Christmas Pigs and White Deer

I wish I could say that I was able to shoot both a pig and an the an albino deer, but sadly I was unable and unallowed (sp?) to remove the pig hoard and genetic freak from the lush gated community of Bear Valley Springs in Tehachapi, CA.  All the same it was a pretty game rich holiday for me starting on Thursday when I took a friend and his son out to my local duck hollow for a little evening jump shoot and flyby massacre.

  Boone my pup is still to young and at only 15 weeks he still needs more time so I left him at home and just dreamed of what next year was going to be like when he finally is big enough to come along.  We unloaded tromped in and within an hour 4 ducks were to be had by my friend and his son. I pretty much just wanted them to get some action since I still had a few ducks on ice in the freezer and was in no hurry to replace them right away.  It was fun though for sure, to see them stoked on shooting ducks was good enough for me.  Hmmm Bearded Boar Guiding Service does sound pretty good to me to be honest, but I digress.  Fast forward two hours and I am now dining on 4 pounds of pure Idaho Elk steaks cooked medium rare and oh so tasty.  I am not relinquished to the doldrums of beef, desiring nay hungry for more of the most prestigious and succulent of game meats.

  Fast forward to Saturday morning Christmas eve and I am now in the beautiful Tehachapi, CA where the game is plentiful and the ability to hunt them is not. Either you pay to play or really you just don't play because it is illegal to shoot them on private property (Home Owner Association Rules).  So mix that with a few really wet, but mild winters, lots of food, little hunting pressure and a really big fire nearby that pushed all the game up into the mountains you have a recipe for these fine specimens, and to be honest this is just what is in the front yard of my father-in-laws house.  Notice the Grey thing at the bottom of the right picture, that is my wife interior door panel.  They were driving down the driveway watching that bruiser.

Oh so not fair, but really cool all the same.  Strange thing is that on Saturday I went up to the same spot to look for those "little guys" again and I found something entirely more astounding and truly way more exciting than I could ever imagine.  Pigs!!!! Oh yes my friends, those hairy little beasts have invaded the little mountain community of peace, puppy dogs and flowers and are now rototilling up a front yard near you.  The exact area where that big buck on the left was sitting two days later looked like we were about to plant corn on it.  No more nice green grass, just a war zone of porkic proportions. So with video camera in hand I walked the area and checked out the damage.  It was pretty extensive and honestly quite disturbing.  I mean I have seen it in the field a lot and have watched pigs to it to land, but never right in the midst of houses like this.

  Later that day the kids and I took a drive to check out some houses that are for sale in the area, which is a favorite past time of mine.  House, house, deer, deer, house, more deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeer and wait more rototilled front yards!  I could not believe what I was seeing. So many yard had been destroyed by the pigs it was unbelievable. Earlier in the year a really big fire had pushed them up the mountain side and into the valley. Pardon the pun, but the are really living "High on the hog."  And as we called it quits on the drive we came across this fella, which is just as shocking.


 
 An albino Pacific Black Tail-Muley Hybrid, a genetic defect that only effect 1 out of 250,000 deer.  The thing looked a little manged as you can see from the pic in the top, but really cool all the same. Look at the color difference in the middle pic too, the deer in front of him blend in nicely and he stick out like a sore thumb. Also notice all the deer in the coral behind him on the bottom pic, can anyone say "Bait Pile?"  Probably the only Albino I will see in my lifetime and honestly, he should be glad he does not live on my property, because daddy would have a new mount come next fall if he did.

  So for me a really cool Christmas, ducks, pigs and a ton of deer all of which did not grace my freezer, but was great all the same.  So to all of you, Merry Christmas and hope your days were as great as mine.

Peace be the Journey,

The Bearded Boar

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Waiting on a Pig.... Part 2

  So day two was not much better in terms of success, but what is lacked in meat on the ground it was assurance that my spot and stalk and planning skills were up to par.  The night before I had met a gentleman in the campground who had only seen one doe and because I have become the "Doe Whisperer" I told him to come with me and we'll make it happen for him and I hopefully.

  The set up was great, a open field where deer and pigs are feeding, their beds where they take the mid morning siestas, and us in between the two.  As we walked in I realized that I did not judge the walk in properly, and I paid for it.  I must have missed a large pig by 5 to 10 minutes by the smell of him.  As I realized the sun was starting to come up I broke out into a good trot to try and get to my pinch point.  The day before I have found a hole in the fence of the "Spray Field" that the deer, elk and pigs use to easily move back and forth.  As I stopped to glass the field I was relieved to still see a few pigs in the field, but they were headed out of the field right where I should have been.  And further more, one was staring me down.

