The Hog Blog

With all the news about the lead ammo ban this week, plus the breakdown of my personal computer, I almost missed the opportunity to mention something that I think needs to be said publicly… a great big “thank you” and a “job well done” to the Forest Service. 

In 2001, the Trough Fire burned through about 25,000 acres of the Mendocino National Forest near Stonyford.  One of the areas it hit hard was the area I call Kokopelli Valley… a place I’d been hunting regularly since I first came to CA in 1996.  It’s a relatively unique spot due to the variety of high-quality food and year-round water sources.  Prior to the fire, it was also relatively secluded and hidden from the roads. 

After the fire, the place looked like a moonscape. 

I was there for the B zone rifle opener just a few days after the fire had passed through.  Stump holes were still smoking, and very little was left of the cover or food sources.   

The Forest Service and other agencies got to work quickly, trying to re-stabilize the hills to stop erosion, and help the native plants get re-established before the invasives took over.  The process has been ongoing ever since, and it’s been relatively effective.

For the B-zone archery opener this past weekend, I went back to Kokopelli Valley… as much for old-times’ sake as to actually get in some hunting.  With the exception of a weekend hunt there with Holly last year, I really haven’t spent a lot of time there in the last couple of seasons, and I missed the place.  I also wanted to get some time on the ground there, to see if some of the food sources had come back. 

The place is looking great, and the deer are healthy and plentiful.  The bears have come back as well.  But what really struck me was the evidence of the amount of work that’s been done, not just on the restoration, but little extras like the hiking trail that cuts down to a previously hidden waterfall.  I did see some of this last year, but failed then to mention what a great job the Forest Service and crews have done. 

(I’ve got some video from this past weekend that shows how great the place is looking right now, but that’ll have to wait until I get my laptop repaired.)

So kudos to the hard workers, both professional and volunteers, who put Humpty Dumpty back together again.

Is it true?  Does the blacktail buck really exist? 

Well, according to an email I received yesterday, my friend Sol may have the proof in his cooler as we speak.  I received the email as I came back down off the mountain from my own, unsuccessful archery hunt, so I only gave it a cursory read.  I don’t like doing email on my Blackberry, so I figured I’d give it more attention when I got home.  I deleted the local copy and headed for the house.

Unfortunately, when I fired up my laptop at home, it ran for about three minutes, made a fizzling sound, and died.  No Blue Screen Of Death… nope… this time if just, plain died.   With the laptop went all of the email I’d received over the weekend.  But what I recalled from Sol’s email indicates that he did, indeed, kill something that may or may not have been a blacktail buck.  He was hunting up at the Hedgepeth Ranch, one of my favorite spots, and decided to hit a new area.  Through the fog he spotted his target, and with a well-placed shot his quest was ended. 

Of course, from the description he sent (there were no photos), it’s possible that he actually took a common jackalope instead.  Sol’s relatively new to this hunting thing, and a big jackalope does look a lot like a blacktail deer.  In fact, I’ve nearly made the mistake myself.  I actually saw two forked-horn jackalopes up in Kokopelli Valley during my hunt on Saturday, but they were too far out for me to get an arrow in them.  I started to stalk them up the mountain when I realized what they were and returned my attention to my real quarry, blacktail bucks. 

Back in syphilization today, I logged on to the work computer to catch up on the news.  Imagine my shock at the image of a blacktail buck, and the accompanying story about the apparent decline of the blacktail deer population in CA.  I’d already heard about some of this in a release from the DFG a few weeks ago, but this article offered more detail. 

Since they use hunters’ harvest reports to create a picture of the population density, the researchers are still trying to determine if the issue really is a population drop, or if it’s related to reduced hunter success rates. 

A team of scientists led by the California Department of Fish and Game is fanning out across the rugged mountains of Mendocino, Glenn and Lake counties in an attempt to figure out just what is going on.

“The deer population harvest has been steadily declining,” said David Casady, an associate wildlife biologist for the Department of Fish and Game. “One of the things we’re studying is whether the population has decreased or just the harvest. Most likely it’s the population that has decreased and the harvest is just tracking that.”

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/08/23/MNG31EV7G9.DTL#ixzz0xRkLg14V

The researchers will also have to sort through several theories as to why we’re seeing this decline.  A popular argument among some hunters is that the mountain lion population is growing unchecked due to the ban on lion hunting.  This may be so, but some folks also need to consider that depredation hunting and public safety kills average over 100 lions per year.  During the only sport hunting season in CA, hunters took 118 lions.   That’s not much of a decrease in the annual take. 

Other theories include degradation of habitat by non-native invasive plant species… due in large part to modern, wildfire suppression policies. I think there’s a real good argument there, although that’s another convoluted discussion. 

And there is one other plausible thought out there.  Maybe the reduction in population is a natural result of a balanced system, as wild predators increase to take more deer then there are less deer for human hunters. 

Personally, I expect that the answer lies in some combination of all of these theories.  With the documented upsurge in black bears and coyotes, and the likely growth of the lion population, there are more predators feeding on fawns.  At the same time, the spread of invasive plants is choking out native forage.  Finally, there are less hunters taking to the field, and those who are hunting are spending less time at it due to the economic times. 

Regardless the outcome of what is sure to be  a lengthy examination, there’s no question that it’s a complex situation.  The answer and resolution promise to be equally complicated.

OK, so here in CA, the A-zone rifle deer season opened over the weekend.  I’m looking forward to reports from local hunters.  On Saturday, our deer hunter at Native Hunt was able to take his buck.  He shot a really nice forked-horn that we’ve been watching for a couple of years now.  However, the limited reports I’m hearing so far kind of reflect my recent experience during bow season… the bucks are hard to find this year.   Maybe we’re just looking in the wrong places? 

