Another Newbie

8bitdrummer

New Member
Jan 11, 2019
4
9
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32
Los Angeles
Hello all I thought I would introduce myself here. My name is Justin and I am 100% new to hunting and will be the first in my family to do so for who knows how long. I currently reside close to Los Angeles south of d14 and I'm most interested backpacking to a location and employing the Still, or Spot and Stalk style of Bowhunting. Eventually I would like to be able to harvest a buck from either D13 or D14. I've got access to a cabin in D14 just a few miles north of the San Gorgonio wilderness and was thinking of scouting this area for mule deer. I've backpacked quite a bit but never in snow and don't know how much I would encounter in that area and if it constitutes replacing my tent for a dedicated 3 season tent.

Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.
 
Good arrows seem to make a difference in how straight/accurate they fly. I like the Maxima Reds.

Don't be tempted to shoot at a Bunny that's not running away while hiking in to your sit spot. While out there, keep your release on all the time until you're back in the tent.

Be sure to get a BearSpray holster that has some retention! And everytime you get up to move, check that your BearSpray is still with you and in your Holster!

I don't have one yet, but I'd definitely recommend getting a Bow sling. While you're hiking the damn bushes jack up your string, and getting your bow restrung is not cheap!

My bow had a hostage rest on it. No bueno. Get a whisker-biscuit! For hunting they're good because when you knock your arrow, you know that no matter how you orient your bow in your hands while stalking... that arrow isn't going to fall out of their. I've had an arrow fall off the bottom brush on a hostage rest while drawing it back.

If you haven't gotten your bow yet... don't order a 70# draw-weight bow. It's ridiculous. You don't need it that hard. You need to set your draw weight to a weight such that you can draw it back slow and Ninja-silently... wihtout needing to grunt while pulling... without all this needing to point the bow all up into the air business and pull down into it. Example: Mine is currently set to 54#

After you shoot them with arrow... they tell ya you gotta give em 30 minutes minimum to let'm bleed out and die. You don't wanna go walkin' up on 'em and he still has some life left in him and decides to run and hide and potentially risk you not being able to recover him.

Get used to bringing a lot of weight in water! Learn to stash unopened gallons of water in the areas you scout into and decide you're going to make a sit on during hunting season. That water will be glorious on the day you're successful! It will be such a luxury to have that extra water!

It depends on where you hunt at... but yeah... be ready for the Earth to just swallow-up your arrows on a miss. So if possible, you wanna be pretty darn sure of the shot before you let one go.

If you happen to get yourself some of those Berber carpet based boot slip-ons for quieter stalking. DO NOT wear them in an area that may have Cholla cactus. They will pick up a tons of dried Cholla bits and you'll hve to throw them away. Only where those slip-ons for like the last several hundred yards of your creep-in to your sit spot, if you're going to wear them at all. The only muffle maybe 20% of the noise when walking in the dried oak leaves. On open ground though... where the grit and gravel would be noisy as heck. They work amazing on those surfaces.

Be persistent! Think of it like a game of Chess... where each single move is made over a day.

At the places you spend some time at.... pay attention to HOW the shadows change during the day (you need to shit in the shadows), pay attention to HOW the wind shifts direction at different times of the day. Start practicing feeling the wind on your face and back and being able to determine in which direction the wind is blowing.
 
Hello all I thought I would introduce myself here. My name is Justin and I am 100% new to hunting and will be the first in my family to do so for who knows how long. I currently reside close to Los Angeles south of d14 and I'm most interested backpacking to a location and employing the Still, or Spot and Stalk style of Bowhunting. Eventually I would like to be able to harvest a buck from either D13 or D14. I've got access to a cabin in D14 just a few miles north of the San Gorgonio wilderness and was thinking of scouting this area for mule deer. I've backpacked quite a bit but never in snow and don't know how much I would encounter in that area and if it constitutes replacing my tent for a dedicated 3 season tent.

Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.
Welcome to this board.
Do a little e-scout with Google maps and Onxhunt app.
While scouting,
look for deer sign
Tracks and scat.
Have you purchased a compound bow yet?
If you can, set up game cameras
And might think about tree stands
To start out. Or blind.
Find areas close to private and
Look for traffic going and coming.
But remember no closer than 150 yards to any building.
Try to ask specific questions
About hunting. Some one will
Chime in that hunts those areas.
 
Welcome Justin!

Being 100% new means you have a lot of learning ahead of you. It’s a lot of work, but the rewards in my opinion are the best bestowed upon man.

