Hunter Partner wanted

[7magHunter]

Hi everyone, I am new here and I'm posting to see if anyone is having the same problem is me
when it comes to hunt , what I'm trying to say is I got all I need to hunt except a hunter partner,
not to crazy about going all by my self, never hunted in Ca, before because of it, but I am an
experienced hunter for deer and elk back in 1988, last time I hunted, and that was in Colorado,
great place to hunt , but times change not that easy anymore like it use to, back then a non resident could buy a deer or elk tag over the counter, now you have to go for a tag withdraw,
or yo have to be a Colorado resident to get a bull elk tag, and the reason I don't like to hunt
a guided wild pig hunt is the huge ammount of money these outffiters want for an stup.d pig,
$ 400, 500, 800, C'mon it is not an African safary !!, so I'd rather go empty hand, and have a good time, then make these guys rich, so anyway, if you have the same problem and you're not
rich, that means you got to work hard to earn $ 800 and don't want to blow it on a piglet, so lets
get together some day and we can go hunt and whatever i'ts cost we split 50/50, I read a lot of info about Carrizo Plain, Caliente Mountains, New Cuyama, and other areas, I will like to try it
some day, there's got to be a pig in those areas, I know, maybe I have to work ten times harder
to find a pig an public land, but thats why it's call " Hunting ", the guide knows where to go and
how to find them, and how many they are and they're pigs name too, thas call " Killing "pay and
go home. Anyway, I'm about 37 yrs old, so if you're about the same age +/_ ? e mail me.

PS: excuse my mistakes, I'm still learning how to use the post secction.

 

[pigdream]

I sent you a email.

 

[centralcoaster]

While I applaud your determination to do it without a guide or paying a trespass fee, and while I do not wish to start an argument, I have to disagree that guides know the name's of the pig you are going to kill and your inference that it isn't hunting to pay someone for the right to hunt on their land. The $400, $500 or more you pay to hunt on someone's land is usually split between the guide and the land owner. The guide puts in a full day and for more $$, more then one day. He pays for his own vehicle, gasoline and puts in many hours without a hunter paying to learn the ropes of the land. The land owner , well, it's his land. Without it, there is no hunt. He has liability with a guide and a guides client. I have attempted to hunt those areas you speak of and let me tell you. Chances are you will not find a hog to kill, and if you do by some chance, you won't get a lot of opportunities for a big boar. I do work hard for my money. When I go hunting for hogs, I don't want to spend 25 weekends a year on public land to maybe get one opportunity. I want better odds and I am willing to pay for it. I see it as a better value then spending lots of time and money hoping I stumble across a public land hog. For me in this stage of my life, time is money. This is California after all. Far too many people looking to do the same. You simply will not find the same opportunities on readily accessbile public land. Especially in the areas you mentioned. Those aeas are heavily "hunted" by Bakersfield boys, Santa Maria boys and LA'ers as well. I live very near those areas. Whenever I have scoped it out there, I have never seen a hog. Just signs of one passing thru. I hope you do well in your pursuit. Call it what you will. Hunting on private property can be just as challenging as any other hunt. You can work your ass off looking for that trophy hog and still not get one. Yes, it seems relativley expensive but considering the odds, I call it a bargain to pay to hunt where the hogs be. The days of so called free hunts for any game are fewer and fewer. Sadly it has become expensive for many, but that is simply the reality of today. I would be interested to know the kill ratio of public versus private property hunting. My wild guess is 1:100 or worse. I know I have never killed a hog on nearby public property and know very few who have. Usually all I have seen is where they passed by and that was probably in the dead and dark of night. Right next door on private property however, that is an entirley different situation. The hogs know where it's safer to be. I wish you well. You will have a good chance at coyotes in the areas you mentioned, but hogs are few and far between there less the occasional dumb luck right place, right time situation. Truly, however. Good luck if you hunt there. Let us know the outcome.

