Advice for beginner

[Atruelove86]

Hi everyone my names Alan. I’ve been a member for a bit but never really posted anything. I’m pretty new to hunting. I’m starting to do some scouting for deer here in California ( Sierras )I would just like any advice i can get from you veterans out. I also wanna get more involved on here so I’m just trying to get my name out there. Thanks guys have a good one.

 

[TrinityAlps]

Zone D3-5 I'm guessing?

 

[daiello91]

I also wanna get more involved on here so I’m just trying to get my name out there.

Welcome to one of the most rewarding activities in life.

First, don't focus on trying to make a name for yourself. Hunting isn't college football, you're never going to win a Heisman or get drafted in the first round in hunting. Just enjoy it (not saying don't take pics and share them)!

Second, learn all you can, learn from your mistakes, learn from your successes and always keep pushing. Hunting is mentally and physically challenging. Too many people are their own worst enemy by thinking they can't keep going, they can't be out in the dark, they can't close the gap or climb that hill.

 

[CanyonHunter]

My best advice is to get away from the road hunters or use them to your advantage. Pick a area you can sit and watch even if it’s close to a road. Plenty of deer pass through right behind the road hunters once the truck noise is gone.

 

[406life]

Find a local mentor you can learn from. There really isn't any replacement for experience, whether it be your own, hard won in the mountains, or someone else's that you glean from. The First Hunt Foundation can help pair you up with someone.

 

[InkedElkSlayer]

All Cali jokes aside… The millions of ants swarming the I5 corridor have no idea what sort of country is to the East of them to explore. I have spent some time in CA. Some people where I live think I’m joking, but I would like to try a Columbia Blacktail hunt up north sometime with 1 of my boys.

My advice on starting out and scouting… Pick a spot and go check it out. Grab a set of binos, get a little camping gear and go on some weekend, 2-day/1-night, trips. Just spend time in the woods, spot some deer and observe them. Don’t watch them, observe them, pay attention. I wouldn’t even get too scientific on picking a certain spot. The Sierra’s are bad ass. Go hike a high alpine ridge and see if you can find any deer. Get in shape hiking at elevation, see a bunch of cool country, but sit behind some binos early and late. You can always refine your locations and start narrowing your focus to specific potential hunting spots, but me personally, I wouldn’t overthink it early on. Just spend time in the mountains.
If there is any way to find a friend/mentor, you will learn much much more and start building your knowledge base much quicker.

 

[cjdewese]

Some good advice above. I have been hunting Southern California for 2 seasons now, I would say that time out in nature is your best teaching tool. Where I hunt, water is a premium so I found water and worked my way out from that finding deer sign and looking for food.

I've seen a lot of deer and messed up a lot. Figuring out your wind, how you will get in and out is probably the most important thing that I am learning. So far I have only hunted with a bow so it's a bit more challenging but I have learned a ton already and looking forward to learning more.

Time out in the field is your most valuable teacher IMO though.

If you can find a Mentor that can help that shortens the learning curve some as well I am sure. I am still trying to figure it out myself and have got 1 deer so far, hoping to be better this year.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Fastest way to shorten the learning curve is to do a guided mule deer hunt in the area you want. Let the outfitter know that you are new to hunting and have tons of questions. Nothing beats a real-time Q&A session in the field.

Grab a pair of quality binoculars, tripod, and head. Go out and learn to glass properly. Lots of posts related to how to glass on this site so go do a search for them.

Grab a pair of quality boots and potentially trekking poles. Hit the trails and look for sign. Pay attention to the age. Look at food sources (ready for animals to eat and not ready). Look for water and see if you can identify if it is a permanent source or temporary.

Take a shooting class that focuses on fundamentals. Doesn't matter if you use a rifle, muzzleloader, or archery; taken the appropriate class. Then go practice in field conditions (lots of posts on this as well to research).

Watch videos on how to field dress an animal.

 

[Calbuck]

You don't have to pay big dollars to learn to find deer. Go out on a drive every now and then in the areas you're interested in hunting. Learn the lay of the land, and watch out for animals. Stop and smell the roses. Have a water or soda or beer or whatever and pull your binoculars out. Look around and pay attention. you'll eventually be looking at animals. Pay attention to the details of where they are and maybe why they are in that area. The more you are in the deer woods, the more you'll learn and the more you'll want to be out there.

 

[Atruelove86]

Zone D3-5 I'm guessing?

Yes sir, and D-6

 

[Justin_Tree]

California deer hunting is tough. Persistence and time in the field is a requirement for success. Enjoy your time in the field and be a student of the game. Also, be sure to buy a bear tag!

There are a lot of great western hunting podcasts out there that have great information. I recommend listening to them when you have time. Here are a few that I recommend: Rokcast, eastmans elevated, the hunt backcountry podcast, backcountry hunting podcast.