This is a great place to start and learn. There’s a LOT of knowledge here, and don’t be afraid to ask questions. The only dumb question is the one you don’t ask.
 
Wow Larry thank you that was really all such fantastic advice! I definitely won't be buying myself a 70lb draw probably more around 45-50.
Thanks Longbow, I'll definitely consider using a blind to start out with. Do you have any general tips on blind placement? (to and from bedding areas/ along migratory routes etc?)
Nuevo, I greatly appreciate the advice on A-32, I had no idea that either sex archery only zones existed! (shows how little I know) I'll add that area to my list of potential scouting locations for this year.


I was thinking about doing some Jack hunting to get experience processing game in the field and such. What do ya'll think of this idea? As my weekends are really my only time to scout until the actual season I'm wondering if I should stick to scouting for a certain portion of the year and then maybe move to jacks during a time when scouting is less beneficial?

Also...I've heard very mixed reviews on jack meat, but I would hate to waste an animal. Anyone here like eating jacks?
 
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I would recommend to start out
With small and upland game and work your way up to big game.
Hike the hills, get all your gear
And do one day hikes.
But ya going deep a way from road hunters is the name of the game. But get experience first.
Then get that 3 season tent.
Start out with day hunts, work into it. For safety reasons.
 
They have bows that can adjust from 15-70 Lbs. Just get one of those.

OH!!! And get a very secure on-board Quiver !

The one that came on my bow...it just sort of cantilevered into place and had these two rods that were covered with rubber then locked-in with a little friction into these two slots/notches on the part that was mounted to the bow.

Damn thing would drop the quiver sometimes when I had it strapped to the back of the pack! Brush would hit it or whatever. Had to backtrack a bit one time but thankfully found it. Went out next day and got a few on-board quiver. Found one that had a Dovetail that slide into the one mounted on the bow... then you cranked down on this knob/bolt, and it would tighten the two dovetail pieces within each other. That one was made by Fuse Archery. I dropped down to a 4-shot quiver. When I was practicing, prior shoulder injury would make my shoulders get tired/sore after awhile so i figured with 4 it'd weigh less for my shoulder to have to hold up. I think in the future I'll go back to 6. But 4 is enough. You can always have a quiver with a couple replacement arrows in your pack.

You're going to need a Tripod stool. (Make sure you'e getting one that can support your body weight!) And I'd also recommend getting a Klymit Kush inflatable sit pad. After a while of sitting on a Tripod stool, it's murder on your taint and inner thighs. Adding that pad in sure helps extend your sit time.

Also...get good quality hiking underwear that doesn't have any thick seams in them. And get a belt that has an infinitely adjustable belt buckle. I like the T-Buckle belts from Cabelas. Socks!!! With Merino Wool socks with Liner socks worn inside those.. I can hike TWICE as long before blistering/cracking begins! My feet stay drier in the heat too. I like Darn Tough brand socks and FoxRiver liner socks. With these two, the seam on the toes is the least obtrusive I've ever experienced on any sock ever! And I have to be very picky about that. The skin on my toes just like destroys, easily. I get cracked heal fairly bad and often from heredity and having a desk job where I sit at home barefoot all the time. These socks help tremendously with that.

Have a Havalon scalpel knife in your pack for skinning/cutting up the animal. And for your backup in your pocket, I've been bringing the Leatherman CX. I was bringing a Wave.. but it's too heavy.

Also, any knife you wear in a sheath on your belt... if the pommel (butt-end) of the knife sticks up above the belt-line of your belt... when you strap your pack on, the hip-belt will push on the butt of that knife and cause it to uncomfortably need to twist on your hip. So that's why I went over to folder with a pocket-clip... hence the Leatherman CX.

I use the backup knife to cut around the knees when removing the forelimb and for cutting and seperating the head from spine, and for the back-straps cut where you need to slide the knife along the ribs for separating the backstraps off the body. You can do it with your Havalon scalpel knife no problem... but when it rubs against bone it decreases the life of the sharpness of the current blade and You'll find you need to change it out for a second one before you're done. Doing it this other way, I can just use one blade on the scalpel, so much less hassle to fuss with when your hands are all bloodied up.