The South Carolina early season also got underway over the weekend, and I know Jeff and the good folks at Cypress Creek are excited.  I haven’t seen an update from them yet, but I bet they had a successful opener too. 

So that leaves the question… who killed Bambi this weekend?

Ya’ll saw the trail cam pictures my brother sent me the other day.  Well, I figured what better motivation to practice, so that’s what I’ve been doing.  I’m not quite there yet, but I’m working on it.

I’ve been pretty excited about going home to NC for the archery deer opener next month.  Ever since I booked the flight, I’ve been counting the days and hours… and they’re moving slow!  And then my little brother had to go and send me this!

Now that was just mean! 

Bow season doesn’t even start there for a little over a month.  Sure, I’ll get out a time or two here in CA and try to manage my appetite, but really…

Ya’ll know me. I’m not picky, and almost never go out with visions of giant bucks in my head.  I shoot meat, not antlers, and just the opportunity to put some more in the freezer is enough to get the anticipation up.  But you can’t just send someone a photo of a deer like this, especially when I know exactly where that picture was taken.  That’s just not right.

Here’s one more look at the beast.  This is not your everyday, southeastern NC whitetail.

I can certainly tell you that the practice with the Mathews has been a little more focused since he sent this. That worn out old Block target has taken a beating, but it looks fresh and new to me now. The bow is shooting great, and the arrows are going consistently where I want them to go. The only unknown in this equation is me. When that big boy walks out in front of me, will I fall out of the tree? Shoot myself in the toe? Or stand there gawking until it finally walks away with a defiant flick of his big, white tail?

So the quest begins…

I thought this would be a little more fun than the usual 10 minutes of footage in which I don’t get anything.  Hope you enjoy.

Well, this will be a quick one, because I’ve got too much going on at work today to do more.

I just booked tickets for Kat and myself back to NC for the September 11 archery deer opener! Happened to stumble onto a pretty great deal, as airline deals go, and had to jump on it. My little brother’s got me pretty stoked about the amount of activity he’s seeing around his food plots, especially since there’s a major clearing project going on not too far from his place. He said the deer are about as consistent as he’s ever seen them in there, although he wasn’t real specific about any big bucks. Hopefully he’ll get the game cams going soon and send us some eye candy.

Of course it doesn’t matter to me if it’s a buck or a doe. I’m looking to restock the venison in my freezer, and a set of horns would be an unecessary bonus.

The other kicker is, this year they’ve approved Sunday hunting (bowhunting only, on private land). If, by some chance I can’t fill a tag on the opener, I get a short chance at redemption on Sunday. I’m hoping that won’t be necessary, though, because I’d like to get Kat out to enjoy the beach or the river a little bit.

Yeah, I’m a little excited… now I’ve just got to bide my time for a month and a half!

NOTE:  If you’re waiting to hear about my recent quest in search of the mythical, A-zone, blacktail buck, you’ll have to be patient.

If all goes according to plan, I’m up at the Hedgepeth Ranch right about now skinning out my A-zone blacktail buck… or at least a hog.  I hope to return soon and regale you all with tales, photos, and maybe even video of my exploits.

In the meantime, I had to share this video with you.  I saw it on the Moose Droppings blog, and couldn’t resist “borrowing” it.  This is just something I never ever imagined!

Hey, just got this in…

My little brother has four slots open for the SC deer opener (August 15).  You get a week of hunting for $500.  That does not include food, lodging or license, but it’s all the bucks you care to shoot.  You can use any legal weapon during the hunt, rifle, bow, pistol, muzzle loader, shotgun, or crossbow. 

I don’t believe this particular property has many hogs, but coyotes are open game.

If you’re interested, respond here and I’ll get you in touch with him.

OK, so I was gonna try to make a post every day this week, but I’m running dry.  I’ve actually got to work for my money this week, and along with keeping up with a couple of other discussions, I’m just short of new stuff.  So, I’ll borrow from someone else… actually, two “someone elses”.  But it’s relevant, trust me.

First of all, my little brother called yesterday to update me on the seasons and such for NC.  Looks like bow season opens on 9/11 this year, and I’m really hoping to get out there and stick another whitetail.  I’m sure he’ll soon be sending me game cam pictures of some monster buck to entice me across the continent… not that it usually takes that much.

In addition to the hunting season, a few other changes are on tap for NC hunters this year.  The most exciting (to me) is that they’ll start allowing bowhunters to hunt on Sundays, as long as we’re hunting private property.  That means that when I travel all the way back for a weekend hunt, I can actually hunt the weekend, and not just a few hours on Saturday. 

Another big one is the authorization of the use of crossbows during archery season.  This is a big deal to a lot of folks, but not so much to me.  As far as I’m concerned, besides the fact that you can keep it at full draw, a crossbow doesn’t really offer any advantages over a compound bow.  The point is that additional methods had to be incorporated to increase the deer harvest, and letting people shoot crossbows may encourage a few more folks to get out there and kill deer. 

You can check out more about the new regs over at my friend Dan’s Moose Droppings blog, or go straight to the source at the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.

I know my brother has been on me to join him down in SC for some early season hunting.  I can’t swing it again this year, but I sure would like to get down there.  Not only does he have access to some great private land, my friend Jeff has been after me to come down and join them at the Cypress Creek hunting club.  In addition to the allure of velvet bucks, they’ve still got a ton of great hog hunting going on down there too. 

Check out this video from one of their blinds. It’s really cool to see the behavior of this boar, and how skittish he is the whole time he’s in the open. There’s a lot to be learned by watching critters like this.