Good luck

 

[amassi]

Yes sir, and D-6

Avoid the urge to run into the wilderness, 15 years ago the secret got out. Coupled with the hikers, adult onset hunters and low deer density the juice isn't worth the squeeze. This year may be better but the 2 Rona years there were literally hundreds of cars at trailheads, hikers with off leash dogs and Bluetooth speakers et el.

If you see free range cattle or sheep move.

Bright orange Deer you see during scouting/archery won't be there for rifle season.


Get a bear tag- shoot the first solo bear you see.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk

 

[TrinityAlps]

Goodluck!

 

[Bigbenhunter98]

My best advice is to spend time investing in quality resources. Robby Denning’s book about hunting big mule deer, articles on GoHunt, western hunting summit, live feed Q&A sessions. Those are all great ways to learn some of the nuances of hunting without spending years of time to learn by trial and error.

 

[Bigbenhunter98]

Some good advice above. I have been hunting Southern California for 2 seasons now, I would say that time out in nature is your best teaching tool. Where I hunt, water is a premium so I found water and worked my way out from that finding deer sign and looking for food.

I've seen a lot of deer and messed up a lot. Figuring out your wind, how you will get in and out is probably the most important thing that I am learning. So far I have only hunted with a bow so it's a bit more challenging but I have learned a ton already and looking forward to learning more.

Time out in the field is your most valuable teacher IMO though.

If you can find a Mentor that can help that shortens the learning curve some as well I am sure. I am still trying to figure it out myself and have got 1 deer so far, hoping to be better this year.

Cjdewese hit on a great point: learn the wind. Spend time studying how wind behaves in the mountains. Remi Warren talks about wind as a study of fluid dynamics… him and quite a few others have great podcasts on wind

 

[Atruelove86]

Thanks guy I really appreciate the feedback
Sorry I didn’t reply sooner. Been crazy at work. So I’ve gotten out the last two weekends, trying to find where I’ll hunt this year. I did find some bucks finally this last weekend. I’ve learned a lot in these last two weekend. Did a lot glassing amd getting use to being behind glass. I found a few real nice ridges i hiked up and set up camp then had awesome glassing the next morning. I just enjoy being up there so much. Im gonna get up there every chance I get until opening day. If anyone is looking for scouting or hunting partner we just talk. Again thank so for feedback It truly is extremely helpful

 

[Pippitt11]

don't expect to move mountains in your first year...scout as many areas as possible...the greatest areas are going to be the farther off the road you go. The last few years for high country has been hard with SPI closing most ground because of fire danger. They have already closed it for 2022.

 

[kota]

Good for you! There isn’t a substitute for experience, so spend as much time in the field as you can.

This is about the best time of year to find bucks, and glad to hear you found some. They won’t be in exactly the same place during season, and will usually find a place to hole up. Figure out where the thickest cover is in the general area and think about how you might hunt it.

You mentioned glassing, which leads to stalking. When you see a deer, practice planning a route/stalk to the deer. As you are walking back to camp or your car, pick a spot that seems “deery” and make a pretend stalk on it. Things always look different when you are in the midst of it instead of looking at it from afar, so practice picking landmarks and pay attention to how different the wind and terrain are when you get there.

Watch out for skylining yourself using ridges to travel on or glass from. Deer can see you from a long ways away if you are moving out in the open, so drop of the ridge lines and practice using whatever cover is available as you hike around.

Take your time and be deliberate about what you are doing, and good things will surely follow. Good luck!

 

[Atruelove86]

All Cali jokes aside… The millions of ants swarming the I5 corridor have no idea what sort of country is to the East of them to explore. I have spent some time in CA. Some people where I live think I’m joking, but I would like to try a Columbia Blacktail hunt up north sometime with 1 of my boys.

My advice on starting out and scouting… Pick a spot and go check it out. Grab a set of binos, get a little camping gear and go on some weekend, 2-day/1-night, trips. Just spend time in the woods, spot some deer and observe them. Don’t watch them, observe them, pay attention. I wouldn’t even get too scientific on picking a certain spot. The Sierra’s are bad ass. Go hike a high alpine ridge and see if you can find any deer. Get in shape hiking at elevation, see a bunch of cool country, but sit behind some binos early and late. You can always refine your locations and start narrowing your focus to specific potential hunting spots, but me personally, I wouldn’t overthink it early on. Just spend time in the mountains.
If there is any way to find a friend/mentor, you will learn much much more and start building your knowledge base much quicker.

The Sierras truly are badass. The past couple years since I’ve started hunting, I’ve been spending more and more time up in the high country. The views are unbelievable. To the people that refuse to get out there and go on a hike and check that stuff out have no idea what there missing out on. Friends and co- workers that find out I started hunting tell me constantly “ there ain’t no deer in California, if you wanna hunt you need go to a different state”. I think there mostly road hunters. But whether there’s deer out their or not just seeing the stuff I’ve got to see these past couple years was well worth it

 

[Atruelove86]

Thank you guys. Everyone of your replies were truly helpful and and I will follows all your suggestions.