 

[7magHunter]

I drink for that, if you really think $ 500.00 for a pig is well spent money,
If you're a guide or a land owner I understand your point of view, but for an average weekend
hunter sometimes is not easy to spend $ 500- 800, how many times an a year are you willing
to pay that amount of money for a private ranch hunt, see we are not talking a once a year deer or elk season here, the state of CA, saids that you can hunt pigs any time of the year and there is no limit, if you do the math you will see how much money that comes to in a total year of pig hunting, I'm not saying their shouldn't charge you a fee to hunt in their land, but lets make sense
now, you are not after Elk, check for your self and see how easy and affordable is to hunt Wild Boars in texas, and those are thropies, not a #100 size pig you hunt in Ca, yes sometimes are bigger, not often.The buttom line is the private land hunt fees should drop down the prices,
so everyone can afford pig hunting in Ca, and you can save a good bunch of money for an
Alaskan hunt. good luck to you .

 

[Cda55]

Welcome to JHO 7maghunter. I have stomped around them same hills. Can you make it to Camp Roberts any weekend next month? That's about the best public hunting you'll find around here. I'm planning on going the weekend of the 18th. It's 15 bucks a day. I have a pretty big group going and you're welcome to join us.

 

[gonehunting]

Bottom line, whether you agree with it or not the reason they charge $400-$800 to hunt a pig is because people are willing to pay that. I don't believe these hunts are as challenging as public land hunts, otherwise most of the guides wouldn't be boasting 100% success rates. Besides, who would pay just to have the same odds as on public land? That's not saying guided hunts aren't challenging, honestly though, what you are paying for is the better odds. But a guided pig hunt is no where near the price of a guided big game hunt anywhere else. Here are some rough estimates.

Deer, any kind= $3,000-$5,000
Elk-$4,000-$8,000
Trophy elk-$8,000-$15,000
Alaska moose-$7,000-$10,000
Dall Sheep- $9,000-$$15,000
Brown Bear- $10,000-$20,000
Africa-$3,000-$100,000

Note, the advertised hunt price is usually NOT all inclusive, so a $3,000 ends up at around $10,000 once everything is figured in.

I probably won't be going on any guided hunts anytime soon, pig or otherwise. I will just save my money for out of state DIY hunts and do what I can on my own or with friends around here on my free time.

But the real question should be, what is the fish and game doing with all that extra money from the over 800% increase on pig tags? I know they are not native game, but now, with tag prices almost that of deer, They should get the funding as well. With the amount of money being drawn from tags, and considering the pigs reproductive cycle, there is NO EXCUSE why public land pig hunting should be anything less than outstanding.

But to end this on the right note, I'm up for some puplic land pig hunting.

 

[easymoney]

Centralcoaster hit the nail on the head...
Bingo, If you want to try to justify the costs of hunting, is it the meat you place the value on or is it the experience.
The costs of hunts on private lands or with a guide come at that cost because someone is having to do the work that most individuals won't. If you want to take wild game on public lands you had better sit down and evaluate the costs vs the effort and time involved. And most people are not capable of the effort it takes to be successful.
Ask yourself this question: How much do you spend on meat: cut, wrapped and ready for you at the market? Add up the costs on a public land hunt if you have been lucky, now add up the costs of your last pig hunt with a guide(or unguided) and divide by the pounds of cut and wrapped meat. My last self guided paid access pig hunt was a little over $300 for two pigs at 150lbs each. I wound up with 200lbs of cut and wrapped (me doing the labor)for about $1.50 per lb. Way less than I pay at any supermarket. Now the way I look at it I had a great hunt, on land by myself, where there were loads of pigs, I was successful, and I didn't have to put up with the hoards of others on public land.
I also hunt pubic land and because I make it a point to avoid the crowds and do my homework, so I know there are animals on the land I will be hunting, I am successful there sometimes, but I also realize I not out there for the meat alone. Most public land places have the potential to be "outstanding", but almost without doubt the private ranches are outstanding because someone is willing to put out the effort to make it that way. The animals have food, water and cover with limited numbers of hunters.
If you want to be successful hunting wild pigs, especially if you are a newbie, try a guided hunt as it will rarely be unsuccessful.

 

[HOGHUNTER714]

CentralCoaster, summed it up..I agree 100% percent.


Nuff Said

 

[UPER]

Hey HOGHUNTER714 sent you a pm by mistake, wrong guy, sorry. Anyway I have shot hogs on public land, and spent allot of time out in the bush before I got one. Would love to do a ranch hunt but just do not have the money to get into one. So gonna have to keep hunting the public places. There are a few that do not get to overhunted, but they are far few and in between..................

 

[bigtusker]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

now, you are not after Elk, check for your self and see how easy and affordable is to hunt Wild Boars in texas, and those are thropies, not a #100 size pig you hunt in Ca, yes sometimes are bigger, not often.The buttom line is the private land hunt fees should drop down the prices[/b]

# 1: Go hunt in Texas.
# 2: Of all the hunters I had this year, only 2 took hogs in the 100 pound range.
# 3: I should lower my prices WHY? Becaues YOU can't afford it? Everything related to my business went up this year. My guide license doubled, my insurance policy doubled, the price of gas is up and the owners of the ranch I lease still want my big check every year. Good luck on the public land!

 

[7magHunter]

Originally posted by bigtusker@Nov 29 2004, 12:59 PM
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE

now, you are not after Elk, check for your self and see how easy and affordable is to hunt Wild Boars in texas, and those are thropies, not a #100 size pig you hunt in Ca, yes sometimes are bigger, not often.The buttom line is the private land hunt fees should drop down the prices

# 1: Go hunt in Texas.
# 2: Of all the hunters I had this year, only 2 took hogs in the 100 pound range.
# 3: I should lower my prices WHY? Becaues YOU can't afford it? Everything related to my business went up this year. My guide license doubled, my insurance policy doubled, the price of gas is up and the owners of the ranch I lease still want my big check every year. Good luck on the public land![/b][/quote]


Hey Bigtusker I understand from your business point of view, it's not good ,
but for me a pig hunt is the same value like a coyote, rabbit, bobcat there are
out there, the only reason you guys get business, is because there are not many
pigs in public lands, how many customers you think you will get to hunt rabbits
if you charge $ 200 per ea rabbit you kill ? not many or none .
Yea you're right I maybe go to Texas the Huge Russian boars are worth every
penny. Good luck in your business!

 

[SierraExplorer]

Originally posted by 7magHunter@Nov 29 2004, 06:27 PM
Good luck in your business!

7magHunter-

Trust me and everyone that has had the Awesome True Pleasure of meeting Chopper- Shaking his hand- Getting to know him- And being his Guest as he tries more than his best to make sure your trip is more than magical.

Please- Until you have had the GREAT Pleasure to meet the man- you can not call him a buisnessman here, there , after you left his ranch, or ever- Just "Chopper".

(You May even need to help him put some gas into his rig and get it restarted so he can even get back up the hill

)

Before you talk out of your arse- make sure your drawers are down to avoid the mess.

Sorry- I appoligise 7maghunter

That was not very nice of me to say.

Dan

 

[bigtusker]

Like I said, have fun in Texas.

Sierra, your words are too kind.

 

[7magHunter]

Originally posted by SierraExplorer+Nov 29 2004, 06:47 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (SierraExplorer @ Nov 29 2004, 06:47 PM)</div>

<!--QuoteBegin-7magHunter

@Nov 29 2004, 06:27 PM
Good luck in your business!

7magHunter-

Trust me and everyone that has had the Awesome True Pleasure of meeting Chopper- Shaking his hand- Getting to know him- And being his Guest as he tries more than his best to make sure your trip is more than magical.

Please- Until you have had the GREAT Pleasure to meet the man- you can not call him a buisnessman here, there , after you left his ranch, or ever- Just "Chopper".

(You May even need to help him put some gas into his rig and get it restarted so he can even get back up the hill

)

Before you talk out of your arse- make sure your drawers are down to avoid the mess.

Sorry- I appoligise 7maghunter

That was not very nice of me to say.

Dan[/b]

SierraExplorer, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings about Bigtusker, but the universal
truth is when you received money in exchange of any service thats a[business]
yor like it or not, you may like the guy, that doesn't mean his not doing business with you,
hey is nothing wrong with that, is a job like any other, or you hunt there for free ? I read a few
Bigtuskers posts and he only mentioned $$$$ deposit etc, what's all that a charity donation ?
We are all the same age here, so lets be adults and have a good time. PEACE

 

[One Track]

This is getting kinda ridiculous. I'd much rather eat a hog than a bobcat. And, from what I hear, the 100 pounders are much better tablefare than a big 'ole boar. I have yet to shoot a really big boar. I truly want one for the wall. However, I'm am very satisfied with a 150 pound sow. It feeds my family for months! Dang good pork too.

What do you guys think? After you have a huge boar on the wall, are you happy just taking a good meat hog, or do you want to kill another big boar? Just curious.

 

[pigdream]

Wow this is a very touchy subject for all I see. I see the business end of it and I see the hunter's end of it. Here is my two cents if it's worth anything. There are many different strokes for many different folks.

I for example would not like to go on a guilded pig hunt, but would rather suffer out in the field and a few small private spots I have occasional access too. Now on the other hand let's say my father in law is in town and is going to die if he doesn't get a pig this trip down (from Wa. where to me he has much more exciting things to hunt) I may hire a guild. People who live in say LA area and have to drive for hours may want to pay for a guild.

Bottom line some of us think one way and others another let's just except that.

Jason

 

[Speckmisser]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

What do you guys think? After you have a huge boar on the wall, are you happy just taking a good meat hog, or do you want to kill another big boar? Just curious.[/b]

OneTrack... I don't and won't have any big boars on my wall. Not interested in trophies, as I much prefer the meat.

Would I pass up a shot on a monster? Probably not. I'm not impervious to my own ego. And a hundred pounds of sausage is better than an empty freezer.

As to the gist of this discussion... the whole idea of knocking guided hunting is out of line. If you don't want to do it, fine and more power to you.

I think it's great to accept the challenge of getting out and working your butt off to find some pig tracks and dried scat on public land. If you really have a hot spot, or if you get exceptionally lucky, you can even kill an occasional pig. For my part, this is 95% of my pig hunting. And I have yet to kill a pig on public ground.

I also think there's nothing wrong with hiring a guide if you have the money. Hey, is it a bad thing if someone can afford to spend $400 or more to go hunt? If so, why? It smacks of sour grapes from those who can't afford it... and little else. I do think it sucks how expensive it's become, though. But getting access to good property isn't cheap, and with the costs of liability, licenses, and equipment thrown in, it's a hard business. These guys are NOT out there getting rich off of you.

And by the way... you won't find too many "rich" hunting guides. I still don't know where that stereotype comes from, but I have yet to meet a wealthy guide. Most are working at least one other full-time job, or are already retired from a career and just supplementing the pension/retirement fund.

Are the people who use guides lesser hunters? Sometimes. Guides are an excellent option for newbies who want to learn how to hunt. I'd strongly recommend hunting with a guide if you've never hunted hogs before, unless you're lucky enough to have some very experienced friends to show you the ropes. A good guide can be a great teacher, and the experience of one or two guided hunts can teach more than several seasons trying to figure it out on your own... especially if you're trying to learn on public land.

Guides are also a great bet for folks who don't have the luxury of time to go find hogs on public ground (because they're too busy earning all that money), for older folks who can't get around like they used to, and even for hunters who just want to make sure they get some meat in the freezer.

I said 95% of my pig hunting is public land. The other 5% has been pay-to-play, either on clubs or places like Tejon Ranch. You pay for access, then hunt your own way. This has been my favorite kind of experience, since lacking access to private property, it gives me my best odds of success. I AM hunting to kill something, not just to walk in the woods, and while the challenge of public land is exciting, the simple fact is that the odds are heavily stacked against the public land hunter.

Chopper's place is also a good hunt, and anyone who thinks it's a walk in the park really needs to get a reality check. Chopper's hunts are not guided, by the way... he gives you some ideas where to go, shows you around the property, and pretty much leaves the rest to you. If you really don't know the area well, he may lead you to a spot and give you hiking directions. Add to that the fact that it's archery only, and you have a hunt as tough as anything you'll ever do on public land (without the aggravation of dodging pot growers, gang-hunters, and target shooters).

Bottom line though, just because guided hunts or pay-to-play isn't for you... don't denigrate guides or the hunters who use them. What's of value to one person may be worthless to another.

 

[superduty]

A hunter with his own opinion. Geez, aren't we all.

Welcome aboard 7maghunter. I don't think you meant to direct your opinions towards any one person. You just need to realize that this is one of the largest if not the largest most deversified group of hunters gathered in one place. The wealth of knowledge here is unserpassed and I hope you can stick around and maybe learn or teach something here at JHO as everybody who will read this and knows me can say (I have).

 

[PoorAim]

Welcome 7maghunter,


I wish you luck. to give you some encouragement, I will tell you
I did get a pig this past year on public land- so it is possible.

It also took me over 10 trips to do it. That pig I got was the first one I saw in all of those trips. I hunt HARD, and many of those trips were multi-day back pack trips. Many folks think that if you just hunt harder or hike in farther on public land you will get the pigs the others don't know about. This is what I thought too, and while it certainly helps, when people say it is a rare to find pigs on public land, its unfortuantely true (at least everywhere I have looked) .

If money is your major concern, Unless you are EXTREMELY lucky, it will probably be actually cheaper for you to go on a guided hunt, than to make so many long trips to the public land areas that hold pigs. For me, I would have been going out hunting for turkeys, quail, or just camping, so I didn't really see it as money spent on trying to get a pig anyway. Frankly I didn't care if I got a pig because I got to explore some great areas, which was my whole goal. Maybe you feel the same way.

The flip side is, although its not "my thing" I completely understand why so many folks pay to access private land (or get a guide). Many hunters have families and just don't have the time to spend so many weekends away chasing ghosts, also many really want to fill the freezer with meat to feed their families. My brother who lives out of state wants to hunt for wild boar in the wild (not under a freeder). I wish I could tell him, come on out and we'll go hunt the spots I have scouted. Instead, I tell him we will need to setup a hunt on private land (probably un-guided) if we want to have even half a chance of seeing a pig.

I'm not trying to discourage you from hunting the public land, its what I do, but there is a very good reason so many pay the fees they do to hunt private land, and I wouldn't knock them for it. BTW, the CA pigs are not little 100lb feral hogs. In fact, from what I have seen most CA pigs seem to be closer to the pure russian type than most of what I see coming from Texas. The one I got was roughly 200lbs, and very much of russian heritage.

Good Luck,
PA

P.S. A non-resident can still buy an over the counter Bull Elk tag in Colorado. I have done just that, the last two years.

 

[centralcoaster]

Well, I already added my two cents in the begining. No need to add more. My question to you all is .....Who is Choppers? You can hunt on his land unguided? That is what I would like to do as long as the land is large enough and has been known to hold hogs. I would be interested in info about this place.

I think everyone above is right in their own way. For me, it isnt the money as much as the time. For others it's the opposite. Indeed, this forum has a diverse group of hunters and I have learned a lot of good info from participating.

By the way, with respect to what one prefers to kill. Again, for me.....I like to kill big boars when given the opportunity. (I'm not a stud hunter, but I've killed a few big un's) I do like trophy boars and the challenge of getting as close as possible to one without his knowledge of my presence. In fact, I am considering buying one of those Smith and Wesson 500 pistols for closer range hunting. I only have one mount just to remind me of what I could be doing when bored (no pun intended). I don't consider it an ego thing although others may. No matter. I also have as much fun getting close to a herd of hogs with the wind in my face and not necessarily killing any just knowing I could have if I wanted to. I just don't have a freezer for game and don't intend to get one. I'm a bit different. I don't like wild game much and I saltwater fish in Baja and elsewhere and I never or rarely eat the fish I catch. (unless it's halibut or rock fish which I don't do much ) I give it away as I do the game. For me, it's the hunt itself, not the meat, whether it be fish or large game. I do understand those who would rather fill a freezer then not, but for me, it's a different story. Oh well, like someone said...to each their own.