2007 is about to wrap up, moving on never to be seen again.  Like a lot of folks, I find myself reflecting a bit on the past 12 months, the good, the bad, and the porcine. 

It’s been a pretty good year, altogether.  I’ve been busy, but a lot of my time was spent hunting… and that’s always a good thing!  To begin with, 2007 was the innaugural year of the Hog Blog.  February will mark the full year mark, and I’ve gotta say I have enjoyed every minute so far.  The writing and experience has been fun, but even better has been the friends and contacts I’ve made in the process. 

What else did the past year bring?

Well, on the good side, I had some pretty good hunts in 2007.  From hunting exotics in Texas, to time spent at Tejon ranch chasing hogs, to a couple of successful blacktail hunts… heck, even my archery elk hunt in Colorado was a blast, despite the experience with a bad guide.  I ended the year with a freezer full of meat, a bunch of great outdoor experiences, and some new friends.

The past year offered my first taste of professional guiding, a taste I found quite appealing.  I’ll be doing a bit more in 2008, and hope to build on that over the coming years.  I’ve always enjoyed taking other people hunting.  Getting paid for it changes the equation a little bit, but I still like it.  Of course you, the Hog Blog readers, will read more about this experience as it develops.

2007 didn’t really bring too many negatives, at least as far as hunting goes.  There was the Jim Zumbo “assault weapons” fiasco, which really showed the ugly side of the dogpile mentality that is so prevalent on the Internet.  Too see the vitriol and pure hatred heaped on someone who spent a large part of his life as a champion of the outdoors sports… and all over a few poorly considered thoughts…  well, it really didn’t do any favors for my opinion of human nature.  The way it divided the hunting and shooting community set us back a ways as well, and if the antis didn’t learn a few new tricks from that one, they should have.

Of course, the California lead ban is the latest blow to hunters.  While there’s still some hope if hunters will unite and speak up with a cohesive message, the groundwork has been laid.  We are perceived as a politically insignificant group, not only in CA but around the country, and this ban is only the beginning.  Actually, some folks will say it began long ago, but regardless, the line has been drawn.  Will we step up as a community, or will we prove “them” right by not doing anything about it?

2008 promises to be a big year for hunters in CA, and possibly around the U.S.   I’ve got big plans myself, and hope you all do too.  Several hunts are on tap, as well as big events like the SHOT Show, and local hunting expositions.  There’s also going to be some big political opportunities with elections on the horizon.  Maybe I’m over-blowing things, but it seems to me like the coming elections will prove to be a critical turning point for hunters and gun owners alike. 

Anyway, it is with these thoughts in mind that I wait by the door for the entrance of the new year.  I wish you all well in 2008, and thank you for sharing 2007 with me and the Hog Blog.

It’s been said many times, many ways…

But Nat King Cole said it best.

Marian found this before me, so hope she doesn’t mind that I’m putting it here too… but it’s one of my favorite works of Christmas music, even without the beautifully done video.

One of the striking things about this performance and video is that it is intended to remind us of Sarajevo during that time of crisis.  As we prepare to celebrate our Christmas with family and loved ones, spare a thought for the people who won’t have the comfort of hearth and home during this special season. 

Enjoy the music and the visuals.

Here’s one for a Christmas Eve, eve.  Share it with your kids.  It’s one of my all-time favorite versions of Little Drummer Boy, with David Bowie and Bing Crosby. 

I still remember the shock I felt in 1982 when Bowie walked on the set during Bing’s Crosby Family Christmas Special.  Even more shocking was the beautiful rendition of this song by these two very different musicians.  I don’t think anyone knew then that it was bound to be a classic, but when the last piano note died, there was no question. 

OK, enough of that.  Enjoy the song, and Merry Christmas!

I will. 

Or I am.

As you’re reading this, the HogBlog is on holiday.  I’m flying into Charlotte, NC, heading back to Camden, South Carolina for a few days, then heading up the map to North Carolina and my parents’ home in Castle Hayne.  I’ll be eating, drinking, and making a plenty merry Christmas with the folks at home.  I probably won’t be updating the blog during the trip, so I thought I’d go ahead and plant a few posts in advance.

With that in mind, here’s a little Christmas carol for you all to enjoy.  It’s been done many times, and many ways, but I sorta like Dean-o’s version.

