Goodale

YBO

Long Time Member
Messages
3,185
Headed down to Big Pine next week and was hoping to get some basic info. Have the deer migrated from the park yet? Has the rut started in earnest? We will be tenatively staying at the Bristlecone Inn. Any info on that establishment? Would it be wise to bring a quad runner or are the roads ok for truck travel. Anyone have any pics of bucks this year in the unit? Thanks
 
The Bristlecone Inn was nice the last time I stayed there back in 2010 on the way to LV going a different route up thru the mountains where I had never been.

There is a couple of guys here on MM that live up there, hopefully they will chime in on the subject YBO.

Brian
http://i44.tinypic.com/es7x8z.jpg[/IMG]
 
YBO, looks like you will have a great hunt. As far as the bucks go, they are in the rut, are there any big ones? Yea, theres always a few. The roads are rough and rocky, but the heater in the truck is hard to beat. As far as the Bristlecone goes, it just got a new roof and it looks like a great place to stay for your hunt. Good luck on your hunt, a good friend of mine drew the tag also, sounds like it's gunna be fun!

Brownie
 
YBO.....nada this year too damn warm and a large herd from what I was told is and stays on a high ranch in that area. Same ranch I was on back in 1987 and same temps then BUT NO ELK then at all.
Hope to draw for Deer next year in Wyo and give a different area a shot for a good buck.

Brian
http://i44.tinypic.com/es7x8z.jpg[/IMG]
 
Thanks everybody for the input. Kilo...bummer. Nothing better than the taste of Wapiti!
 
I've stayed at the Courthouse Inn and the Williamson Hotel. Both nice. The gal at the Williamson puts out a great breakfast for FREE!! Hunt Onion Valley Road if you need a starting place. I think Nickman may have retired. PC
 
Thanks PC. Nickman has generously been giving me some wonderful info via private message. My only disappointment is that he has a 35" wide buck n his back pocket and I can't convince him to give me the GPS coordinates...I even offered more Ben Franklins and Budwieser than a man could ever want.
 
The stars are lining up to make this years Goodale hunt outstanding! I'd have my sights on a heavy 30"+ bruiser.
Good luck
 
Did this storm bring much snow up that way?

Cancer doesn't discriminate...don't take your good health for granted because it can be gone in a heartbeat. Please go back and read the last line. This time really understand what it says.
 
>Thanks PC. Nickman has generously been
>giving me some wonderful info
>via private message. My only
>disappointment is that he has
>a 35" wide buck n
>his back pocket and I
>can't convince him to give
>me the GPS coordinates...I even
>offered more Ben Franklins and
>Budwieser than a man could
>ever want.

Now that's funny!
 
>>Thanks PC. Nickman has generously been
>>giving me some wonderful info
>>via private message. My only
>>disappointment is that he has
>>a 35" wide buck n
>>his back pocket and I
>>can't convince him to give
>>me the GPS coordinates...I even
>>offered more Ben Franklins and
>>Budwieser than a man could
>>ever want.
>
>Now that's funny!

Did you try hookers and whisky?
 
>>>Thanks PC. Nickman has generously been
>>>giving me some wonderful info
>>>via private message. My only
>>>disappointment is that he has
>>>a 35" wide buck n
>>>his back pocket and I
>>>can't convince him to give
>>>me the GPS coordinates...I even
>>>offered more Ben Franklins and
>>>Budwieser than a man could
>>>ever want.
>>
>>Now that's funny!
>
>Did you try hookers and whisky?
>

lol....or quality hearing aids?????



8346emporor_obama.jpg
 
Let it snow Baby.
Hope this storm drops enough to move them down.
Good Luck'

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]
 
"If you get upset or offended by ANY website forum
post.....especially mine, you need serious
intervention!"

Sitting in the g3 right now. Snow level at 6800 ft. Temp at 39 degrees. Have seen at least 300 deer, 100 of which are bucks.......and this is just one area!
40 of those are "gut piles walkin' "...meaning they are 3x3 or better and REAL close to the road. Probably 3 legit shooters so far.
The temp is high so I expect the snow to melt off back to about the 8000 ft level by Saturday.
There will be serious mud by then also, without freezing temps.
The happiest guy around is the local butcher, who will have 20 deer hanging by 10am. It is going to be an absolute turkey shoot till noon on opening day.
 
Lookout onion valley and division, most of the deer will fall there. Too many people. I was there for Thanksgiving week and there was still a lot of people scouting and taking pics. How are the horns doing for "breakage"? We saw two bucks break right before our eyes on Saturday, one at Oak creek and one at Division.
 
