Our Colorado Hunting Guides
Adam VanVaulkenburg - Guide
Adam’s family homesteaded their ranch in the late 1800’s. Since that time, his family has ranched in the North Park region of Colorado. He is a fifth generation rancher and has hunting the area since he was old enough to handle firearms.
Adam is married to his wife Kari, who helps him and his parents (Chris & Carla) ranch near Coalmont, Colorado.
Adam is also the owner of Rabbit Ears Rifle and has served as the President of the North Park Stockman’s Association since 2020.
Adam is an accomplished big game hunter, long-range shooter, gunsmith, high country snowmobiler, and an avid furbearer and small game hunter. He goes by the nickname “North Park Mountain Man.”
Adam and Earl have been friends since Earl started outfitting in North Park. He has guided for Ivory & Antler Outfitters since 2017 and outside of ranching he guides on our Early Season Cow Elk Rifle Hunts, Bull Elk Archery Hunts, and late season Bull Elk Rifle Hunts.
Austin Gray - Marketing/Guide
Austin grew up in West Texas before attending Colorado State University to play football as a starting Safety. Upon graduation, Austin stayed in Colorado and worked several jobs in the outdoors to enjoy all Colorado has to offer.
Austin is married and has a beautiful daughter he and his wife Bailey were blessed with in 2022.
Austin grew up hunting all over Texas and venturing to Colorado to fly fish with his father. He is an accomplished fly fisherman known for his incredible luck and great skill as a big game archery hunter.
Austin has guided for Ivory & Antler since 2017 and although he runs his own construction company, joins the team to guide Archery Bull Elk Hunts in September to keep his connection to the North Park area.
Austin also helps Earl with the company marketing platform which has turned into a huge success. Through their collaboration over the last decade, Ivory & Antler books out 2-3 years in advance.
Caleb Luikens - Guide
Caleb’s family worked in the North Park Ranching community for most of his childhood life. His father moved to NW Nebraska for ranch work and took his family to Scotts Bluff. Today, Caleb and his family own and operate a well drilling, ranch pump, and septic business that operates in the Scotts Bluff area and sometimes ventures into Wyoming.
Caleb is married to his wife Melissa and has 5 beautiful children, so he spends his off season working his well pump business and being a great father. Caleb retired from the Marine Corp and has guided for Ivory & Antler Outfitters since 2016.
Caleb is an accomplished waterfowl hunter but loves to spend October and November guiding our Late Season Bull Elk Rifle Hunts.
Earl Oesterling - Owner & Lead Guide
Earl Grew up in the Upper Midwest and has been an avid whitetail and small game hunter since he was able to walk. After College, he went to work for the Toyota Motor Corporation and had an accomplished career for the next 18 years. During this time, he was able to pursue big and small game all over North America.
He left Toyota in order to make Tony’s dream of a successful outfitting company come true and that is what he accomplished.
Earl guides all seasons and coordinates the rest of the team on the daily and weekly plans during the very busy guiding season.
Earl sits on the board of the Colorado Outfitters Association as it NE Director and is extremely involved in political and other events that threaten hunting, conservation, and other recreational activities in Colorado.
Ryan Perdue - Guide
Ryan grew up on the Front Range of Colorado. As a boy, he started hunting with his father, mainly for turkeys and waterfowl.
Ryan spent time working as a police officer in the Denver area; he was in the Army until an accident repelling from a helicopter ended his career in the Army. He then went to work in the oil fields in North Dakota. Ryan has hunted every fall since he was a boy and loves to ice fish and snowmobile around North Park in the winter months.
Ryan was instrumental in Hero Expeditions for several years. HEX is a non-profit that hosts wounded and retired Vets, First Responders, and kids of age on hunting and fishing trips all over the West. On their heyday, they serviced over 500 participants throughout the year. The work they did helped so many people that it's hard to understand the reach.
In the off-season, he works at a water company in Loveland, Colorado.
Ryan has guided Ivory & Antler since 2018. He mainly guides for Moose and Late Season Bull Elk Rifle Hunts.
Tony Cesario - Founder
Tony grew up outside of Pueblo, Colorado. He learned to hunt in the wilds of Southern Colorado with his dad and a close network of friends. Tony was an extremely talented high school football player who went on to start for the Colorado State University Rams. After his 5 years in Fort Collins, he was drafted in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Tony played in the NFL for 4 years before injuring his left knee and retiring back to Fort Collins.
Tony operated an outfitting company that operated on some of the same leases we use today, as well as a traffic control company along the front range of Colorado.
Tony passed away from a rare disease while guiding elk hunters in 2010.
He and Earl became close friends during a waterfowl hunt in 2008. Together, they hunted all over the state.
Tony was our founder, brother, and friend, and he is missed every day! His memory still lives in and around the Ivory & Antler Outfitters streams, hay fields, timber fringes, sage flats, and mountains that we call home year-round!
Rest in Peace, old friend!
Carson Kidd - Guide
Carson was born and raised in Southern California, where he spent his childhood in the suburbs of Los Angeles. Although he did not have the opportunity to hunt much because he grew up in a metro area, he did spend his spare time fishing the tributaries in and around his home and camping with his family in and around the San Bernardino Mountains. He developed a love for the outdoors at a young age and took that love with him when he moved to Illinois to play college football. Living in Illinois, he found his passion intensifies in and around the boreal forests and rich agricultural lands of the mid-west.
After college, Carson returned to his home in Southern California, where he started dating his future wife, Baylie. The two were soon married and decided to move east once again, this time landing in Colorado on his own 10-acre ranch outside of Colorado Springs, where he lives today with his wife Baylie and their two daughters.
Carson splits his time managing a restaurant and following his second greatest passion (second only to his family), guiding big game. Although Carson did not grow up hunting, he had several important mentors teach him the ways of the outdoors. He learned very valuable skills that he uses today in his guiding career.
Carson worked for his first outfitter starting in 2020, where he guided Pronghorn and Mule Deer clients on the Eastern Plains outside of Colorado Springs. As much as Carson loved working close to home, he decided to stretch his legs and look for an outfitter with a more diverse operation where he could learn and grow his guiding skills.
Carson joined Ivory & Antler Outfitters in 2023. He helped guide Pronghorn Archery and Mule Deer Rifle Clients and will soon be looking forward to expanding his skills to Elk Clients.
When Carson is not guiding or working in the food service industry, he enjoys passing along his hunting skills to his father and brother and enjoying his family’s ranch with their numerous farm animals.
