Is it over already?
Wow. So here we stand, not only at the end of another year, but at the turning of the first decade of the 21st century. It seems a little momentous, even if I can’t quite put my finger on why.
Maybe it’s because the new year always brings the promise of change, of challenges and rewards. For me, that’s particularly true as I look ahead into the coming months and the rising decade. 2009 brought some significant revisions to my personal life, and I think that was the impetus for what’s coming next.
The immediate future doesn’t look all that different. In a couple of weeks, I’ll be heading out for the SHOT Show for my seventh (or eighth?) consecutive year, with hopes of putting my hands on some of the new products for the coming year. As always, I’m really looking forward to it. And, of course, I’ll be reporting back to all of you with the news and product reviews.
February will see me heading back down to the Tejon Ranch for a couple of hog hunts. Tejon is one of my favorite places in California, and it’s definitely my favorite hunting spot. February weather can be a real challenge down there, with fog, mud, and occasional heavy snow… but that only makes the hunt more exciting.
March has a whole lot of potential this year. I’ll be heading back down to the Texas Hill Country with my brother, Scott, to hunt exotics again in what has become an annual trip. That, in itself, is going to be a blast. I always enjoy hunting with my friend Shane Hearn, of Border Bandit Outfitting, and I always come home with a freezer full of tasty meat.
But this year, exotics won’t be our only target in Texas. After a lot of conversations, and some really deep soul-searching on my own part, my brother and I are seriously considering making the move to Texas. Some of you regular readers may remember my little April Fool’s joke last year, where I pretended we’d bought a hunting ranch. Well, if we can pull things together, this joke may become a reality… in one form or another. We’re not rushing into it, but we’ll be using some of our time on this trip to look over some of the options. More on this as it develops, I promise.
Moving along… April will bring turkey season. Not sure if or where I’ll be guiding this year, but I’ve got to get some redemption on the feathered demons. I didn’t put one in the freezer last spring, and I didn’t even get out and try during the fall season.
In May, I’ll be running another big group hunt at the Tejon Ranch. I’ll be posting up more details on this soon, but any Hog Blog readers who are interested in joining this hunt are more than welcome.
Hard to imagine with the grey, cold, and rainy winter settled in so deep, but June is right around the bend. The barley will be high, and the pig hunting should be hot and happening. I’m hoping to be busy with Michael and the guys at Native Hunt, since this is high season for hog hunters in the Central Coast.
The second half of 2010 is a little vague to me right now. A lot depends on what happens with our Texas plans. July brings the archery deer opener, and things seem to roll pretty fast from there. We’ll be running our hunts at Coon Camp Springs again this year at the end of October and beginning of November, which is something I always look forward to with a lot of anticipation.
Anticipation, actually, is the word that sums up 2010 for me. There’s a lot on the horizon, and I’m steering dead into it with both hands on the wheel and a grin on my face.
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December 31st, 2009 at 7:18 am
It sounds like a great year coming up for you. I don’t want you to leave California, as we can use as many level-headed hunters as we can get (we tend to be a land of extremes), but what an opportunity!
You should add some kind of hunting or fishing trip with friends from Sacramento to that list of yours.
December 31st, 2009 at 7:54 am
Sounds like you have some great plans for 2009, Phillip. I have two main outdoor goals: visit Gettysburg and shoot a longbeard. I shot a Jake last year, and I think it’s time to put a bigger bird down this year.
And I admire you for having all of that planned already. I’m not even sure what I’m doing tomorrow:)
December 31st, 2009 at 11:33 am
Wow. That should’ve been “some great plans for 2010″. 2009 is leaving so fast I don’t even know what year I’m in.
December 31st, 2009 at 11:34 am
Yupp, lots of stuff coming up this year. And Arthur, I can totally relate to the years going by too fast to keep up with.
Josh, I guess I’m not the committed soldier in the fight for CA that I’d like to be. Hunters in this state need to get their crap together and stand up, and they’re just not doing it. I don’t have high hopes for the long-term future of hunting in CA, unfortunately. There are just too many people in this state, and the vast majority of them don’t hunt or care about hunting.
Texas, on the other hand, has taken a different tack on hunting. It’s become an industry there, and while that has its drawbacks, it’s also probably going to be responsible for saving the sport in the much longer run.
Whatever I do, it won’t be real soon. A move like this will take some groundwork and planning. But I’m pretty well decided to do it. Regardless, I have a lifetime CA license, and I expect I’ll get back from time to time to chase hogs and such.
And yeah, I’d like to get a chance to get together with some of my Sacramento friends before I go.
January 1st, 2010 at 8:19 am
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January 9th, 2010 at 5:42 am