New to it all

[bong]

Hey everybody my names Bong, I'm 23 years old currently residing in the OC. I've always been interested in hunting but never had the opportunity, but now I am at a time where I can start to teach myself and get into it. I've always loved nature and have been big on fishing ever since I was little and still try to go a couple times a month when I can and I usually see some animals running around or ducks swimming on lakes and think to myself that would be fun to try and hunt those. I bought a bow (Parker Trailblazer XP) a couple nights ago for cheap on craigslist so I'll be practicing with that at some local archery ranges.

As a newb, I have some newbie questions that probably shouldn't be questions at all lol,

First I had a question about where I could hunt, and I found my answer and so I'll be investing in some BLM maps as well as some National Forest maps. So I was wondering, are there any other places I can hunt other than land managed by the BLM and National Forests? Also, if I decide to hunt/scout a location up in the San Bernardino National Forest, do I just park my car on the side of a road somewhere (with adventure pass if needed) and start hiking or are there specific locations I must park at?

Before I looked into hunting at all I was completely clueless and I thought there were specific locations where everyone hunts something like La Grunta in King of the Hill lol but after doing my research I'm even more excited than ever just to get out there.

One more thing, I'm guessing we're not allowed to hunt ducks on just any lake? There are a bunch of little lakes/reservoirs I fish at in the San Bernardino Mountains on the way to Big Bear and there are ducks, a lot of ducks, on these lakes that get pretty close but I've never seen people hunting them so is it not allowed in general? Or not allowed for specific species that I am not able to distinguish yet? Or some other reason? or is it actually allowed but I've just never seen the people lol


Thanks in advance and I look forward to spending my nights stuck on my computer reading this site haha

 

[longbowhunter2]

Bong

Have you taken your Hunter Safety Class. that is your first task. Then Purchase a hunting license, upland stamp, duck stamp or whatever you may be after.
When archery practicing try to befriend an archers that hunts. Buddy up with someone who can show you the ropes.
practice doing 3d archery. contact your local archery clubs for public 3 d shoots.
always make sure of your target animal or what may be the case. & what's behind your target.

You can hunt any National Forest as long as you are 150 yards from any building. Public Picnic Areas. or any public gathering.
in general try to go where there are no people including hikers. but thats tough in southern california.
in general if there are people in the area. I don't hunt there.
read the the fish & wildlife rules & regulations. rangers will not be tolerant if you do not know the rules.
so read as much as you can stand then some. go to their website all the Hunting & Fishing are available on line.

do not go alone in the forest if possible. go with an experience hunter. depending on the weather conditions take plenty of water. always wear or have a compus.
an experience hunter can help with advice & good hunting practices. and it's most more enjoyable with company.
but if you do go alone just be careful & be safe. I like to hunt alone sometimes but I always let some know where I am going & when I will be back. I even give my family a copy of the map where I will be. This is very Important. Depending on the area if it's summer watch for snakes. get to know the poisonous plants. like poison oak. sumac.
there is tons of it in southern California. make which quarry your hunting. make sure it the correct species. don't get bored and shoot at any thing like I see some Hunters do.
respect the wildlife. only Hunt if you are going to eat it. or it's an invasive species. or not native I make get bad comments but I am partial native american. so I respect nature.

I know some of the lakes in my area you can make reservations for duck hunting, but I do not duck hunt here. I like duck hunting but just not my cup of tea.
check out the areas to go Pheasant & rabbit hunting.Imperial County has good areas for duck, Pheasant, dove & quail.
I believe up north of is also has good upland game hunting.
It takes many years of experience to become a good big game hunter.
small game is fun, enjoyable & tasty.

Hope This Helps

 

[Sdbirds]

Good luck BONG lol take hunter safety. Start with birds lots of fun and they can't smell hippy lettuce like the deer do.

 

[Lungpopper]

Welcome to SCH.

 

[bong]

Thank you for your response longbowhunter2!

I did sign up for an online Hunter Safety Class the other night and I'll be working on it some more tonight, I think I'm on unit 3 or so. That must be why I don't see people hunting those ducks, it all makes sense now haha its usually pretty close to picnic areas. I can agree with you completely with respecting the wildlife, I wont ever kill anything I won't eat (unless purely by accident), and as far as invasive species I don't know much of which animals are (although i'm good with plants) or not so I'll stick to hunting to eat for now.

I did plan on going in alone for a good fraction of the time and I really like the idea of giving family a copy of the map so thank you for that. But of course I'll be going in with at least one other person for a good while till I'm confident enough.

One more question, are you allowed to camp out for the night in the forest during hunts? Apart from scaring away possible game is it bad to set up camp for the night?

Thanks again for your reply and thank you for your welcomes everyone!

hahah kinda strange I know but my real legal name is bong, people been asking me if I'm on the hippie stuff ever since I can remember, even before I knew what it was LOL

 

[longbowhunter2]

Bong

It is legal to camp in National Forest, but you must a get a permit from the local rangers office. & get their lecture about no fires permissible. in other words campfires are not permissible in the NF. so you need to bring a small portable camp stove that fits in your backpack. wildfires in southern california is serious business. & hunters are getting a bad rap. they (the government) usually blames it on hunters.

always camp far from the hunting areas. so the game does not hightail it to the high ground. hunt in areas that are easy access, stay out of the thick brush.
because it will chase out everything near you. and you will wish you never got in that stuff. learn to shoot moving targets with bow because rabbits in the wild are fast.
you have a few seconds and they are gone.

good luck bong

 

[NBK]

Welcome to SCH Bong.

And great posts longbowhunter2!

 

[SoCalGuidedHunts]

Welcome to SCH!

 

[Jim]

Welcome Bong.
Just a FYI, you can take the online course but you will still need to take a those classroom course too. CA requires you to take the course from a certified instructor.

Sent from my LG-P930 using Tapatalk

 

[8SteelTown]

Welcome Bong.
Just a FYI, you can take the online course but you will still need to take a those classroom course too. CA requires you to take the course from a certified instructor.

Sent from my LG-P930 using Tapatalk

Pretty sure it's half and half. Instead of 8 hours in class, you do 4 online and 4 in class. I had a great time in my 8 hour class though... lots of cool stories from the instructors at Raahauge's. Sure gets you geared up into the hunting mood!!

 

[longbowhunter2]

Welcome to SCH Bong.

And great posts longbowhunter2!

Thank you NBK

 

[Neil Ray]

Welcome to the site, thats a lot of good info from longbowhunter, It sounds like he has all the info you need and he would be a great guy to get all the more info that you might need. new hunters need a guy like that to help. Good luck

 

[wackum stackum mackum]

Yeah but might I recommend leaving your name at home. Just what we need another full baked fool running around with a gun.

 

[longbowhunter2]

Welcome to the site, thats a lot of good info from longbowhunter, It sounds like he has all the info you need and he would be a great guy to get all the more info that you might need. new hunters need a guy like that to help. Good luck

Neil thank you