Really thinking about going hunting this year.....any hunters here?

[I_Like_Turtles]

I haven't hunted since 2010.....but I've been thinking about it for a while. I'd like to open with some squirrel hunting, scout about, and then deer hunt.

I am a method hunter.....would like to use Browning Auto 5, single shot shotgun, 3030 lever with scope, and flintlock muzzleloaders.

I do want to get a climbing tree stand though.....had best luck with one of those.

Anyone else hunt?

[AJBert]

Been hunting since I was old enough to get a license, so more than 40 years now, though getting close to 50 years. I've never understood why anyone has ever mounted a scope on a lever action, though. I have a couple and use them when I know I'll be hunting in heavy brush/timber. The 30-30 is great out to 100 yards, then gravity takes over dramatically. I hunt both elk and deer with a .270 and antelope with a .25-06. Been putting in for moose and will hopefully draw one of these years, then I will up the caliber a bit.

As far as shotguns, I have always preferred a pump over an auto. Much more reliable and I can shoot one almost as fast as I can auto.

Haven't hunted small game in many years, though my dog will bring me a rabbit now and then. They aren't worth eating as all the bones in the entire body are broke. He hasn't caught a squirrel yet as they learned early on to get up a tree when he is within sight.

Out here, we don't use tree stands, even though we do have thick, nasty, black timber were the elk like to hole up. I have gotten a few elk in the timber, but most in more open spaces. A shot over 400 yards isn't unusual, but most of my kills have been inside of 150 yards. Hence, the .270. Most folks from the east and south who come out here believe they need a .30cal magnum or larger for elk. My family has been using .270's for decades for elk. Put the bullet where it need to be and you have a nice humane kill with little to no movement of the elk after being hit.

[getsome]

I used to hunt when I was younger and it was fun, I still have a real nice Marlin 336 rifle my father in law gave me but I'm pretty sure it was so I would marry his daughter and get her out of his house but that's another story, still have both of them...The rifle is a real shooter and I wouldn't part with it for nothing, the wife is up for sale....I have about 300 rounds of 30-30 ammo stored up in case I ever need to hunt down a deer to eat for some silly reason because in Georgia it's so much easier to plow into one with your car which I have now done twice and makes me believe that white tail deer are phychotic and suicidal in nature and just want to die a horrible death and really screw up a guys truck in the process of doing so....In my older wiser wisdom I have taken comedian Ron White's advice when it comes to hunting which is, it's really early, it's really cold and I really don't want to fokin go!....:banplease:

[I_Like_Turtles]

I have passed up shooting deer since I couldn't tell if those were antlers or branches behind them, hence the desire for a scope. I'm big on iron sights though, so I specifically bought an early model '94 which came with a side mount and scope. I have the side mount off right now....need to find it and get it back on there. One screw was broke off but I extracted it.

First deer I ever killed was with iron sights....same sort of early 30-30 with side mounted scope. I had borrowed it from a friend and put my scope on it but fell scouting the day before and broke the scope. The kill was thus, via iron sights.

I've bought up three flintlock muzzleloaders....that is what I want to do most of the hunting with. I have a .50, .54, and .58 flintlock plus the first gun I ever bought when I turned 18, a CVA caplock .50. I've hunted a lot with it but the trigger is rough and lacks the mystique of a flintlock.

I have wanted a .338-06 for years....would be a custom gun built on a nice Mauser action but never found the action I wanted to use.

Other than a Marlin 336 and two 30-30 '94's, I don't have any centerfire "hunting" rifles. I'd like to get something dedicated though.

Here a climbing tree stand is a game changer......I would love to have my own land though and build a blind up on legs about 10 feet off the ground.

[getsome]

Get yourself a real nice Silverado Z71 pickup....can't miss with it, no scope required at all, hell the idiots aim for you.......unfortunately it's very expensive and messy

[I_Like_Turtles]

LOL.

Got you beat! I hit a black bear with my 2002 Honda Accord in 2016. Never hit a deer though.

Fortunately I only drive 55 mph on the interstate (increases mileage by 25%) so I had extra time to see it even though it was night. I slowed up as much as I could so "only" going about 20 mph when I hit her. I got off the road. CLUELESS lady in a Chevy Traverse, who didn't notice me braking hard for several seconds, came along and hit the same bear!

