I live in TN and taken probably 15 western hunting trips (CO, NEB, WY) in groups from 1-6 people. In all cases, we've had at least one vehicle driven to haul gear, guns, etc... If you compare fuel and motel costs to airfare and rental car, driving will be cheaper. It will take longer, but for me, it is cheaper. Driving also eliminates the issue of minimizing gear in checked baggage.
Oh, I forgot about one trip where we all flew and shipped meat back. That was an expensive lesson! I think it was $600 for about 100 lb of meat and one antelope head, and that was 10+ years ago.
If you do decide to fly, the shipping everything to your friend sounds like a good idea. And keep the critical things on you - binos, spotting scope - stuff that would be difficult or expensive if it didn't make it.
Good luck and post pics!