The Hog Blog

Yeah, the title sucks. Sorry…

But here’s the deal.  In comments to my recent post about Washington state’s position on lead ammo, the conversation diverged into some speculation by Holly (the NorCal Cazadora) about whether more people would start hunting as a result of the economic downturn.   She wrote:

Another blogger out there just asked recently if others are seeing evidence that the poor economy is driving licenses and hunting UP because of people’s desire to fill their freezers.

Michael Riddle, from NativeHunt, replied that he doubted that a person could, legally, subsist on wild game.  I would disagree with that from a theoretical perspective… but only at that academic level.  It would be quite possible, especially if you factor in wild hogs (year-round, no limit, etc.) to gather enough game, fish, and fowl.  The catch is, it would cost a small fortune and require a huge investment in time and effort. 

Which brings his final point to light:

The drop in hunter numbers only coincides with correlating numbers of people simply tightening up their belts during a rough economic turmoil and they have cut out extraneous activities.
When the economy picks up we will see those numbers pick up and increase alongside of our paycheck increases.

I agree with Michael that the reality is that the economic situation is much more likely to drive people away from hunting than into it.  It’s not a necessity for anyone in this country, and if things really get tight, most folks aren’t going to spend the money for a 5% chance at killing a deer (much less two deer), or drop $20 a pop for a tag, then spend $400 or more to go shoot a hog on private land (forget about public land hunting.. the cost to success ratio is ridiculously low there). 

Point being, hunting for meat is not an economical alternative to buying it from the store… at least not if you’re doing it legally.  Sure, there may be the exception here and there, but generally speaking, it doesn’t make any sense

What you will likely see, if things get really-really bad, is a slight uptick in poaching, just like they saw during the depression.   

Keep in mind that, historically, the most significant upswing in recreational, sport hunting didn’t take place until the country was in an economical upswing, following WWII.  There were a ton of factors at work, but not the least was that people had spare money and spare time. 

The current economic trend is certainly ugly, but we’re still a very prosperous society.  The bloat of the hunting and shooting sports industry is a testament to the fact that hunters still have plenty of spare money to spend on our sport… and apparently plenty of spare time to use all those new gadgets and gizmos.    All this is good and fine now, but it sets the stage for a devastating collapse of the industry if Americans really have to start tightening their belts. 

The prosperity and growth of the “industry” concerns me as well because of the upsurge in “pay-to-play” hunting opportunities.  As guides and outfitters lease more property, and property owners recognize the financial incentive to charge tresspass fees, the opportunities for “free” hunting appear to be fading away.  This may be simple perception versus reality, but that perception already has had a negative impact on the number of hunters.  As folks find it harder to justify the cost of a hunt, that impact will worsen.  The idea of hunting as a “rich man’s sport” may very well become the dominant reality. 

As a whole, the hunting community is already hemorraghing members at a critical rate due to other factors besides the economy.  A significant and prolonged economic downturn may very well be the telling blow to our sport, relegating us once and for all to fringe status… an unlikely coalition of the very wealthy and the hardcore.   

I’ll still be there, one way or the other…

I know, the whole weekend passed, and here it is 2130 on Monday night and I still haven’t made a post yet. 

Why is that?

Because, sometimes, Mondays just suck.  You have all this potential as the weekend rolls around, and you even get out to enjoy some of that guilt-free time off…  and then Monday comes. 

This weekend was downtime from hunting, which is about to crank up to full-blast, so I didn’t do a lot that would excite most Hog Blog readers.  I didn’t go hog hunting, or deer hunting, or even dove hunting.  I did take the camera and my horse out on the backcountry trails Saturday morning, but failed to locate that bachelor group of bucks I used to see all the time.  I guess the rut is coming soon, so they’ll show up.  There are a ton of does and youngsters. 

Anyway, just so ya’ll know I haven’t retired and moved to hunting paradise, I’m still around… just largely unmotivated.  I think that’s all about to change, though. 

Hang tight, and see where we go! 

OK, lame title… not a very exciting post… but some folks have asked why I never post up my horseback videos anymore.  Well, the main reason is because I haven’t made one in a while.  Been doing some trail riding, and getting out with the horses, but just don’t remember the video camera. 

But I did remember the camera last weekend, at Rancho Del Oso, out at the coast. 

Enjoy.

So, this was kind of spurred by the last post’s title, and the fact that it’s left at least one reader, Native, scratching his head and delving into the memory banks…

The slogan was, “I’d rather fight than switch.” 

The question is, which cigarette company did that campaign? 

No cheating and going to Google.  Let’s see who can remember.  You don’t have to be that old, although the campaign has long since terminated. 

I don’t have any cool HogBlog swag to give the winner, but you will have bragging rights and the admiration of the entire blogosphere if you can answer correctly. 

