The Hog Blog

Well, the turkey hunt was tough, but my hunter went home with his bird.  Without going into too much detail, it was a learning experience for the both of us, I think… at least I’m certain I learned a lot as a guide, and I sure hope he learned a bit as a hunter and a client. 

As a guide, I learned that you have to take control of the hunt from the beginning, because if you let the client take over you’ll be run ragged and frustrated.  I made that mistake this weekend and it made me look pretty bad.  It’s important to give the customer what he wants, but you have to decide where the line is drawn between letting him learn the hard way and doing what it takes to ensure that the hunt ends with success. 

As a guided client, there’s a golden rule that you should always observe.  Don’t try to guide the guide!  The guide is the expert.  He (or she) knows the animals in the specific area… their behavior and their eccentricities.  The guide knows how to hunt those animals.  When the guide suggests a tactic or a location, it’s best to go with the suggestions. 

Sure, ask questions.  You can even challenge the guide’s recommendation.  But do so knowing that, when all is said and done, you are the customer.  Most guides will give you what you want, because you’re paying the bill.  Very seldom will your request be flat-out denied, so you’d do well to consider carefully before going contrary to the guide’s advice. 

If you want to do things your own way, why would you pay so much for a guided hunt in the first place?  Hunt public land, or pay a tresspass fee for an unguided hunt on private property.  To do otherwise is a waste of your money, and of the guide’s energy. 

Anyway, that’s all I have to say about that.  As much as I may enjoy it, I have to remember that guiding is a job.  It’s not about me. 

Meanwhile, during the weekend I got an email from my little brother, Scott, back in NC.  He got drawn this year for the limited entry turkey hunt on the Roanoke River, and couldn’t wait to share his success.  Two turkeys in two days… one of which was this really nice tom, sporting an 11-inch beard and 1 1/2″ spurs! 

He said that the area was a madhouse of gobbling and fighting birds, including two toms who were gobbling their heads off at each other across the river!  Sure sounds like fun to me!

So, I guess I’m officially a professional turkey hunter now, so I am qualified to offer the following turkey hunting tips.  Read carefully, because I’m about to give you some guaranteed ways to get your turkey!

1. Call aggressively!  Sometimes you really need to lay on the calls.  Don’t hold back, because the birds are coming and they’re coming strong!
2. Keep the calling to a minimum.  Don’t call too much, and keep it soft and quiet. 
3. Don’t call!  Turkeys get called to much.  Get their attention then shut up! 
4. Sit tight!  Be patient and the turkeys will come to you.
5. Be mobile.  If the turkeys don’t come to you, you have to go to them. 
6. Use a blind.  It keeps you well hidden wherever you are, and may be the only way to get close to pressured birds.
7. Use only natural cover.  Blinds stick out, and may spook pressured birds.
8. Use a super-tight choke.  It concentrates your kill zone.
9. Avoid the extremely tight chokes.   They concentrate the shot too much.
10. The final tip to guarantee a turkey?  Go to the grocery store.  This is hunting dangit!  There ARE NO GUARANTEES!

Hope that helped!

See all you Hog Blog friends and readers on Monday!

Well, it’s another weekend in the woods for me, as I’m back down to the beautiful Bryson Resort to try to make another turkey hunter happy… and maybe find some hogs too! 

It promises to be a busy weekend, with six hog hunters and one turkey hunter on the resort.  The critters are here, and we’ll have three Bryson guides, plus the likely assistance of Tom Willoughby (well-known, long-time, Central Coast hog guide) to make it happen, and I hope to be bringing some tales of success, along with photos and maybe even some video if I have time.

Deedy has put wireless internet in down at the Resort, one more luxurious amenity in these beautifully appointed cabins.  This is NOT roughing it, I can tell you!  So anyway, if things go well, I will update you, good readers, as things turn out.  The hunts officially start tomorrow afternoon, and will run through the weekend. 

Until then, it’s time to do some scouting and see what’s out there! 

Interesting news on the lead ban front.  Looks like Minnesota will not be banning lead shot for upland and small game hunters, despite the support of the State Department of Natural Resources for the ban. 

According to this article at Star-Tribune.com, Senator Satveer Chaudhary killed the provision after meetings with Federal Ammunition (which has a shotshell factory in the state) and the NRA.  Sen. Chaudhary decided the current research did not justify the ban, and that the research had not considered important factors such as the potential economic impact of banning lead shot. 

Wow.  Common sense from an elected official? 