If I had of been able to stop (I tried to) I think that lady would have hit me, probably killing me or putting me into a wheelchair.

She killed the bear, totaled her SUV, and I think she knocked herself out. I called in police and fire....she didn't remember a thing but refused going to the ER. Two fireman took the bear, rollback took her SUV, and I drove home!

Took me about three months to get into the shop. On the plus side I needed a new front bumper cover and new hood anyway. Only guy out there with full coverage on a 2002 but they didn't even charge a deductible.

Drive slow, pay attention! If I didn't drive like a senior citizen, there is a fair chance that gal would have come through my windshield. :behindsofa:

[dustnchips]

I dear hunt, kinda. I shot a nice eight point buck about 18-20 years ago and haven't shot since. Until I see a better buck I won't bother since I'm not nuts about the meat anyway. I love going out and sitting in the blind and watching nature. I see shootable deer every year, but let them go. I like it best when it is snowing and starting to turn white. I have a heated blind. I am out before daylight and back at dark. The whole hunting thing starts a bout two months before season. Going up to the camp and checking things out, moving blinds, cutting firewood ect. Up here a camp is anything from a tent to a house. The one I go to is an old log cabin but has indore plumbing and electricity. Satilite TV is great to. Things are changing this year as the cabin has become unrepairable. The owner is replacing it with a 12oo sq ft cottage with a full basement and loft. Lots of room and luxury. There was a lot of charm to the old camp though. I always find better places for a blind and then just keep going to the old one so I will probably never get the big buck. I'll be there every year though. No heavy drinkers in camp and we play cribbage and smear for fun not money. By eigh thirty we are usually in the bunks as we get up early and go outin the woods. A great time with great friends. I shoot, or don't shoot an Argintine Mauser, 7mm model 93 with a buris scope and timminy trigger.

[King Rat]

I dear hunt, kinda. I shot a nice eight point buck about 18-20 years ago and haven't shot since. Until I see a better buck I won't bother since I'm not nuts about the meat anyway. I love going out and sitting in the blind and watching nature. I see shootable deer every year, but let them go. I like it best when it is snowing and starting to turn white. I have a heated blind. I am out before daylight and back at dark. The whole hunting thing starts a bout two months before season. Going up to the camp and checking things out, moving blinds, cutting firewood ect. Up here a camp is anything from a tent to a house. The one I go to is an old log cabin but has indore plumbing and electricity. Satilite TV is great to. Things are changing this year as the cabin has become unrepairable. The owner is replacing it with a 12oo sq ft cottage with a full basement and loft. Lots of room and luxury. There was a lot of charm to the old camp though. I always find better places for a blind and then just keep going to the old one so I will probably never get the big buck. I'll be there every year though. No heavy drinkers in camp and we play cribbage and smear for fun not money. By eigh thirty we are usually in the bunks as we get up early and go outin the woods. A great time with great friends. I shoot, or don't shoot an Argintine Mauser, 7mm model 93 with a buris scope and timminy trigger.

I hear ya. I have been a avid hunter all my life. Then I realized I just love the woods, love all of nature. I go deer hunting each year, Turkey hunting etc. And I scout all year. Have more fun scouting than I do actually hunting. Less people. Never hunt on opening day and let so many deer just go by. Recently bought a camera which will get more use than the gun.

[tokuno]

I haven't hunted since 2010.....but I've been thinking about it for a while. I'd like to open with some squirrel hunting, scout about, and then deer hunt.

This thread caught my eye, because I began an online hunter-education course yesterday, and am perusing Kahrtalk while I wait for the timer to allow me to advance to the next screen.
I don't have a particular intent to hunt, but this Covid-fueled, unique situation allows me to educate myself with very little cost and effort.

If there's any other Californians (might be applicable to other states, but I don't know the rules - check your state resources, though - this might be a great opportunity to get your kids/grandkids started) who would like to fulfill a pre-requisite to getting a license, this might interest you.

