated the Mule deer meat to the Tribe and said I would come back later for the antlers. The processor said that he could get the cap and antlers ready by 8:00 PM. I drove back out to the meat processor in the dark who lived out in the country to pick up my Mule Deer cape and antlers. I could not read the green tag on the antlers being so dark while loading them into the bed of my truck.
I left the hotel in North Battleford 6:00 AM since I had a 20.5 hour drive ahead of me. I drove to North Portal US Border Check Point. I told them I had 2 animals. I went in to fill out forms and they came out to my truck to inspect the tags. They told me that the moose was tagged with a Reservation tag and not a Saskatchewan Export Tag. The US Border Patrol Wildlife agents convinced me to go back to Canada, meet with the Saskatchewan Conservation Police and give a statement. I wanted to do the right thing and testify against Randy Pooyak to prevent this from happening to other trusting hunters going to Saskatchewan. I met with Jacob at the border, and they convinced me to come back to his office and give a statement. I did not realize that they were setting me up for failure!! They recorded my statement, made a call to North Battleford and charged me with transporting 2 animals without the proper tags and attempting to export 2 animals without the correct tags. My Mule Deer was tagged for the Moquito Reservation when I place a tag on my deer for the Little Pine Reservation. Randy had switched the tags!! I was fined over $ 7500.00. They confiscated my Moose Meat and both the Moose and Mule Deer Cape/Antlers. They did not even ask me for Randy Pooyaks phone number! The said that If I wanted to testify against Randy Pooyak, they would have US Fish and Wildlife get in touch with me for a statement. Bottom line is that there is nothing the Saskatchewan Conservation Police can do to a Native Canadian living on a Reservation. I was defrauded by Randy Pooyak and he will continue to defraud US Hunters until the Candian Government stops him. I did everything I was told to do and was upfront and honest about everything that happened. But, I am the one left paying the fines. I tried calling Randy Pooyak and his references and they are not returning my calls.
Randy sent me a contract and I sent him a $500.00 deposit for a 6-day hunt November 11th- 16th. I asked him for a Guide named Sonny (His Bother) but when he met me at the Gold Eagle Motel In North Battleford, He introduced me to a young 23-year-old Native and said that he would be my guide. My first red flag! He told me that he was an experienced hunter and knew the reservations well. I objected, but he told me that he was shorthanded and had no other guides available. I agreed to give it a try. Right from the first day, I discovered that this was his first guiding experience, and I knew more about Mule Deer hunting that he did. He was a college student on holiday for a week and Randy offered him $ 1000.00 to be my guide for 6 days. He had a Little Pine Reservation Mule Deer Tag with him. I discovered that he had never even been on the Little Pine Reservation land, let alone hunted on it. He was from the Sweet Grass Reservation. My second red flag was that I was not allowed to keep the tag and my guide would take it home with him every night. My conclusion was that if I did not shoot a mule deer, Randy would keep it for the next group of hunters. The guide also drove an old Dodge Avenger SUV that was not capable of traversing the terrain, had mechanical issues and did not have enough clearance to drive through picked fields. So, Randy told me to go ahead and use my 4x4 truck and he would reimburse me for gas. Sound Familiar? The first day of Driving around scouting, we saw a nice Bull Moose. My guide called Randy to see if he could get a tag for a Moose. He said yes, for an additional $2000.00. I agreed. The next day my guide had a Poundmaker Reservation Moose tag. We found the Moose on Poundmaker land and I took the moose. We tagged the moose and Randy took it to the Meat processor. The rest of the week was tough hunting. The Mule Deer were not moving, we had no snow on the ground, and it was 52 degrees during the day. The Little Pine Land and reservation had been hunted hard! you could tell by the number of truck tire prints in the fields. We had only scene 3 does all week. On Friday, we got lucky and found a 5X5 130" Buck with a doe bedding down in some grass we were walking. It was out last full day of hunting, so I took this Buck. Tagged him and Randy's guys came and took him to the meat processor. That afternoon, I followed Randy to the meat processor to pick up my Moose meat and antlers. I asked Randy if the tag on the Moose and Mule Deer antlers and meat were export tags. He told me yes; I would have no problem taking them into the US. But the Mule deer had not been processed yet. So, I donated the Mule deer meat to the Tribe and said I would come back later for the antlers. The processor said that he could get the cap and antlers ready by 8:00 PM. I drove back out to the meat processor in the dark who lived out in the country to pick up my Mule Deer cape and antlers. I could not read the green tag on the antlers being so dark while loading them into the bed of my truck.
I left the hotel in North Battleford 6:00 AM since I had a 20.5 hour drive ahead of me. I drove to North Portal US Border Check Point. I told them I had 2 animals. I went in to fill out forms and they came out to my truck to inspect the tags. They told me that the moose was tagged with a Reservation tag and not a Saskatchewan Export Tag. The US Border Patrol Wildlife agents convinced me to go back to Canada, meet with the Saskatchewan Conservation Police and give a statement. I wanted to do the right thing and testify against Randy Pooyak to prevent this from happening to other trusting hunters going to Saskatchewan. I met with Jacob at the border, and they convinced me to come back to his office and give a statement. I did not realize that they were setting me up for failure!! They recorded my statement, made a call to North Battleford and charged me with transporting 2 animals without the proper tags and attempting to export 2 animals without the correct tags. My Mule Deer was tagged for the Moquito Reservation when I place a tag on my deer for the Little Pine Reservation. Randy had switched the tags!! I was fined over $ 7500.00. They confiscated my Moose Meat and both the Moose and Mule Deer Cape/Antlers. They did not even ask me for Randy Pooyaks phone number! The said that If I wanted to testify against Randy Pooyak, they would have US Fish and Wildlife get in touch with me for a statement. Bottom line is that there is nothing the Saskatchewan Conservation Police can do to a Native Canadian living on a Reservation. I was defrauded by Randy Pooyak and he will continue to defraud US Hunters until the Candian Government stops him. I did everything I was told to do and was upfront and honest about everything that happened. But, I am the one left paying the fines. I tried calling Randy Pooyak and his references and they are not returning my calls.