Have come out of high country. The deer are moving have only seen two shooters also but visibility was limited. I agree with Nickman many bucks in the intermediate range will probably be taken early
 
Yes Roy, it is a bad deal. Glad the DFW finally made the case public. It happened around the end of October. The Inyo Co. distict attorney needs to know what a deer is worth in California, last I heard, an open zone tag sold for anywhere between 5 and 15 thousand dollars. That sounds like a good starting point for a fine, if he's convicted. Hopfully, he will be found guilty.
On another point, I sure wish the DFW would cut the number of tags on the Goodale Hunt. Those bucks just dont reach the age that is worthy of a rut hunt. Too bad, I grew up looking at that herd before they ever had the hunt, and it would scare you!A person can't believe the size of the bucks that used to be in that winter range. Oh well, nothing stays the same,the way things are going, we've only got a few years left hunting in Cali anyway.

Thanks, and please post some pictures

Brownie

P.S. sorry for sounding like a cry baby
 
I dont want to sound negative and discourage anyones future plans. Well..after two weeks of hunting I must say that I probably was a bit too confident. Seen over 200 different bucks with three about 30"s wide (3 points) and maybe 8 true 4x4s. A couple of non typicals got my attention but they were young and were not gaggers.

We had spotted quite a few bucks that were eventually harvested by other hunters. Onion Valley was where most of the deer were and where most of the bucks with busted antlers migrated into. I think it was the second day of he hunt that we counted 17 vehicles in that area and witnessed several bucks being shot. Crazy.

Walking up unto some of the benches (Baxter, Shingle, Sawmill, etc) was the best way to find a bigger buck. The benches did have snow on them and saw several bucks strolling thru the nearly belly deep snow. Why they didn't migrate down to the foothills and lava flows was thought provoking. One cool buck had about 10 points on one side and 4 on the other. But he was dimfrautic as hell. He was the only buck worth taking a second look at, but n the long run he was just too young. He could be a HODAD next year providing some cougar doesn't have him for lunch. I only say that because we did see cat tracks in that area and also picked up two deadheads fairly close to each other.

We met some super nice nimrods and their partners who some have posted on this web site. I would say that there may have been a half dozen or less hunters that did not squeeze the trigger due to inferior antler development. This unit offers a great opportunity for a good buck, but very very little chance of harvesting a
monster. I believe the DFW has issued too many tags the last few years. It's all about opportunity and revenue generation for the department. With several thousand applicants that yearly apply for this "trophy hunt" I doubt you'll see a decrease in tags in the near future. Unfortunately, this unit will not be like it was in the past unless they do something unpopular like changing dates or reduce harvest numbers. Just my opinion.

In retrospect I should have burned my Max points on either Doyle or Devils Garden. I believe either of those units could harbor a buck worthy of a bullet in the sweet spot. For those of you who say that I'm a unhappy camper, let me say that I had a great time with family and friends and that I would hunt there again if the stars align correctly. I just wouldn't burn maximum points on this hunt. Congratulations to all the successful hunters.
 
That's about the most accurate post I've seen on the Goodale unit of today. Quite a few deer, just not the quality of bucks people think.

BOHNTR )))---------->
 
"If you get upset or offended by ANY website forum
post.....especially mine, you need serious
intervention!"
Couple of good posts on here this season.

I guess I will stir it up a little, since I have mostly stayed away a year or so.

By now, pretty much everyone has to agree that the quality of deer taken/seen in the Goodale/G3 hunt, has become mediocre at best.

I had a fix for this 15 years ago, when it became apparent to us locals that the system was failing.

The G3 zone is 27 miles long and 7 miles wide?..give or take a few hundred yards. It is a migratory, rut and winter range area. But it is far from being the ONLY area with these 3 combinations, in the Eastern Sierra.

Were the DFW to take the next 30 miles to the south of the Goodale area, and the next two 30 mile strips to the north of the Goodale area, and rotate the "G3" hunt every 2 years, it would allow the bucks in each area 6 years to grow and produce trophy, (30" plus, 5x5 bucks) animals.

This seems way too simple for 6 figure salaried DFW biologists to figure out. Probably take one minimum wage computer programmer a whole week to produce the required paperwork to implement the change.

The deer in these other 3 areas, in most cases, have never seen a hunter. During the regular seasons, they are so far back in the high country, or the parks, that they are almost inaccessible. After the snow falls, and the feed is gone, and the migration to the winter range begins, the only hunt opportunity is the current G3.

The bucks west of Big Pine and west of Olancha, never get hunted. As of right now, there are MANY trophy animals in those areas.

No question, the weather over the past 5 to 7 years has been a huge factor in the quality and quantity of big bucks taken from the G3. This year, while there was snow, it was never cold enough to shut down the food source on the plateau, so the deer simply followed the melting snow back up into the mountains. I would guess that we were short some 2,000 does in the traditional rut areas this season alone.

The bottom line here is, the G3 hunt opportunity, as it was originally designed, no longer exists. At it's inception, DFG had a much more hunter friendly attitude. In todays world, the hunter is only deemed as a revenue source, and providing them with any type of "opportunity" for a better experience, is not even a consideration.

Knowing full well that hunting in California is a political "dead horse", DFW is not about to spend money on updating ANY program that is ultimately going to die.

