First Time Hunting Deer in Southern California (D16)

Your biggest problem is the deer will more then likely be nocturnal most of the season. Don't hesitate to be out during the mid afternoon however as most of the hunters will be back in camp or going home. Deer will move to water during that time. Over the years they have been conditioned to move then. Most Socal deer do not migrate. If you find an area where they are not pressured they may be moving around 9/10AM. Get out there before sunup and glass, glass, glass. You may get lucky and some other hunter may push one to you. Good luck.
 
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mr_breakfast_ said:
lol

Yeah...I moved here when I was in the Marine Corps and just ended up staying. Now I've got a wife and kids--it's been a pretty hard sell trying to convince my wife that Montana is better (she's a SoCal native and not terribly fond of the idea of having to deal with inclement weather).

I'm from a small town in northwestern Montana, about midway between Missoula and Whitefish.
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What little town are you from? I often fly into Missoula and drive up to Glacier Park, camping on the east side and the west side and sometimes at Cut Bank campground in the park. Know your part of Montana well. Have taken many grouse and trout from that part of the planet.
 
doccherry said:
What little town are you from? I often fly into Missoula and drive up to Glacier Park, camping on the east side and the west side and sometimes at Cut Bank campground in the park. Know your part of Montana well. Have taken many grouse and trout from that part of the planet.
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Saint Ignatius. I'm sure you've passed through on the 93 on your way up to Glacier.
 
sportyg said:
Good friend of mine lives in Whitefish, keeps telling me I should move there. :)
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It's rough right now. The property values seem to be right now are on par with Southern California--even in smaller, less populated areas. I'll bet that Whitefish is pretty pricey!

Such a shame, really. I went home to visit last month. We were considering driving (it's a beautiful drive), but I was afraid to show up with my California plates! Montana's always been pretty insular and it seems to only be getting worse.

Oh well, that's Montana for you.
 
ilovesprig said:
Mr B,

Welcome to SCH and thank you for your service...There are miles of BLM and NF to hunt...And it's very possible to get into areas with very few to zero hunters.

With that said, there are a couple of questions...Do you currently have a D-16 tag, can you hunt Monday-Friday, do you have copper, and do you currently have OnX?

Couple more things, don't worry about hunting opening week-end (our rut is normally in FULL swing in November), you do not have to walk miles to find deer, and in this country, you're normally better off hunting them like white-tail (find a good spot and let the deer do the moving)...We also have many kinds of habitat here...Pines, sage, rocks, and lots of chaparral...Water sources are far and few between on public...Find water on private and focus on routes to it...Lastly, just because someplace doesn't look very "deerie", doesn't mean it doesn't hold bucks.

This buck was taken on a very public spot and barren as hell (SIL and Cody)...Well within a mile of a very popular road...PM me, if you'd like more info...Good luck, Steve

.View attachment 55293
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To answer your questions:
1) I do have a D16 tag already.
2) I can probably sneak in a hunt during the week...depending on work schedule.
3) I assume your asking about copper bullets. In that case, I do have a couple of boxes of 30-06, but the local Turner's doesn't have any 7mm Mag or .243 at the moment. I'm going to go check out Sportsman's Warehouse, though.
4) Yes, I do have OnX and have been scouting some possible hunt areas and potential access points.

Thanks for the advice and the welcome! I'm happy to be here with such a helpful crowd!
 
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I thought of another question. How do you all deal with packing out meat? Primarily I'm concerned with the temperature. In Montana, if we shot something far enough away from camp or our vehicle, the temperature was usually cold enough that we didn't have to worry too much about getting the meat cooled down.

I'm considering packing in some chemical cold packs since the air temperature range seems to be ~80-50 degrees during hunting season.
 
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mr_breakfast_ said:
I thought of another question. How do you all deal with packing out meat? Primarily I'm concerned with the temperature. In Montana, if we shot something far enough away from camp or our vehicle, the temperature was usually cold enough that we didn't have to worry too much about getting the meat cooled down.

I'm considering packing in some chemical cold packs since the air temperature range seems to be ~80-50 degrees during hunting season.
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Walk fast. Kidding I would bring cold packs sometimes


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
mr_breakfast_ said:
I thought of another question. How do you all deal with packing out meat? Primarily I'm concerned with the temperature. In Montana, if we shot something far enough away from camp or our vehicle, the temperature was usually cold enough that we didn't have to worry too much about getting the meat cooled down.

I'm considering packing in some chemical cold packs since the air temperature range seems to be ~80-50 degrees during hunting season.
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I still drag...Another reason to hunt near roads and UPHILL......... :blush:

ps...Walking sticks work well too.... ;)

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What type of shape are you in and how long does it take you to 1/4 a deer?

If you hike in any direction more than 2 hours you'll run into another road/parking here unfortunately. I wouldnt worry about the heat.
 
Creeping Death said:
Bed sheets. Skin, quarter then wrap and wet. Then skeedattle on out of there
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You wet down the "game bags" huh? I've never thought of that.

I actually put the meat in a trash bag so I dont get my pack bloody and have never had an issue with waste.
 
ilovesprig said:
Couple more things, don't worry about hunting opening week-end (our rut is normally in FULL swing in November)
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Don't want to derail this thread, but just curious as to what member's personal observations are in regards to success in the, say, first seven days vs. the remainder of the season.
 
lol I have taken a majority of mine on Fridays....mainly because I have that day off.

I have spots that are better the first week and other spots that are better the last week...I usually see them throughout the season

For the packing out, getting them quartered asap is more important than the exact temp outside.
 
180ls1 said:
You wet down the "game bags" huh? I've never thought of that.

I actually put the meat in a trash bag so I dont get my pack bloody and have never had an issue with waste.
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Adam,

I always heard that meat should be in breathable bags (game bag) and meat spoils a lot faster in plastic...Could just be an old wives tale.....lol

.scan051.jpg
 
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