  I thought I was far enough into the trees and up the hill so that they could not see me, but I guess I was wrong.  I think what busted me was the wind that was starting to swirl, which ended up being the bane of my existence the rest of the day. He say me, I saw him we both booked it towards where I thought we would meet. Except his 80lbsish frame was slightly faster than mine and he lived to fight another day.  I did meet up with another hunter that was up the hill a ways and he did say that about 5 pigs ran by him in a hurry that morning. So well morning sit was over before it started.  It was another day of learning for me.

  The rest of the day was a mix of stalking deer and elk, but no pigs.  I got within 50yrds of two bull 5x5 elk and a 5x6 bull.  To this day nothing gets my heart racing like an elk.  I have been in bow range of a lot of animals, but it is elk that move and shake me.  Bears or Pigs are a close second though.  I was able to get 15 yards of two doe about lunch time by stalking and playing the wind.  Those ladies near knew I was there or they knew that I wasn't able to shoot them either.  Man I hate being an ethical and honest hunter sometimes, okay I don't I actually love it.

  I walked and walked and walked and when I was done with that I walked some more. I finally decided to do the whitetail thing and just set my self for a spell.  I looked at the lay of the land, found some natural areas where I thought the pigs would enter the field from and there I stayed.  Not much action for a few hours, I did see a guy put a failed stalk on a few deer.  He shot three times and missed three times  Poor guy, I think he lost all his arrows too.  Not the best way to end a hunt, humbled by missing and by not having anymore arrows to shoot.  Funniest thing is that when the deer eventually bumped they come over towards me and I was able to get within bow range of them too.

  So I was in the "Kill Zone" aka 5pm to 730pm, in my spot, camo'd up, nocked up, ready to rock.  When I hear him.  Quiet at first, but I picked up faint sound in the tall grass.  A squirrel in the distance alerted me to him.  And as I positioned myself to shoot, my Bobby the cat peeks his head out.  Man oh man.  Here I am, I'll take that shot, but then I remember I did not buy my bobcat tags this year.  Once again, just one step shy of sealing the deal, but hey it was a beautiful day and a awesome trip.  I am sure the next time I go there hunting deer and elk, all I will see is pigs and be just as frustrated.  Good times and great weekend.

Hope you all enjoyed.

The Bearded Boar

PS.  I have a gear review coming up this week so get ready.

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Waiting on a Pig.... Part 1

  So my weekend started out a little early last week, Friday morning to be exact and with my truck loaded with all the essentials pig sticking supplies I headed north to Forth Hunter Ligget in Paso Robles, CA.  I was a pretty uneventful drive, except for the guy that I met in a gun shop that said he hunts Grizzly Bears in Central California....um ya how's that straight jacket fitting?  Parents still give you coloring books for Christmas?  So after the Funny Farm experience I jumped in my truck and arrived at the base.

 I checked in, gave them my registration form and proceeded to pic a place that I was not planning on hunting, but they said the pigs have been moving in the area.  So, I bit and changed all my plans and headed to town to try and get an internet connection and "scout" the area.  So, my Grande black coffee and I finally settled on a guzzle that had, at least on google, a lot of game trails that lead by it.  Plan intact I headed back to my camp site for Cajun Chicken sandwiches and a Stout.  Then rest.

  Morning came and I was the first one out into the field heading out to my spot.  I arrived at early enough, or so I though.  Still dark I walked down into my little valley and took up a vantage point, problem is that it was too high and too exposed.  I was not even sitting down when "He" strolled up the valley.  When I say he I mean a 250 to 300+lb boar who was now 130 yards below me and I am out in the open.  As he turns to walk up a saddle I tried to slowly get ahead of him and seal the deal.  No such luck, he is big and old for a reason.  I got busted and he exited stage left in a hurry.  No go for that morning hunt.

 I did move down to a better set up where my large and incharge friend was headed too.  After about 10 minutes I did have 6 does and 2 bucks roll through at 30 yards, but alas I did not have a tag for that area.  over the next 5 hours I had road hunter after road hunter drive down the road and try and jump a deer.  With no and highly pitiful results.  Side note here, I despise road hunting.  It is the underbelly of hunting if you can call sitting on your backside while you cover mile after mile of graded roads in pursuit of their targets. But this subject is for another post, the hunt is at hand.

  I did see anymore pigs that morning or afternoon so I left and switched zones to an archery only, no vehicle area.  Tranquility and peace rained through my soul.  So the evening set went well, I jumped deer after deer after deer, it was so frustrating to be spot n' stalking deer to within 15 yards and not being able to shoot.  But it was good experience for me for sure a big moral buster in may ways, I still had the skills to pay the bills.  Good thing is there were pigs sign everywhere.  Rooted up earth under every tree and the pungent smell of pig where ever I went.  That afternoon I probably hiked 6 miles that afternoon before I hit my set for the evening.  A good day a restful day, a "Man I was so close" day, but good all the same.



Well pictures are nice, but I prefer video to tell the story so here you all go.

Waiting on a Pig...

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