Posted: 10/4/2011 11:17:52 AM EDT
First off, sorry if this should be posted in the HTF, just lots more traffic here. Move it if appropriate 
So I am a newb hunter. I did some pig hunting last year with a buddy, but was looking into doing a deer hunt. I've read about the deer tag applications and drawings up and down, over and over, but I simply do not understand how it works. I see there are different zones as well. So if I were to buy a deer tag, how does the drawing work? Do I have to be selected? Or can I simply walk in and buy a tag. Maybe I have ADD or something, but the the CA DFG is confusing. If anyone from Cali or has hunted in Cali can maybe give me a little more information or explain how this all works, or even tell me to read the DFG guidlines again and pay attention, that would be much appreciated. 
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I agree, it can be a little bewildering if it's all new.
Perhaps it would be best to figure out where you can reasonably expect to hunt, determine which zone it's in, and go from there. This site will give some fairly decent zone-by-zone information. http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/deer/cazonemap.html You're pretty late for any 2011 hunting, I would imagine. The drawings for most restricted tags were in June, and deer season is actually closed in much of the state. Here's an A-zone buck killed on the last weekend of the season: 
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I agree, it can be a little bewildering if it's all new. Perhaps it would be best to figure out where you can reasonably expect to hunt, determine which zone it's in, and go from there. This site will give some fairly decent zone-by-zone information. http://www.dfg.ca.gov/wildlife/hunting/deer/cazonemap.html You're pretty late for any 2011 hunting, I would imagine. The drawings for most restricted tags were in June, and deer season is actually closed in much of the state. Here's an A-zone buck killed on the last weekend of the season: http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g216/bhiggins25/IMG_2547Auto.jpg Nice! Was actually going to go to hunting in A zone, up in Laguna Mountain, until yes, figured out the season ended on Sept 25th  Now I will be getting a pig tag, and will head up mid Nov. No seasons for pig, well there is, but it lasts 12 months out of the year  I've been pig hunting up at Laguna once before in May, but we didn't see anything. Oh wait I did, while I was driving home  Funny how that works. DFG ran into us and said best time is August, when water is scarce, they tend to congregate around one watering hole.
ETA: 223 or 308 for a charging pissed off wild boar? 
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ETA: 223 or 308 for a charging pissed off wild boar? Most pigs really aren't as tough or aggressive as a lot of folks would like to pretend they are. It wasn't that long ago in California that a .30-06 or similar was considered the bare-minimum in terms of caliber, and some guys were toting heavy-caliber sidearms for backup. I think they liked the notion of these insanely-fierce and super-tough hogzillas most of all. I've seen wild pigs 'charge' and in virtually all cases it's simply a wounded animal attempting to escape...in the rough direction of the hunter. Even that is a very-rare occasion. Whip them up with dogs and they might get hyper-aggressive, but 99% of the time they're simply - like most game - either minding their own business or trying to get the heck out of the area. Pigs can be taken with the .223. I think there's a guy on here who's killed hundreds with the Hornady 75-grain BTHP, and that's the exact bullet I would use (or a lead-free Barnes TSX). But there's a difference between taking pigs in scenarios where the location, range of the shot, and size of the pigs are known quantities, and 'pig hunting' where there are more unknowns. I would not take a .223 pig hunting for the same reason I would not take one deer hunting. Too many unknowns to risk the animal and the hunt on a marginally-too-small caliber.
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ETA: 223 or 308 for a charging pissed off wild boar? Most pigs really aren't as tough or aggressive as a lot of folks would like to pretend they are. It wasn't that long ago in California that a .30-06 or similar was considered the bare-minimum in terms of caliber, and some guys were toting heavy-caliber sidearms for backup. I think they liked the notion of these insanely-fierce and super-tough hogzillas most of all. I've seen wild pigs 'charge' and in virtually all cases it's simply a wounded animal attempting to escape...in the rough direction of the hunter. Even that is a very-rare occasion. Whip them up with dogs and they might get hyper-aggressive, but 99% of the time they're simply - like most game - either minding their own business or trying to get the heck out of the area. Pigs can be taken with the .223. I think there's a guy on here who's killed hundreds with the Hornady 75-grain BTHP, and that's the exact bullet I would use (or a lead-free Barnes TSX). But there's a difference between taking pigs in scenarios where the location, range of the shot, and size of the pigs are known quantities, and 'pig hunting' where there are more unknowns. I would not take a .223 pig hunting for the same reason I would not take one deer hunting. Too many unknowns to risk the animal and the hunt on a marginally-too-small caliber. Good point, besides I already have that EPA approved crap in .308. Not about to buy another box for 50 bucks in .223. Damn Condors
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Good point, besides I already have that EPA approved crap in .308. Not about to buy another box for 50 bucks in .223. Damn Condors Reload. It's not that difficult, you'll shoot a lot more, and like many of us you'll get to the point where reloading is just as much a hobby as shooting and hunting. Some days, I would just as rather hang out in the garage with the Ipod going and crank out some shells than go shooting or hunting. |
| I was considering starting to reload. Its just the upfront cost that I can't do right now. I heard it can cost a few g's up front. Is this true. I would probably buy 2nd hand. I have buddy who does it. Looks interesting. How do you prove to dfg you are using non lead ammo without a manufactuers label? I thought they want to see that if asked. |