New Guy Los Angeles Confused Please Help

[hharo70]

Hey Guys,
I always want to hunt since I was 4 never got to and now I am 32

My questions is are there groups or organizations I can join were I can go on hunting trips or just for the day
with a group of guys?

My 2nd question I see there are "guided tours" is that the only way to actually hunt hogs or any type of
hunt here in California or can you go on public land and take something down with out spending a ton of money.



Thank you for reading my post look forward to your replies

 

[Lungpopper]

Welcome to the site hharo.
Never heard of any groups like what you are asking about.
You can hunt on public land like the National forest or BLM property. The reason most people hunt hogs with a guide is because most of the hogs are on private property. So hunting with a guide gives you access to private property with a better chance of seeing hogs. More than likely you will hunt many years on public land before you will see a hog. So unless you have a good public land spot with hogs. It's cheaper over time to hire a guide.
You will also need to take a hunter safety course before you can buy a hunting license.

 

[8SteelTown]

Thank you for reading my post look forward to your replies

Congrats on getting moving towards hunting... it's an addiction like no other. There are groups of hunters that will go on a hunt, but generally, groups are small, like 2 or 3 people. When you have a bigger hunting group, it's more likely a giant area of private land that guides will take a group out on. Otherwise, if you went, say to hunt deer, you wouldn't want more than 1 other person with you... could you imagine if there were 20 people hunting in 1 spot for 1 deer (oh wait... D15/D16). Just saying that it's a cluster if too many people are hunting together.

There's lots of public land and there's lots of private land. Your best bet is to get on the DFW website and start clicking around. Look for what areas interest you and then do internet searches. BLM Maps (Bureau of Land Manangement) as well as National Forest Atlases are a great way to scout on paper on perspective hunting grounds. Nothing will beat getting in your vehicle, getting out, and hiking. You have to get off the beaten path!!

There are good guides out there and there are bad guides out there so if you're going for a guide, do your research. There's an outstanding guide on here (Neil from GSGS). Check out some of his client pics and success stories. You have to think of a guide like this (especially with pig): everyone wants a pig and nobody wants to pay for one... How many trips is it worth it for you to get one? If you go 50 times and only see sign and never get one and spend all the gas and time searching, you could have paid for a guided / semi-guided hunt and had a much higher chance of success. Saying that, you wouldn't have nearly the land / scouting experience not getting out and doing the scouting yourself and knowing the areas you want to hunt.

I'll tell you that if you want to start with pig, you're most likely going to end up hunting everything else as well. Lots of my spots hold multiple game animals so getting out and looking myself was my best avenue.

Hope this helps a little. Good luck to you.

 

[NBK]

You have come to the right spot hharo70. Networking and getting to know folks that hunt is just a bonus for you as far as your learning curve is concerned. I suggest you come to the SCH banquet and meet the folks who are on this forum. There are a lot of people who have been helping others on this site.

The more you are involved the more opportunities will arise.