Real world difficult hunts

[.38 Special]

Boar hunting California public land. Hot, steep, and full of rattlesnakes. You will consider yourself lucky to even see pigs. And it is such a patchwork of public and private land that you get to be a real expert with GPS and BLM maps. I completely understand why Californians will pay $1000 for a guided pig hunt on private land.

 

[George P]

I quit duck hunting after steel shot was mandated. My dad and I adjusted by calling better, setting better spreads, and waiting for them to come in closer. Then the surrounding sky busting got even worse than before steel shot. We gave up in disgust.

As did I regarding ducks...................I still have a box of 20 gauge 3" #2s I used for goose

 

[MacAR]

They can’t call (but they sure think they can). They can’t set a spread (but they’ve got 150 desks out). And they can’t shoot (well, they can’t hit anything).

This is exactly why I quit duck hunting. Used to love it. Loaded my own 10ga loads for everything from woodies to honkers. Had a good old Sears boat and 3 dozen dekes, and a good old buddy to hunt with. Then it got to be where everybody was trying to hunt the same little holes, and I got tired of being shot at. And the boat races on public land are awful! I'm not gonna get killed for a d@mn duck.

Around here, deer are plentiful. Lots of does (too many, honestly) and little bucks. Can't shoot anything that doesn't have at least three points on one side, unless its completely antler-less. And 99% of my deer are antler-less, since I am strictly a meat hunter. I don't even really like to deer hunt, but I do like to eat them. My "deer stand" is a bar-stool in my kitchen, overlooking a 15 acre hay field. Most of my hunts consist of waiting for a fat nanny to walk under the pear tree (41 yards away) so I can place a 180 grain '06 slug in her neck. I used to use a 30-30 as it was perfect for the job, but traded the gun off. Occasionally, I'll get a longer shot but try to pass them up if I can. No need in dragging the darn things any farther than I have to.

Small game is hit and miss, but that's because very few people will let you hunt their land anymore. My friends and I still find places to go, but due to longer and longer deer seasons, its difficult to find time to run our dogs. Basically we have the end of December, January, and February to hunt. The rest of the time from September onward is either too hot to hunt or some deer season. So we just wait, and still hunt around home. The rabbit population has declined to the point that I hate to shoot them anymore, and there aren't any quail to speak of. There's one covey behind the house, but I don't bother them. So I guess it isn't so much that the hunting is "hard", but more that there isn't that much game to hunt anymore.

Mac

 

[Patocazador]

.I still have a box of 20 gauge 3" #2s I used for goose

I have 4/5 of a case of 3 1/2" 10 ga. lead #2 shot for geese left. I wish I could find a use for it.

 

[MacAR]

I have 4/5 of a case of 3 1/2" 10 ga. lead #2 shot for geese left. I wish I could find a use for it.

You ever think about taking up Armadillo hunting? That'd be a molly-whopping good load for them.

Mac

 

[redneck2]

I have 4/5 of a case of 3 1/2" 10 ga. lead #2 shot for geese left. I wish I could find a use for it.

Coyotes or maybe crows. I’d much rather have 5’s or 6’s for crows, but at least you could burn it up. You’d need a tight choke but if you hit ‘em you could kill ‘em a long ways off. I have a SP-10. Hammer of Thor

When I was a kid, some of the guys used 2’s for fox

 

[caribou]

how often is it below -30?

November untill April, we have below zero temps......however, I am In the Arctic.

 

[Random 8]

There is still some very good public duck hunting in my part of the country. I'm blessed to be in the land of 10000 lakes and a million sloughs. I do tend to avoid the big water though, going places only a canoe or waders coupled with a good retriever can go. I will usually do a couple of big water hunts late in the season, deliberately taking a couple of weekdays off to miss some of the crowd. We're far enough up the flyway, usually our decoys are the first they've seen. I hear you about the guys calling too much though. I've seen guys chase birds from their area by excessive calling, only to have them dip in gently on my silent spread.

 

[Patocazador]

November until April, we have below zero temps......however, I am In the Arctic.

Brrrr! I get cold when it's below 40 deg.

 

[Rembrandt]

Have broke both ankles twice, numerous sprains, as a result arthritis in those old injuries has slowed me down somewhat. Combined with sub-zero wind chills (-30 to -50) along with ice and snow....just about pushes my limits and abilities, but I still go out. (So cold it can freeze a bronze Elk)

As bleak as that may seem, can't wait for the snow to fly to get back to the woods.

 

[George P]

I have 4/5 of a case of 3 1/2" 10 ga. lead #2 shot for geese left. I wish I could find a use for it.

nasty coyotes..............where you do not care about the pelts

 

[MaxP]

I’ve had some tough hunts. One standout was my Cape buffalo hunt in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Lots of up and down hills with slippery rock “aiding” traction. It was exhausting and it took us a full three days to finally close with and kill a buffalo. Plus, these animals are REALLY weary and you absolutely have to play the wind (and everything else) right or they will bug out a great distance. It was the first episode of my show, “Chasing Ghosts.” If I wasn’t in good shape I might not have succeeded.

 

[LoonWulf]

Coyotes or maybe crows. I’d much rather have 5’s or 6’s for crows, but at least you could burn it up. You’d need a tight choke but if you hit ‘em you could kill ‘em a long ways off. I have a SP-10. Hammer of Thor

When I was a kid, some of the guys used 2’s for fox

Friend of mine used #2 steel for upland one season cause he bought the cheapest stuff sports authority had on the shelf. I watched a few poor critters vanish when hit at 20-30yds.