The DNR will likely continue to do research on the impacts of lead shot on local wildlife, and will also be watching closely as health officials crank up the research on the health effects of lead ammo in game meat.  Minnesota is one of the states that advised food banks to remove hunter-donated venison from distribution. 

You read it here first folks (unless you read it somewhere else)… the lead ammo ban will become one of the top hunting issues across the country over the next two or three years. 

Apologies to Nash Buckingham, but I couldn’t think of a better title for this one. 

To set the stage, my friend Matt, from the Jesse’s Hunting and Outdoors forum, has been on a tear lately with what he calls his “Man Thursdays”.  Most weeks, by agreement with his wife, this is his day without the kids to get out and do some hunting, and he’s been making the most of it.  You may remember his photo posted back in January, with the nice boar he took in the snow.  Well he’s turned up almost every Thursday since then with another kill.  That right there is some serious hunting, and some great success! 

Anyway, he’s done it again… and this time, he’s really outdone himself with one monster of a hog.  Keep in mind now, that in CA, our feral hogs are many, many generations away from domestic.  There’s also a strong likelihood that some populations have interbred with the descendants of eurasian wild boar.  Point being, you’re not gonna see any of these second-generation, feral pigs like you do in some states that top the scales in the 700-800 pound range.   CA wild pigs have been wild for a very long time.

No, out here, a 200 -250 pounder is, honestly, a really good pig.  Most CA hunters take pigs in the 100-150 lb. range.  It’s very rare to see one go to the 300-pound class, and anything over that is a monster by local standards… which makes Matt’s “Man Thursday” story for last week even more impressive.  This animal never saw a scale, but Matt’s pretty experienced as a hunter and guide, and he knows what pigs weigh.  His conservative estimate put this monster between 300-350 lbs. 

Last week he didn’t make the regular Thursday trip, but he got out… better late than never.  I’ll let him tell the tale in his own words.  

Read the rest of this entry »

With all the political ruckus surrounding the CA lead ammo ban, and all the craziness going on now in North Dakota and Midwestern states regarding lead in venison, it’s easy to get sidetracked fighting the battles and forget to take care of the details along the way.  For example, regardless of how we feel about the CA lead ban, it’s the law now, and come July 1, when the 2008-2009 licenses come into effect, you’d better be ready.

So what are you gonna use?

For most big game hunters, the available options are pretty limited.  Let’s see, there’s Barnes, Barnes, and Barnes.  If you hunt with a muzzleloader, there’s Barnes.  Shotgun hunters… well, there’s Barnes.  For centerfire rifle bullets, there’s a whole selection of Barnes bullets, and they offer the XPB for pistol shooters too. 

Federal offers a fairly wide line of centerfire cartridges.  They’re loaded with Barnes bullets.  Cor-Bon, well known for hot loads and cast bullets has a lead-free offering.  It’s loaded with Barnes.  Black Hills ammo is offering several calibers loaded with lead-free bullets… all made by Barnes. 

Sound a little redundant?  In fact, if you are shopping today for lead-free ammunition, that’s almost all you’re going to find.  

Fortunately, the Barnes bullets are showing really good performance for most hunters and shooters. They’re also available in almost every caliber on the market… at least for hand-loaders.  Factory cartridges are a little more limited.

I have had the opportunity to shoot them in three calibers so far, and my Tejon hog back in February was taken with a Barnes TSX from my .325.  I found that my handloads in the .325wsm and the Federal Premiums for the 30-06 both shot extremely well at the range.  The .325wsm, with 200gr bullets, printed the best groups (the best was just under ¾ inch), but that might be expected from handloads and the Browning A-Bolt rifle. 

The 165gr, factory loads in my Savage 110, 30-06, still came in around an inch or so, but this was before I had the muzzle braked (by KDF) and installed a new trigger.  Fliers were common with this rifle, partially due to the thin barrel, and partly due to the punishing nature of the Savage stock design.  I’m sure that a mechanical rest, like the “Lead-Sled” would have allowed me to get much better groups, but MOA accuracy is perfectly alright with me. 

The third test was with another Browning A-bolt, this one in .270win.  I picked up a box of the Black Hills ammo, loaded with 130gr TSX bullets.  This rifle shoots lights out with even cheap ammo, and I fully expected to see the Barnes bullets make tiny, little groups.  I was surprised, then, when the groups blew up.  Average groups were around two inches with a lot of fliers.  It’s possible that some tweaking of the BOSS would have brought that down, but that was still pretty severe.  I’ll be working on some handloads for this rifle with the 130gr TSX boat tails to see if I can’t bring that group size down a bit.

One other thing about the Barnes bullets I tested.  All of my rifles were zeroed to shoot my usual hunting ammo.  The .325 was sighted in using 200gr Winchester Accubonds.  The 30-06 was also zeroed with 180gr Accubonds.  And the .270 was set up to shoot 130gr PMC pointed soft-points.  In every case I had to make significant adjustments to zero.  All three printed high, with the .325 hitting almost two inches high and about an inch and a half to the right.  The -06 was hitting almost two inches high, but windage was good.  The .270 was also high, although because of the erratic groups, I didn’t get a good feel for how far it was off.  It should go without saying, but these results proved to me that you absolutely must re-check your zero if you’re switching from your regular ammo to the Barnes (or any other ammo, for that matter).   

But what about Barnes’s performance on game?  This is where it counts, after all. 

The original Barnes bullets and the first “X” bullets were rumored to pass right through an animal without delivering any energy.  According to the design of the bullet, this should be partially true.  The Barnes is designed to expand to double its diameter as it passes through the animal.  The copper point folds back into razor sharp petals that do not break off, so in addition to the energy delivered by the bullet’s impact, it makes deadly cuts throughout the wound channel, somewhat like a broadhead.  This provides internal hemorrhaging and as the wound is almost always a pass-through, usually provides a good blood trail as well.  

Very few of the people I’ve talked to who have used the Barnes on game, even big animals like elk and hogs, have recovered the spent bullet.  It almost always blows through.  But, contrary to the rumors, most users agreed that the bullet delivers significant energy inside the animal for a quick kill and short blood trail.  There are, of course, exceptions, including at least one hog hunting guide I know who doesn’t like the Barnes bullets at all. 

Personally, as I said, I’ve only taken one animal with the Barnes TSX so far. That was my Tejon hog, taken at 220 yards with the .325wsm.  That’s a pretty hard hit no matter what bullet you’re using, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that this hog went right down…especially considering that I put the shot at the top point of the shoulder to break him down fast (I hate blood-trailing hogs).

It was a textbook shot with a heavy gun, and would have been deadly with almost any bullet.  Even so, the performance of the Barnes bullet was admirable.  Despite passing through both shoulders, the exit hole was still about twice the size of the entry wound.  Damage inside the chest cavity was impressive, as the heart gelled, even though the bullet went well above it, and the lungs collapsed.  But best of all, even though I’d hit all that bone, meat loss was really minimal.  I was very pleased with the performance of this bullet.

Click to enlarge the picture.  Warning, it is somewhat graphic. 

While Barnes holds the majority share of the non-lead market, with more calibers and bullet weights than any other non-lead ammo out there, I’ve had the opportunity to try out two other ammo-makers’ offerings as well.  These were the Extreme Shock and the Winchester/Nosler collaboration, the ETip.  Read the rest of this entry »

I got an interesting email and press release yesterday, and to be honest, I wasn’t quite sure how to handle it.  It was an announcement for a new website, Sierra Sportsmen.  The first thing I noticed, though, was the return email… sierraclub.org.  Hmmm…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 16, 2008

Contact: Kristina Johnson (415) 977-5619
Virginia Cramer (804) 225-9113 x 102

Sierra Club Launches Online Sportsmen’s Network
Conservationists, Hunters and Anglers Work Together on Drilling, Clean Water, and Global Warming

It’s all about protecting habitat.  That’s the common ground and common cause of conservationists and sportsmen.  As mining, drilling, development and global warming increasingly threaten quality hunting and fishing opportunities, more and more sportsmen are joining forces with other conservationists to protect wildlife and wild places.

Now the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization has launched a campaign to connect the 20 percent of its members (118,000 people) who hunt and fish with other sportsmen across the country who care about conservation.

“Sportsmen were some of the first conservationists, and have always been an important part of the Sierra Club. Our founder, John Muir, worked closely with Teddy Roosevelt to protect America’s wild legacy,” Sierra Sportsmen organizer Jon Schwedler said. “Now it’s crucial that sportsmen and environmentalists work together more closely so we can help save the forests, plains, lakes, rivers and streams we all enjoy.  Working together we can ensure that our nation’s outdoor legacy lives on for future generations of sportsmen.”

The Sierra Club’s new Sierra Sportsmen organizing site, www.sierrasportsmen.org will serve as a hub for hunters and anglers, allowing them to connect with each other beyond state lines,, find out about conservation issues that affect them, help pass on outdoor traditions to the next generation, restore local streams, protect game habitat, and fight global warming.

The Sierra Sportsmen site includes interviews with prominent figures in the outdoor movement such as President Lowell Baier of the Boone & Crockett Club, as well as conservation updates, and opportunities for sportsmen to take action on issues that affect us all. Members of the Sierra Sportsmen Network can stay abreast of the latest in outdoor news through Schwedler’s blog.  Schwedler is a life-long sportsman who has lived on the Chesapeake Bay, in the Big Sky of Montana, and now in  New Mexico’s Land of Enchantment.  

Sportsmen visiting the site can also share their own stories and find updates on the Sierra Club’s work in the field, including:

• Restoring streams in Idaho
• Keeping a coal plant from polluting fishing streams in Arkansas 
• Removing fence in Montana elk range 
• Protecting key habitat from oil drilling in places like Alaska’s Teshekpuk Lake, the Wyoming Range, and Colorado’s Roan Plateau 
• Teaching fly fishing clinics in Portland, Oregon

“Hunters and anglers are some of the best stewards of America’s public lands and wildlife,” Schwedler said. “By working together, whether it’s to keep streams healthy for trout or keep oil drills out of elk range, we can ensure that our children and grandchildren are able enjoy the same outdoor traditions we do today.”

In celebration of its official launch, the Sierra Sportsmen Network is holding a fishing and hunting photo contest.  Winners will receive a $500 gift certificate either from Patagonia or Bass Pro Shops.

The contest will be judged by Lowell Baier of the Boone & Crockett Club, Anthony Licata of Field & Stream Magazine, Ben Long of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Bob Poole of National Geographic, Carl Pope of the Sierra Club, Jim Posewitz of the Orion Institute, Kent Salazar of the National Wildlife Federation, Samantha Mace of Save our Wild
Salmon, and R.P. Van Gytenbeek of the Federation of Fly Fishers.

For more information, visit www.sierrasportsmen.org
 

So I checked out the website, starting with the “Welcome” from Sierra Club Executive Director, Carl Pope, that describes the philosophy behind that Sierra Sportsmen is trying to do.  Mr. Pope’s message opens with the image of John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt entering Yosemite together.

When John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt hiked into the Yosemite Valley together in 1903, they shared a first-hand interest in protecting America’s wild places. Muir was a hiker who wanted to wander mountains and valleys that were free of industrial development. Roosevelt was a hunter who wanted to explore dense forests and open fields. They were natural allies.

Natural allies… Read the rest of this entry »

I know, I know… you guys are probably getting as tired of reading all this lead ban stuff as I’m getting of writing about it.  But let’s face it, as hunters we have a responsibility to our sport, to other hunters, and to the generations that will come behind us.  Unless we’re willing to work at it, hunting will fade into the history books as a quaint, arcane little ritual. 

But there’s a lot going on right now, across the country, and it’s not likely to go away just by wishing on it. 

First, there’s the furor regarding lead fragments in hunter-killed venison.  You can read about this on almost any of the hunting blogs that follow current events, particularly the Outdoor Pressroom and Dave Hurteau’s Field Notes.  I’ve mentioned it a time or two here as well, of course.  Here’s a pretty good Associated Press article that sums the situation up to date. 

Really, the only reason I keep bringing this one up is because it’s something we should all think about.  First, as responsible hunters we should know if the food we provide… whether to our friends and families or to strangers through food banks and donations… is safe to eat.  We already know the basic health benefits of wild game… low fat, high protein, no added chemicals, etc.  But let’s not discount potential risks.

Sure, the lead scare is probably just that… a scare.  But let’s support the research to make sure that’s the case.  Even better, sportsmen should be DRIVING this research!  If you support a hunting organization, like Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation or National Wild Turkey Federation, contact them and ask that they take a lead role in establishing the safety of hunter-killed game meat.  Otherwise, there’s a risk that the research will be find funding from less friendly sources… and the results will be suspect.  It’s happened before.

And, if it turns out that lead ammo is hurting us or our children, then let’s work to make a pro-active change.  Education on proper field dressing could go a long way.  Maybe we need to throw away a little more meat than we’d like.  Be more precise in bullet placement to avoid fragmenting on large bones.  And, finally, where it makes sense, move away from lead ammunition altogether. 

I can tell you first hand, from living in California, that if hunters don’t step up and take control of the situation, there are plenty of other forces out there who’ll take control of it for us… and many of them do not have the best interests of our sport in mind. 

Pretty neat how I just tied all this back to California, huh?  That’s called a segue. Read the rest of this entry »

A new Hog Blog reader, Brian, gave me the idea for today’s blog.  Brian’s wife has some concerns about his hunting alone at the Tejon Ranch, and he was wondering just how safe it would be. 

I offered an answer to Brian directly in the comments, and to sum it up quickly here, you’re seldom alone at Tejon Ranch.  Even so, it’s easy to get way out in the middle of nowhere, even with 75 other hunters in the field.  But it’s not like taking off into the wilderness by yourself.  The ranch staff monitors everyone who goes in and makes sure they come out.  If you don’t show up, they’ll be looking for you… and you can bet they know that property inside and out.

All that said, there are a lot of things to consider if you’re planning to go it alone, either at a place like Tejon, or out in the wilderness. 

First and foremost, almost any hunter safety advocate would advise against going hunting alone.  Hunting with a partner is a best practice.  It’s sort of like the policy of redundant systems employed on aircraft and large ships… a second person is a second set of equipment, a second set of hands and feet, and a second opinion.  Two heads are better than one, and even better, two sets of legs are better than one, both in an emergency, and in the event that there’s a big hog to carry out of the woods.  It’s not all safety, sometimes it’s simple expediency. 

But there are many hunters, like me, who enjoy hunting alone and do it often.  If this describes you too, here are some things to think about.  Read the rest of this entry »

California, North Dakota, Missouri, New Jersey, and now Minnesota too? 

Lead Shot Ban Heads to Senate Floor in Minnesota! 
 
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
 
Please Make Your Voice Heard Today!

The Senate Omnibus Game and Fish Bill, introduced by State Senator Satveer Chaudhary (DFL-50), will be heard on the Senate floor any day.

Senate File 3385 contains a harmful provision that would ban the use of lead shot for hunting small game on public lands in Minnesota.  Lead alternatives are extremely expensive and have reduced capabilities, which would only increase wounding rates of game animals.  There has been no science-based evidence that lead shot has been a problem in Minnesota. 

As Senate File 3385 will be heard any day on the Senate floor, it is important that our opposition to this anti-hunting measure be known.  Please contact State Senator Chaudhary, the bill sponsor, at (651) 296-4334 or email him at sen.satveer.chaudhary@senate.mn and respectfully urge him to make the necessary changes and remove the lead ban from Senate File 3385. 

Speaking of North Dakota and the lead-in-venison scare, Holly, the NorCal Cazadora, forwarded me this well-written column from the Bingamham, NY Press and Sun Bulletin’ sports columnist, Dave Henderson.  Here’s a little taste of Mr Henderson’s column.

I was personally devastated. If 100 random samples out of hundreds of thousands showed a 60 percent contamination rate, the possibilities are devastating. We’re looking at a conservation and health-threatening tsunami here.

Geesh, I eat 300 venison meals a year myself. But after the initial shock, I became skeptical. How would lead dust be detectable in the hindquarters of a lung-shot deer? Bloodshot meat or that around the bullet hole is routinely thrown away –certainly not grilled and eaten. How could more than half of the processed venison in any area possibly be contaminated by lead? It’s impossible, folks.

And, of course, California is still at it.  At meetings tomorrow and Friday (April 10-11), the CA Fish and Game Commission will be holding a public meeting in Bodega Bay.  On the agenda is a discussion of the lead ban, and how to certify ammo as “lead free” in order to determine which ammunition will be permitted under the ban.  As most of us know, there is no lead-free rimfire ammo currently on the market.  CCI will release their unleaded .22 wmr later in the year, but there are no options for the .22 lr or the .17 caliber rimfires.

CA hunters need to write or call the Fish and Game Commission to state your opposition to the lead ban, particularly to the inclusion of rimfire and shotgun ammo.  Recommend an alternative approach, like a phased-in approach to getting rid of lead ammo.  Contact information is located on the FGC website at:  http://www.fgc.ca.gov

I’d also recommend contacting the ammunition manufacturers to see what they’re doing to provide unleaded ammo.  Show them there’s some interest and a need… not that they don’t already see it, but advocacy from the customer will go a long ways toward keeping them moving toward solutions.

It’s not just the Condors, and it’s not just the “State of Fruits and Nuts,” California… the lead ammo issue is going to impact the entire country.   As hunters and sportsmen, we need to get out ahead of this thing and make sure that our concerns and needs are properly taken into consideration as states begin to take further action.  Change is inevitable.  It’s up to us to make the change positive, or we can just let it be and hope for the best. 

We see what that’s gotten us so far.