Meat Bags! Kifaru makes thes really cool super thin and super light Meat Bags that hold the meat in a nice columnar shape like it should be when stuffed into your pack! And they clean easily to! I still also bring an Alaskan Game bag. I put the head and hide in the Alaskan one since it's very stretchy. I then ziptie it closed around the antlers, that way the Meat Bees (Oh yeah.. just wait.. you'll love it when the Yellow Jacket come in to pester you at your kill! Don't worry, they don't really care about you... they just wanna get at that meat and blood. I've learned to NOT skin out the whole animal first before removing the meat. I've learned to instead skin out just the area near the body part I'm working on.. so that way there is less flesh exposed to the air for them to harass. That helped A LOT! Also... if you should choose to actually take the guts out, like if it's a really hot day, then be sure to throw the guts a bit away from where you are processing your animal, to help draw some of them away from you. ALSO... throw that gut pile and the left over skeleton away in some place hidden from view of other hunters/hikers! You don't need to be advertising to someone else that deer can be had at this particular spot you're in!
 
Thanks longbow. I'll look into small and upland hunting opportunities near my area and aforementioned zones and take your advice about attempting some rabbits while i'm out scouting.
I've heard that some places have different regulations on taking cottontail VS hare due to the difference in size. I can't find any definitive information on different methods of take (if any) in California. Is it ethical to take a jackrabbit with judo tips on a 35lb draw weight recurve?
 
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RE: your hikes... here is most likely how it's going to go down for you...

You n00b and you're solo, so your nervousness is a significant bit higher right now. So most likely you will at first go into a new area planning to arrive after sun is already up... do to the hike.. see features and possibly sign that suggest to you that maybe this'd be a good place to try.

...THEN...

You plan another visit to the spot... only THIS time... you prepack a night or two beforehand, AND get up at 2am or 3am so you can be ready and out the door and on the road by 3a - 4a in order to arrive where you want to go, so that you can hike in and actually BE ARRIVING at where you want to set BEFORE the Sun comes up. (Remember to use your RED Headlamp light as you near to the spot you wanted to sit at)

...AND...

You MUST stay until the end of legal shooting time if you want to have ANY chance of seeing anything. IF you don't go in BEFORE the sun comes up and STAY until AFTER the sun goes down... you ain't seein' SH!T !! It's usually too hot.. they CAN'T be up and about during the day, or all that sun would hit them and they'd need to risk exposing themselves in order to go look for water, that's even assuming there even is any kind of standing water nearby, which there often isn't.

I RECOMMEND...

Bringing at least one Trekking Pole with you if there is any kind of incline/decline or water-crossings. ALWAYS USE YOUR TREKKING POLE FOR WATER CROSSINGS!!! Especially when it is cold!!! Otherwise... the results are painful and costly! (My left wrist, crossing a creek, last rock before other side, slip/fall/SLAM/SHATTER!) (I need to go back and have them yank all this stuff outta there, it hurts when doing some things)
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8bit,

Welcome to SCH.....Please read the hunting regs backwards & forwards.....And learn your game animals & birds.

We here on SCH will answer your questions the best of our ability.....Lots to learn to stay safe, equipment, guns/archery, rules both ethically and legally.
 
Do you do hiking?
Good thinks to have.
GPS tracking, ONXHunt has that too. Good SOS beacon if going solo.
Compass, remember smart phones even if your provider
Has no connection if there are other that do work. Other providers will pick a 911 call.

I hunted 40 years and never got
Seriously hurt. Never take chances
Make smart choices.
If possible get more than one partner when Hunting.
Hook up at partner thread.
Read all the stuff that are pinned
In the threads.
 
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Welcome to the site Justin. Thread got a bit down in the weeds, but good luck starting out. I also have a cabin up in D14 and am new to that area which I'm hoping to learn for deer, upland, and maybe bear. Look forward to hearing how it goes for you.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
I'd shoot Jacks all damn day if I had a spot for 'em. And I always have figured that even if *I* ended up not caring for a particular meat (which really only happens when you don't know how to cook that particular kind of meat), I could always just give it to my appreciative dogs!

OMG they love all the stinky trimmings of all the Silver skin from Deer, and you know how strong that smells when cooked.
 
Thanks again Larry, those X-ray's look painful!
Longbow, I love backpacking and current use onx alongside an garmin etrex 10 (it's cheap but combined with topo maps from onX i'm pretty sure where i'm at most ofthe time. ) And i'll definitely be going up there with at least 1 more person.

Surf, that's all I needed to hear! I'll definitely be looking up some crock pot recipes for hares in the future.

You have all been so welcoming and helpful, I felt pretty overwhelmed at first but alot of your posts answered questions i didn't even know i had.

Thanks everybody.
 

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