California Dreamin'

[mtwarden]

Great hunt and story- congrats to you and your brother- a job well done!

 

[SuperDUECE22]

Congratulations @CaliWoodsman & your brother!!!
Great write up as well!!!
Stories like these are why I'm a member of this forum. I wish somehow i could turn off all the negativity & complaining about gear comparisons and resident's vs NR and just read write ups like this all day long.

 

[bigmoose]

Great write up ! You guys did good ! Bucks like those you and your brother took are very hard to come by... Especially in California.

 

[digger]

Great post and really good camera work,,,, congrats

 

[CaliWoodsman]

Great story!

Might be time to research California.

The bittersweet thing, and why I hesitated to even post this story, is that as great as this hunt was, I wouldn't recommend anyone starting from scratch to draw it. Apply for 20 years to draw it, then hope for a less-than-likely weather event to make it a decent hunt, and even then, most folks end up taking nice 3x3's.

CA genetics for mule deer are whacky - they're almost always missing something. If they're heavy, they're narrow. If they're wide, they're extremely short. If they have big front forks, they have tiny back forks. If they have decent forks all around, they're pencil horned. Tons of 3-point genetics. A big, symmetrical, typical 4x4 like my buck is extremely unusual.

Do your own research obviously, but as a CA resident who hunts here a lot, I wouldn't spend a dime applying in CA if I didn't live here. Take that for what it's worth.

 

[CaliWoodsman]

Congratulations @CaliWoodsman & your brother!!!
Great write up as well!!!
Stories like these are why I'm a member of this forum. I wish somehow i could turn off all the negativity & complaining about gear comparisons and resident's vs NR and just read write ups like this all day long.

Thanks, I appreciate that. The pic-heavy stories are my favorite part as well. Glad I could contribute.

 

[CaliWoodsman]

Great post and really good camera work,,,, congrats

Thanks! I've left the camera at home for a couple years running and was glad I brought it along this time. Sort of reignited my love of capturing the story in photos.

 

[Fatcamp]

The bittersweet thing, and why I hesitated to even post this story, is that as great as this hunt was, I wouldn't recommend anyone starting from scratch to draw it. Apply for 20 years to draw it, then hope for a less-than-likely weather event to make it a decent hunt, and even then, most folks end up taking nice 3x3's.

CA genetics for mule deer are whacky - they're almost always missing something. If they're heavy, they're narrow. If they're wide, they're extremely short. If they have big front forks, they have tiny back forks. If they have decent forks all around, they're pencil horned. Tons of 3-point genetics. A big, symmetrical, typical 4x4 like my buck is extremely unusual.

Do your own research obviously, but as a CA resident who hunts here a lot, I wouldn't spend a dime applying in CA if I didn't live here. Take that for what it's worth.

That was a bit of sarcasm on my part. I've looked into all the states with MD populations, and yes, CA is a challenge. Those areas down in the Mojave are very interesting to me as I already hunt desert areas.

 

[CaliWoodsman]

That was a bit of sarcasm on my part. I've looked into all the states with MD populations, and yes, CA is a challenge. Those areas down in the Mojave are very interesting to me as I already hunt desert areas.

Never hunted down there, but I’ve heard there are some big bucks in the desert down there. Few and far between, though.

 

[JakeSCH]

Photos are incredible, what camera did you bring? Definitely a lot better than any photo's i've taken on a hunt.

Congrats on the successful hunt as well! Great bucks for sure.

 

[CaliWoodsman]

Photos are incredible, what camera did you bring? Definitely a lot better than any photo's i've taken on a hunt.

Congrats on the successful hunt as well! Great bucks for sure.

Nothing too fancy. iPhone 12 Pro on a few of the scenery photos. Nikon D5500 for the rest. Grip n grins and landscape photos using an 18-55mm lens, wildlife shots using a 70-300mm lens.

 

[Paladin]

Great hunt and awesome write up. Congratulations on 2 very nice bucks.

 

[Smithb9841]

Congrats on the bucks and on drawing the tags. Great write up, glad to hear you guys got enough weather to get the deer down. I’ve heard of guys getting that tag and not getting the weather.
Sounds like you guys had a blast and got to share it with your family.

 

[highcountrymuley]

Great hunt with family. Can't wait to do that this year! Backpack hunting with my brother mz season deer.

 

[Sierra Hunter]

Looks like a great bear zone, the west side is a whole different beast. I spend most of my time on the east.

 

[SDHNTR]

Awesome job. Congrats on two great bucks for anywhere, but especially CA. Way to make those points count!

 

[JS.Fletch5]

Fantastic bucks. This gives me hope as a California resident. Tough couple years pursuing deer here.

 

[CaliWoodsman]

Looks like a great bear zone, the west side is a whole different beast. I spend most of my time on the east.

Pretty solid bear population depending on what elevation the food is at. I saw one extremely fresh bear track in the road and that was it.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Fantastic bucks. This gives me hope as a California resident. Tough couple years pursuing deer here.

I hunted the CA sierras for over 20 years before I left. Backpacked for even longer up there. What units are you hunting and where? Send me a PM and I can help you.

 

[Clrems77]

Awesome story and pictures. Congrats and thanks for sharing.