Due to Covid in-place rules, there is a temporary waiver on the on-site, in-classroom training requirement
- This fulfills a one-time, mandatory certification (does NOT have to be renewed or re-taken; once per person per lifetime)
- This is not a hunting license, but it is a California requirement to qualify for one.
- No classroom required, 100% online due to Covid
- We're allowed to completely fulfill the requirement through a $24.95 at-home, online web-class
- The class takes a minimum 4-6 hours to complete (go-at-your-own-pace)
- The class can be stopped and resumed at any time (can be done all-at-once or at your leisure in bits and pieces)
- Students have 90 days to complete the class, and can opt-in to an extension option at sign-up

I gathered from online comments that the "normal" classroom sessions can be difficult to schedule, and inconvenient to attend. There might be an add'l cost, too, so I jumped on this for the heck of it, and have been pleasantly surprised to find and fill a lot of gaps in my knowledge so far. Who knows - might even tag along with one of my hunter buddies some day . . .

Here's the California DFG resources:
Relevant info:
https://cdfgnews.wordpress.com/2020/05/19/california-temporarily-authorizes-completion-of-hunter-education-courses-online/

That page has a link that leads to this:
https://wildlife.ca.gov/hunter-education

Which in turn has a link to the state-approved online course (they appear to offer the same course for qualification in other states):
https://www.hunter-ed.com/california/

Hope this helps someone out there, or that you can pass it along to someone whom it might benefit.

[I_Like_Turtles]

dustnchips,

You are certainly "living the life" with all that. Hat off to you using a 7x57 surplused Mauser. 1893 was the weapon that decimated our troops in Cuba, forcing the withdraw of the Krag and the adoption of the 1903 Springfield. We had to pay Mauser a royalty for the stripper clip loading system. As for your choice of weapon---that's just classy! And the luxury....wow.

Tokuno,

Thanks for all the info, someone can use it for sure.

I took the "Hunter Education Class" back when I was 16-ish? Talked a friend into going although I doubt he ever went hunting. I didn't learn anything new there but took it anyway as my father did not hunt and thus, taught me nothing of it. I learned from a cousin that saw my potential and invited me along. Turned out that became a mandatory credential to have to buy a license. Naturally I lost my certificate card but I am just old enough to exempt out of it.

The last deer hunt I went on was a bit crazy. Controlled hunt at the gorgeous Greenbank Radio Astronomy Observatory. If I put my form in I always drew a ticket! However I was dead set on using my CVA caplock muzzleloader with all its problems. It was a doe-only hunt.....I went to the same place I had had great luck at the time I went before...

Dawn breaks and over the rise comes two massively-racked bucks. Can't shoot those! Following is a cadre of large does....those I can shoot! They turn broadside on to my position, range....15 yards. My .50 is loaded with a Hornady Great Plains Bullet, all lead hollowpoint of 285 grains over 80 grains Pyrodex. Tracking the last doe...drop hammer.....pop. Misfire!

And like an idiot I did not track the target! BOOM! Missed. Such a fool. (In fact my friend who went with me heard the "click-bang" and thought, "bet that's Greg!" SMH.

Now the female moved to the mouth of the brush where the others had passed into and stopped. She stomped her foot and grunted at me. She was covering their escape! I was impressed by her courage. So I did what any normal fool would do.....I began a reload! Moving at the speed of frozen 30 weight oil (any faster and she would have bolted) I put the buttplate onto the ground. I removed my pre-measured powder charge in a medicine bottle. I laid the lubed patch and ball over the muzzle (all reloads were patched round ball). I used my ball starter and got that 4 inches down. Then I thought "as soon as I begin the ram, she'll bolt." Well that's what happened!

Cursing my stupidity....I relocated to the ridge to my right. Sitting on a fallen log....I hear a sound behind me....deer. Range 10 yards or less! I slowly stand, turn around, but the deer edges forward giving me an excellent view of right shoulder but not the head. Male or female? Only does allowed!

Taking pity on the creature I lowered my rifle and yelled "GET OUT OF HERE!" The deer, in all the grace and skill God had given it, bounded over a log and down the hill.

At the end of the day I fired off my reload with no delay at all. So that shot would have been perfect.

Only later did I finally master my weapon. I learned to wrap the action in plastic wrap and tape it off, plus a bit of tape over the muzzle. That allowed a perfect ignition even after an all-hunt day in heavy fog.