While you’re listening, preparing for your own Christmas celebration with family, friends, and loved ones; take a few moments and send some positive thoughts of love and kindness to our men and women in uniform who can’t be home for Christmas this year.  And then offer one more to those who will never come home for Christmas again. 

Sometime in the relatively recent past, I think I wrote that the HogBlog would not spend a lot of time on politics or politically charged issues.  Well, this lead ammo ban needs coverage, so I’m covering it…  but in case you feel like you need a break, here’s a little hog hunting news from around the blogosphere.

My friend, Rex, at the Deer Camp Blog keeps me up to date with breaking local news and oddities out Mississippi way.  He recently posted up about a real nice, 308lb boar taken by his cousin’s son, Dean Lammey, up near Abbeville, MS. 

It’s one heck of a nice hog.  I don’t know why people think they’re ugly.

Rex also reminded me of an unusual beast displayed on the Hunting Pressure blog. 

OK, so it’s just a taxidermist gone a bit mad with spare parts, but still… this could be the evolution of the next big hunting craze!  I can see it now, agressive, man-eating deer! 

I wonder what caliber I should use to hunt these guys? 

Thanks to Holly at NorCal Cazadora for pointing out the following article in the online version of the Bakersfield Californian. 

It’s good to see that there is some intelligent life in the world of newspaper columnists.  Mr. Merlo offers up some great insights in his column, one of which is, what do hunters in the “Condor Zone” (Bakersfield is in Kern County, prime condor habitat) do with the lead ammo we can no longer use? 

Merlo writes: 

So what are we supposed to do with all our old ammo stores? Sell them? To whom? Unless we’re all federally licensed, doing that will be illegal. Dump them? Where? That’s illegal, too.

I think a better way to handle this affront would have been to have hunters simply bury their offal instead of creating a huge bureaucratic snafu like the one we’re headed for in July.

I agree that a voluntary effort is the best way to start this thing off, with a phased approach at some point (to be defined) toward moving away from lead ammo.  I have chastised the CA hunting community in the past for not adopting the voluntary measures that have been recommended by the DFG in previous seasons, so I won’t go into that further.  However, perhaps there’s been a lesson learned now… I have a feeling a voluntary program will work a bit better. 

Mr Merlo goes on to write:

Personally, I’m going to write or call my congressperson and see what can be done to remove this stupid, invasive slur on our hunting and gun-owning heritage. How the powers that be managed to sneak this one past the millions of hunters in our country, including the NRA, is beyond my level of comprehension. The new law just shows the depths that some of our elected officials will stoop to take away Americans’ rights in the name of a prehistoric, dinosaur-era bird that should have been allowed to soar gracefully into extinction a long time ago.

First, I want to echo and re-echo that first sentence.  CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES!  If you haven’t, do so.  If you have, do it again! 

However, the second sentence is just as telling and important.  How did they “sneak” this past the hunters?  That was easy.  Too many hunters are willing to sit back, discuss amongst themselves, and NOT GET INVOLVED.  A lot of folks feel blindsided by this ban, but it shouldn’t be news to any of us. 

It’s a fact we have to face as a community.  Our sport is under assault, and it is becoming more and more politicized… not just here in CA but all over the country.  We can’t sit back and rely on someone else to fight our battles for us. 

We have to get more involved than ever, especially on the local levels.  We have to make ourselves aware, and keep an eye on the well-being of our sport.  When issues come before the legislature, we need to be there to speak up for ourselves.  Heck, we need to get out in front of these things BEFORE they ever get to the legislature. 

And we need to offer alternatives and solutions… not just run interference.  Be loud, but don’t just make noise.  Educate ourselves about the issue, including the opposition’s point of view, and be prepared to challenge the issue with facts and realistic solutions. 

I’ll be travelling for the holidays, and may not be able to post up regularly over the next couple of weeks, but when I return I will post up with my own thoughts about realistic solutions to this ammo ban.  I’d love to generate a real discussion here, and maybe even work out an approach that I can take with me when I correspond with the Fish and Game Commission. 

But don’t wait for me.  If you’ve got something to say about this, say it!  And not just here in the blogosphere… but say it everywhere.  Most importantly, say it to the Fish and Game Commission, to the Governor, and to your elected representatives. 

I haven’t said anything lately, but just a reminder to all California hunters…especially those of you hunting in the “Condor Zone”…  The 2008 Fish and Game Commission Meetings are coming up, starting in February.  Plan to get out there and get vocal. 

You can find the meeting schedule on the CA Fish and Game Website at:  http://www.fgc.ca.gov/2008/2008mtgs.html

Next meeting is February 7 in San Diego.  I won’t be able to make that one, but there are two meetings in Concord, CA on March 6 and 7.  I will try to organize a larger group for at least one of those meetings.  If you’re interested in being part of that, please email me.

More on this as it comes up.  I will continue to beat this drum until they take away my sticks or we make some positive strides.

I’ve long been a major fan of the late Robert Ruark’s writing.  He manages a wit and style that keeps you smiling, and a poignancy and depth that can bring out the soft tears of compassion.

It doesn’t hurt, of course, that Ruark hails from my family home, Wilmington, NC.  But that’s neither here nor there.   Hemingway wasn’t from NC, and I love his writing too.

Anyway, in this blogosphere I’ve had the priviledge of reading a lot of good stuff from a bunch of folks.  Rex’s tall tales at the Deer Camp Blog, and Holly’s thoughtful posts at NorCal Cazadora are perfect examples.

And then there are gems like Albert Rasch.  Check out this recent post, redolent of Ruark at his best, but original all the same.  It’s a five minute journey of the mind… so much more than just a cluster of words. 

In my Internet rambles the other day, I came across this blog site and a post condemning “canned hunting“.  (Edited to add:  I think I actually stumbled onto this from a link on the Hunting Pressure blog, one of the newer additions to my blog roll.)  After adding a couple of my own responses to the comments (I used my own name), I thought that maybe some of you might like to go take a look, and add your own two cents’ worth… pro or con.

Now, if you haven’t jumped out already, I’m only gonna offer a little bit of my own perspective here.  My response in the other blog’s comments repeats much of it. 

Canned hunts as they are so often portrayed in the media and by anti-hunters are a blight on the sport of hunting.  This includes the example described in the aforementioned blog, where a leopard is drugged, then released from a cage for the “hunter” to shoot.  Most states have outlawed this kind of behavior, and rightly so.  Drugging the animal, or shooting it in an enclosure with no chance of escape is pretty ugly stuff… although I must say that it’s no uglier than the commercial slaughterhouse. 

What is unfortunate is the way the term “canned hunt” is so loosely and inaccurately applied to so many hunting practices, from game ranch operations to shoot-em-in-the-cage parties.  

The stereotype is perpetuated by the anti-hunters, because they recognize what a divisive issue it is, even in the hunting community.  Unfortunately, the biggest reason for this division is a lack of knowledge about what game ranches really are, versus what a true “canned hunt” is.  Most hunters, when asked, respond with disdain that they’d never hunt a game ranch, even though they’ve never even seen one… much less tried hunting on one.  The problem is further complicated by this “my ethics are better than your ethics” attitude that seems so rife in our community (crossbow vs vertical bow, inline vs. exposed hammer muzzleloaders, etc.).

Hunters may not all find game ranch hunting to be their cup of tea, but let’s think about this for a moment.  Many of the same folks who decry high fence hunts are still perfectly happy to sit in a tree stand over a food plot or bait pile.  Others will hunt their animals driven by hounds (human or canine) from their beds and hiding places.  Yet others think nothing of sniping from hundreds of yards away as the animal wanders oblivious to their presence. 

So come on, where DO you draw the line? 

Personally, I’ll go on the record that I have no problem with someone who chooses to hunt and kill inside a high-fence operation or game ranch, as long as the animals on the place are treated humanely (not drugged, caged, or artificially stimulated “dangerous game”).  I see ranched game animals as just another form of livestock, and as long as they are humanely despatched, then I don’t see any issue with it. 

At the same time, I don’t put much stock in “trophy” animals taken from enclosures.    Sure, they can be great specimens and worth admiring for that.  I really enjoy the skins and horns from my Texas exotics.  They look cool, and the skins are wonderful coverings on my office chair.  The horns from my blackbuck are a great conversation piece, but I don’t try to fool anyone that taking them was any great feat.

I do take issue with the individuals who artificially inflate their own egos with tales of prowess inside a high fence… well, to me they’re buffoons.  But then, the world is full of buffoons in all fields of endeavour.  What’s one more?