Have at it!

First, a few words about the Fourth of July from one of my favorite authors, cynics, and all around cool people-who-are-now-dead: Mark Twain

Statistics show that we lose more fools on this day than in all the other days of the year put together. This proves, by the number left in stock, that one Fourth of July per year is now inadequate, the country has grown so.
- Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar

The business aspects of the Fourth of July is not perfect as it stands. See what it costs us every year with loss of life, the crippling of thousands with its fireworks, and the burning down of property. It is not only sacred to patriotism and universal freedom, but to the surgeon, the undertaker, the insurance offices - and they are working it for all it is worth.
- Speech, July 4, 1899, “The Day We Celebrate”

Point is?  Be careful out there. 

As we celebrate this anniversary of our nation’s independence, everyone should have a great time and do all those things that you do to recognize the importance and happiness of the occasion.  At the same time though, let’s not get carried away to the point where you have to be carried away. 

And while I don’t wanna throw cold water or overly-serious ideas on top of the celebration, don’t forget what this holiday means, because it’s one of the most important events in our history.  A lot of people sacrificed everything to establish our independence, and many more have died over the past couple of centuries to maintain it.  It’s a solemn thought, but nothing illustrates the value of a thing so much as its cost. 

Like many people, I’ve got a list of grievances with this country (or our government) a mile long, but it’s still the best place on Earth to live and prosper.  Trust me, if there were a better place I’d be there.  But no other country offers me the freedoms to be who and what I am, and to prosper and thrive in my own way.  That’s what I celebrate on Independence Day. 

So cheers to you all, and I hope you enjoy the holiday fully with the recognition of what it means and why we’re celebrating! 

That’s how it seems! 

For the past two days, the typical summer morning fog has lifted from the San Francisco Bay to reveal skies that are still just as gray and hazy.  The stuff gathers at the hills in yellow-brown eddies, waiting for a breeze to lift it up and over to be deposited in the Livermore Valley. 

Every afternoon, my motorcycle seat is covered in fine, white ash… almost like snow.  You can’t really see it sifting down, but it sure does accumulate.  For a few days now, every breath brings the odor of cold ash and old smoke.  The news is warning folks with breathing problems like asthma to avoid outdoor activities althogether, and advising those of us with healthy respiratory systems to be careful.  It’s bad.

I heard this morning that there are about 1000 separate fires burning in the state right now, from the Oregon border to Monterey.  A fire map looks like a pincushion with all the little markers.  And it’s only June! 

What’s even stranger is to flip my news page over to the East Coast and have a look at North Carolina where at least two major fires are eating up wildlife habitat.  I’m used to CA burning in the summer time, but NC usually gets enough rain in the spring and summer to keep the big fires down.  Not this year, though.

I don’t know what all’s going on… but it’s looking like a rough year coming, and maybe more on the horizon.  Weather patterns have gone whacky, and whether we (humans) are adding to it or not doesn’t really matter right now… the fact is that something’s up and I think big changes are coming. 

The plants and critters seem to have known it for a couple of seasons now, as I have seen a couple of big upsurges in youngsters and seeds/fruit.  Acorns were as dense as I’ve ever seen last year, and the year before.  Lots of deer were showing twins, and the hogs seemed to have a ton of little ones running around too.  It’s like they know things are gonna get tough, and a lot of them won’t survive, so they’re seeding future generations as hard as they can go before it happens. 

Anyway, I’m not in a panic, as I know the planet has seen changes before and will see them again.  But I’m amazed at what I’m seeing in the relatively short span of my own lifetime… and wonder what our children and their kids will see in the future.  Kinda cool, but a little scary too. 

Meanwhile, the fires are licking at some of my hunting spots already.  That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as this habitat was born of fire, but it sure makes for a tough year waiting for things to settle back down. 

Everyone else is talking about it, why can’t I?  Besides, I’m short of topics anyway  (well, not really, but this is an easy one).

So the a common question these days seems to be, “how is the price of fuel going to impact your hunting this upcoming season?”

It’s a good conversation starter, that’s for sure.  I don’t know anyone who isn’t hit in one way or another by these crazy prices, especially out here in the west, where a two or three hour drive to hunt isn’t unusual.  At four dollars or more a gallon for gasoline, and with diesel costing half a sawbuck, most of us are feeling the pinch. 

I know I am.  My Dodge Ram diesel gets somewhere in the range of 12 to 14 mpg with the camper shell on it.  That adds up fast.  My last hunt at Tejon Ranch cost me in the neighborhood of $300 just to get there and back… and that’s not including the fuel I used running around the ranch in Petunia (which wasn’t really very much, since she gets somewhere around 40mpg when she’s tuned up). 

So what’s it doing to my hunting plans? 

Well, to begin with, I’ve turned down several hog hunting invitations over the past couple of months.  I can’t afford to drop a couple hundred dollars every weekend, especially since I just came off a four month hiatus from full-time work.  I also bagged any plans to make an out-of-state hunt for 2008, saving up the cash for ‘09, which will probably also be pretty limited. 

I love a road trip.  I had every intention of driving to Texas for the exotics hunt a couple months ago, but the cost of fuel alone would have been more than the plane ticket.  Likewise, I’m seriously considering flying to Colorado for my 2009 elk hunt… although at the rate the airlines are going, with extra baggage fees and such, I may end up driving anyway. 

Of course I know I’m not the only one feeling the pinch.  Most of the guides I know burn a good bit of fuel, both driving to and from the field, and driving around to scout their properties.  When the fuel cost for a day’s hunt adds $50 or $75 to your operating costs, that makes it tough to come out ahead.  You either raise your fee, or you take a beating and lose your butt.  Nobody is in business to do that.  I’ve heard a lot of folks complain about the cost of guided hunts, but just wait until guides start adding in their own fuel surcharge. 

What to do about it? 

For me, the Dodge stays parked most of the time.  I use it to get to the hunting grounds, and to haul the horses (which I haven’t done in a while), but that’s about it.  I commute on my motorcycle, and use Petunia for running around town if I don’t feel like riding the bike.  That helps, of course, as long as I’m not doing a lot of hunting.  But deer season is around the corner, and I need to spend some time this summer up at Coon Camp Springs. 

Maybe I should get a second job?

So what are ya’ll doing about it?  How’s it impacting your hunting or other travel plans? 

Just added this image, following Tom and Arthur’s comments: 

In August of 1996, I moved from my family home of North Carolina to the San Francisco Bay area in California.  In September of the same year, I went on my first California hunt… a trip into the Sierra to hunt mountain quail. 

After the hunt, which was a limited success, I rushed home, eager to call my dad and share the experience.  He used to love going afield for bobwhites, before the sprawl of suburbia (and feral cats) decimated the quail populations in our area, so I couldn’t wait to tell him about this new kind of quail and the excitement of chasing them through the Sierra high-country.

When I got back into my apartment, I noticed the message light flashing on my answering machine.  It was my brother calling, telling me that my dad had fallen from a ladder and struck his head on the brick driveway edging.  It was bad.  They didn’t expect him to live, and I needed to get back home as quickly as I could.  I dropped everything, the hunt forgotten, and booked an immediate flight.

He didn’t die, but the bleeding and swelling in his head did irreversible damage to his brain.  Over time, he showed some hopeful signs of partial recovery, but the damage ran deep and the tide of improvement soon turned.   Other health problems increased, partially exacerbated by the brain damage.  HIs mind and body are failing now, and it’s painful to see. 

My dad was never a big man, but he was strong and vital. He taught me the kind of toughness that a small-statured man learns from a harsh world, and reminded me of that strength throughout my life.  Even when I grew to stand a full head above him, he was always ready to remind me that determination and focus are more important than physical size… and to teach me that as long as I use my head as well as my strength, I am a match for any man.    He also taught me that the confidence of knowing this would keep me from having to prove it. 

He was no big sports star, although he loved to play football and he passed that love along to me.  He taught me and coached me in other sports as well, including baseball, basketball, and boxing.  His lessons of strength, perseverance, and using my head helped me to do well in these efforts, and the experiences, in turn, improved me both as a team-player and as an individual.  I’m no athlete today, but I’m in pretty good shape.  I believe my mental and physical fitness can be directly attributed to his influence. 

He wasn’t a real “hunting nut”, and I honestly think he enjoyed the solitude of the hunt more than the sport itself, but he introduced me to guns and hunting and I know his pride was very real when I took my first deer.  Over time, as he began to hunt less, I think he got a vicarious satisfaction as I began to pursue what has become a lifelong passion.  

Really, I think my dad was mostly just a regular guy.  That’s certainly how he’d have come across to the rest of the world… a normal, albeit really friendly and likeable, fella.  But like any son, I see him differently. 

To me he’s always been a hero… larger than life, and, until recently, invincible. 

Oh, if you don’t like poetry, stop reading here… Read the rest of this entry »

Twas the night before father’s day
or really the morning
when I sat at the computer
Composing and yawning

I need some coffee
was the first thing I thought
A nice steaming cup
All black, strong and hot

But what about gifts
for the upcoming day
Presents for a dad
For work or for play?

Something to show him
how much we care
how much we appreciate
the fact that he’s there

“Boy this is stupid.”
I thought to myself
But now that I’ve started
It’s off of the shelf

So on with my doggerel
my ridiculous rhyme
my brief flight of fancy
my complete waste of time Read the rest of this entry »