Haven't deer hunted since 2007.

But to remedy the ignition problem I stepped up to a more advanced system.....I bought three flintlocks! No joke, always preferred their look and challenge. Haven't shot any of those but plan to this summer.

[Bawanna]

I haven't hunted since the mode of transportation change. I hunted with my grandpa's 1917 Enfield after he hung it up. Had a little 30-30 Winchester to start with for a few years. Never used anything but the Enfield.
I too found that I just enjoyed being in the woods but needed a viable excuse to do so other than tree hugging and mushroom picking. Never killed many which was fine, work starts after the kill.
I hunted Archery for many years until they changed the laws to where you could only hunt one way.
Being a derelict the state would give me gate keys, and I could shoot out the window and I think even a free license, but having done it the right way, I wouldn't get any joy out of doing that. Shoot it, then have your friends do all the work.

[gb6491]

I probably hunt this year after a couple of years hiatus. I like to hunt quail, Gamble's in particular. I don't have to shoot to have a good hunt, but it does liven things up and the birds are tasty. One of the reasons I haven't gone in awhile is my buddy Jack went ahead to scout the next trail and his partner in crime, CoCo, has gone blind. They weren't really hunting dogs, though they would flush birds (just didn't matter where I was at), but they were/are the best of companions.
https://i.postimg.cc/GhhvFGXh/hunt1000.jpg (https://postimages.org/)
It just wasn't the same without Jack, but Scout has joined our family and it's time for him to tag along.
https://i.postimg.cc/1tXZ0WVr/scout1000.jpg (https://postimages.org/)

Regards,
Greg

[I_Like_Turtles]

i like dogs but never had my own.

[Bawanna]

Some interesting vegetation down in them parts Greg. Scouts a fine looking pup, maybe the white coat helps reflect some of the heat?

We've always had a dog, usually little ankle biters. Got a border terrier now, good dog. Not good for much but a good pal.

Had a few Labs over the years, wouldn't mind another. Always wanted a Rottweiler but probably won't get one. Neighbors had one and a fella at work, I just play with theirs.

One of my best dog pals is this Mini Schnauzer that belonged to a friend. Only seen him once a year on vacation for about 10 days. But he'd jump right into my lap. Had to have a little help last year or two. He got so jealous a few years ago when we brought our dog as a pup, it was funny, he'd ignore me, tried to pee on my wheelchair tires. But we were buddies again the next year.
Sadly he went ahead too. Encouraging my friend to get another but he doesn't think he will, said he'd never get another as good as Spencer.
https://i.postimg.cc/4yZ6XcXQ/Spencer-1.jpg (https://postimg.cc/tZSZ5YZs)

[berettabone]

I used to hunt squirrel, rabbit, pheasant, quail, duck, geese...............no big critters. My first shotgun was a used Savage single crack open 20 ga. I bought for $20. Looked brand new. When you used one of those, you had your share of misses, but you got to be real good because you only had that one shot. I moved up to an 870 later on. Mostly did it for sport. Never really cared for any of the meat. It never went to waste though. Used a Savage .22 target rifle with peep sight for squirrels.....................................ever y one knows that squirrels are like cats. Got too much curiosity for their own good. I used to sit at the base of a tree in the woods where I had seen a squirrel or two. You put some tape on a couple of silver dollars and you just click them together like little castanets. They just can't resist checking out where the noise is coming from. I'm sure that you wouldn't necessarily have to use silver dollars, but that's the way it was taught to me, so I never tried anything else. Who was I to buck tradition??? A squirrel was the first thing I ever shot. I cleaned it on the garage floor on some paper, then spiced the h#ll out of it, fried it up in a fry pan and ate some. That was the end of that. If that was the only meat around, I'd be vegetarian in a minute or two.:p

[DavidR]

Crap. Eating squirrel was my backup plan if things really got bad around here. I wonder if those giant lizards we now have taste any better?

[AJBert]

Best jambalaya I've ever had was made with squirrel. I love them and rabbits.

[dao]

What the Clampetts would call "vittles"

[berettabone]

An acquaintance used to boil rabbits for his malamutes......................stunk up the house something fierce. Pine trees are edible. Never been able to put something in my mouth that smells like it was one and done already.............:puke: