Lake Sonoma 2-Day PL Hunt with JNDEER

[THE ROMAN ARCHER]

opcorn: i had made plans with JNDEER 3 weeks ago to hit the lake for 2 days for some public land wild piggie bowhunting and we got real lucky with the excellant weather break between the storm systems.
left home early wed. morning for a 3 hr. drive to meet up with JN in the early am at the Yorty Creek boat ramp at the back end of the lake off of Hot Springs. we wasted no time in the dark crossing a flooded creek and hitting those hills to start the adventure, as always very physical hiking to start.
after about 2 hr's of hiking to the top ridge's we came to a fork on the trail JN explains to me which way they headed, we also detected the STONG sweet smell of pigs in the air and as we are ready to make our choice we hear some low GRUNTING in the bushes right in front of us, so JN walks about 30 yrds down the trail from me, i stay put and i am staring at the brush in front of me and i can hear them coming closer and closer and all of a sudden less then 20 yrds a whole group of 300 lb. MONSTER:hog chewing:HOGS where milling threw the thickets right of the trail in front of me I DREW MY BOW :archer green: but could not get a CLEAN SHOT through the brush and they turned from me and went back into the brush about 60 yrds and where just hanging back there where we couldnt get to them but we could see them milling around so we just waited for them to make a move.
out of nowhere another hunter shows up on the trail with a BLOODY ARROW and said he got a pass threw and was tracking the hog for over a mile with no luck, so he went back to tracking his hog while we where dealing with our situation. we figured he must of pushed those hogs we were on to us while he was tracking.
after about 30 minutes the hogs must of bedded down the steep hillside out of site for the morning so we made plans for the sunset hunt to try an ambush them coming back out for the night. we hunted the slopes and bowls for the next few hr's with no luck and headed back to the hot spot we found that morning for the last hr of hunting butt there was no activety anymore JN went into the brush to check out thier bedding spot butt no pigs! oh well, all we could do now is make plans to hike in the dark the next morning for an ambush at the same spot, we knew it would be physical butt well worth it to score a hog of that caliber on public land. so we hiked back out in the dark and headed back to Liberty Glen camp site for the night.
me and JN had a great dinner with a nice camp fire and watched hog hunting video on my portable dvd player and then crashed for the night.
up by 4 am for the 2 hr journey of driving and hiking to get to the hot spot we encounterd the pigs the day before, with 10 minutes left before legal shooting light i was over a major wallow with worn intersecting trials waiting for some action and JN was posted up the hill from me in the spot we were the day before. well, NADA, NADA, NADA no piggie's showed up, they must moved on, it was a great effort and JN went back into the brush one more time to check out the bedding area butt nothing.
so after our morning hunt at Yorty Creek JN had to head out so i drove all away back to the vistor center side at the lake an did my own afternoon hunting. i did the No Name Spot for a while and then i hit up Lone Rock trail for a couple of miles before sunset with no luck and then finished the last hr glassing the Liberty Glen hillside's till last legal light and was a great way to end my 2 days of hunting Lake Sonama.
one thing for sure now is i will always will look forward to hunting Lake Sonoma knowing for what it has to offer as far as hard core public land wild pig hunting, it is woth my time and every penny to me as far as the gas and the long drive to do a Lake Sonoma hunt and i cant wait to get back up there again.

i really look forward to sharing another hunt with JNDEER, he has the true passion for hunting wildig-laughingigs as a bowhunter and makes a great hunting partner for sure, JN thanks for everything my friend i had a great time hunting with you and look forward to the next one.

thanks for taking the time to read my story, i always enjoy sharing the passion of hunting with my JHO members if i am successfull or not, you guys are the best!:JHO rocks: have a great day!..............tra

 

[STICK&STRING]

AWSOME STORY! I've been hunting lake sonoma for as long as I can remember and have ALWAYS had a very memorial hunt!

 

[Kentuck]

Sounds like a good trip to LS. I think I know the spot you were in. I've played cat and mouse with pigs there before. Wanting to go up next Friday. Hope it doesn't rain.

 

[Rotorhead]

Great story and thanks for sharing. Good job getting out there and hitting it hard. At least you found some, that's more than I can say so far.

I haven't been able to hunt the Lake for a couple of weeks (had to re-serve my center serving and life just got in the way) but I went up there to the range on Wednesday. It sure was nice to see the lake up to capacity again.

Hoping to put the boat in the water and hunt a day or two on the 10th & 11th of Feb.

Again, thanks for the story.

 

[JNDEER]

Good times TRA!

Hopefully the stars will align and we can hit it again soon.

 

[Shmave23]

Sounds like a wonderful time. Im heading up to Cache Creek wildlife area in a couple of hours to do some camping and pig huntin over the weekend. Ill for sure let you guys know how it all goes.

ETA sucks:

 

[hunterdoug]

glad to hear you got into em sounds like a fun trip. and yes that lake will either kick your azz or get you in shape. there's been many a time after hunting (climbing) all day I was glad not to kill something. don't get me wrong I love to eat em but man alot o work ig-laughing:.

 

[THE ROMAN ARCHER]

thanks for the reply's guy's, i hear ya Hunterdoug i am in my 50's and i am glad i can still hang hunting those hill's with some one half my age, like you said it will either kick year butt or get you in great shape. i am very proud of myself that i can even do that kind of up and down hikeing, i have a solid fused left ankle from a M/C accident many years ago with only 10% flexability, i should'nt be doing that type of terrain at all butt ny desire and addiction to pursue and hunt wild hog's with a bow is that strong that i dont think twice about it, i am going keep going till i can't do it no more.

also while hunting on our l.s trip seen 2 huge coyotes the size of a german sheperd nice 10 lb. bobcat at face to face and a freeking huge jackrabbit.

i know this isn't a perfect world butt it is very disturbing to find bottle's and can's out their huntig L.S. in such remote place's, you would think people who hike or hunt the lake have a pack on their back or something so why not put that little bottle or can back in their pack and take it wih them, oh well, at least i didn't find a 7/11 slurrpy cup out there.

other then that i aam still pumped and excited after our encounter with those hog, i swear to god they where built like battle ship's, no neck, no belly back about 3feet from the ground, just solid mature hogs, they look like cow's with with tiny leg's, if i am lying i am dying! actually i started to get a little hog fever for the fisrt time when they popped out my leg's started to get a little shakey butt that moment was so suprizeing by the size of the whole groupe when they popped out so freeking close they had no clue we where there, hope i get that opportunity agian someday.
i would like to get up there one more time at least butt i have to start focusing on my Chopper group hunt in march so we will see. have agreat day.............tra

 

[flytrue]

L.S.

Thanks for the report TRA. I was also there last Wednesday afternoon and ran into a Big Boy myself. It was nice sunny day and he sauntered past me at 15 yds in the the thick brush. I don't think he ever knew I was there. I tried to sneak up for a shot, but no-go. I finally saw him in the clear at more than 50 yds. I had a great view of him. I say him because I saw his equipment swinging in the sunshine. I also saw his tusks in the sunshine.
If I ever take a shot at such a pig it will be at can't-miss-range and right into the boiler as I think anything else will just equal a lost hog.
Yeah, this is addicting.

 

[THE ROMAN ARCHER]

FlyTrue, welcome to JHO and our hog hunting forum my friend, glad to hear from you. it was a great 2 day's of hog hunting for sure, i wish i lived close to the lake that would be nice just to hit it anytime you want with out alot of hassle's. yeh and it really suck,s that i was at full:archer green:draw so close but all the thickets just didnt present a good shot lane or opening to thread and had to just watch them mill away back into the thick brush, as they say so close and yet so far, oh well.there will be another day!

mabe we can get together for a L.S hunt in the future, have a great day and we will chat soon again..................tra

 

[bodega]

Glad to hear you guys have been seeing them. Now that waterfowl season is over, I'll have to hit the lake a bit more often.

Tell me you opinion please - are you seeing more sign this year or less? I've been out only twice, and I've seen much less than other years.

 

[THE ROMAN ARCHER]

Bodega, the hillsides and camp grounds are really tore up this year for sure, you would think there should be a pig bedded down behind every bush in the park with all the activity, but they know what the deal is this time of year and they are really good a playing hide and seek with us hunters, and now feb. is here there really going to stay low because they think the shot gunner's will be after them, if ya know what mean.

butt if i can give you one tip for sure is ya gotta sniff out those bedding areas that reek with pig and do some sidehilling between the lake and the ridge tops. have a great day Bodega and we will chat soon again.....tra

 

[Kentuck]

Hey TRA, no shotgunners this year.

 

[sancho]

Glad to hear you guys have been seeing them. Now that waterfowl season is over, I'll have to hit the lake a bit more often.

Tell me you opinion please - are you seeing more sign this year or less? I've been out only twice, and I've seen much less than other years.

seriously. i have been hunting alot (relatively), and i am embarrassed to report that i havent even visited the lake. i will go next wed, for sure. work is killing.

 

[THE ROMAN ARCHER]

Kentuck my friend i know that, thats why i said "they think the shotgunner's will be after them" He! He!
Kentuck hope we get a chance to share another hunt in the future that would be great..............tra

 

[Kentuck]

Kentuck my friend i know that, thats why i said "they think the shotgunner's will be after them" He! He!
Kentuck hope we get a chance to share another hunt in the future that would be great..............tra

My bad to poor reading! :bag-on-head:

I'm hoping to go up Friday. Right now they are calling for rain. I hunted there once in the rain, it was no fun as it was more a torrential downpour.

 

[rbrown77]

Great storie. I always wanted to see pictures of the Lake. I bet it's really nice.