Obviously, this is just my opinion?..which means nothing, and is subject to derision by my collection of "haters" on this site??whose opinion of me or my ideas causes me zero loss of sleep, or financial stability.
 
Thanks for the update. I didn't know if you had the tag or if someone else did. To bad about the quality of the area. Glad you at least had a great time.
 
I AGREE WITH NICKMAN, THE FISH & GAME FELLAS SHOULD ROTATE THE UNIT FROM YEAR TO YEAR AND HUNT SOME OF THOSE OTHER BUCKS THAT NEVER SEE A HUNTER. GREAT IDEA NICKMAN.......................YD.
 
sad but true Rick n Nick, and par the coarse for Cali even up into Oregon here where thay have taken on the Cali mentality...bummer...
 
I agree with nickman on moving the hunt to different areas on a rotation. I don't believe that's a option from fish and games point of view. They change tag quota's; the number of tags could be reduced next season. The junior zone in Round Valley does not see the number of hunters goodale does and yet the quality of bucks taken was not what i would consider up to the level it has been.There are areas in goodale that are not hunted hard that hold quality bucks every year but the difference is you can't see them from the roads. To many people this hunt has become drive up Onion Valley and Division Creek;spend some time before the season and explore the zone from end to end and from low to high and you will find that there are still quality bucks in the areas that are not the places 90% of the tag holders go
 
Oh Nicky, you just couldn't stay away could you? If rotating between zones was the only option, I might buy it. However, taking this late season hunt and moving it elsewhere only rotates the problem.

G3 is definitely the worst it's ever been right now. Hammering the best bucks for 30 plus years will do that. The main culprit is not of lack management but rather no management. There has been one quota change (from 25 to 35 tags in 2004) since the hunt began in 1980. Don?t forget about the 10 auction tag holders on top of that, who can potentially hunt there each year as well. I would be on board with a dramatic tag cut, a management hunt, or even closing the area temporarily, before ?creating new hunts and rotating between zones.?

Your statements regarding the area north of G3 are bogus. Those deer get more than enough pressure during A17 and X9B. Once on the winter range, there are very few park deer among resident. You claim, ?The bucks west of Big Pine and west of Olancha, never get hunted. As of right now, there are MANY trophy animals in those areas.? That my friend, is complete hogwash. I invite you to come up to Big Pine and show me, in your words, ?a trophy 30? 5x5? class buck. I'll guarantee you can't.
As for south of Lone Pine; if that area were opened for a late season trophy hunt, I'd be willing to bet even more tag holders would be complaining about the lack of quality after the hunt.
 
FYI and not really wanting to be a shlt disturber, we did spot a HODAD about 1.5 miles north of the north boundary line during the G3 season. Too bad, as it was a definate shooter. So, nick is correct in his statement about bucks out of the zone and mulebuck is right on about the DFW not managing. Hey, I great a great idea...let's spend nearly 2 million on one friggin wolf (OR7) so we can study the horny dog. Ridiculous.
 
See, I knew I could drag out a hater or two.

Mulebuck, you might check your zone boundaries. A17 and x9b zones end well east of the areas of summer range, so just exactly, how do those deer, "get enough pressure during A17 and x9b"?..just curious. Check with the packers, who have not seen decent bucks for years, right to the zone boundary line.

Funny, I don't see anywhere that I said "creating a new hunt".

As far as there being "very few park deer among the resident"??suppose you come down here and show me 3,000 does residing here in June??the same as in (a non drought) December. Last Spring, Fish and Game collared 50 does. They documented 2 on the Eastern slope in September. The balance were on the Kern Plateau.

Obviously, you have never been to McMurray Meadows during the winter. Define your "guarantee" that I can't find a 30", 5x5 on that range... this week.

Please note that I responded to your post without the use of terms like bogus, hogwash, or anything else of a derogatory nature. In that vein however, I will point out that your level of enlightenment is, well?..entertaining.

And lastly, your term, "my friend"?is a complete distortion! I doubt you know me at all. Your "Batman-like, secret identity" hides you from public exposure??but you cannot know, how little I care!

See you all next year?..Happy New Year!

"If you get upset or offended by ANY website forum
post.....especially mine, you need serious
intervention!"
 
Don is right there are quality bucks north of the G3 zone does it need to be a 30 inch 5x5 to be quality? There are some great bucks on Steckers bench and across to kid mountain and down in the flats.
Also some nice bucks north in around Baker creek and east of the flat.The problem with the management is that BLM and FS control most of this habitat and its seems to be difficult to get all 3
agencies to get something done.
 
Mulebuck u should know better than poke a bag of shyt that is ready to pop.

Nickman, Mulebuck doesn't need to check with the packers. He's been up there on foot. As have I and a lot of other hunters. Not everyone's ass is glued to the seat of their truck. What he says is spot on.
 
I think their is gonna be a lot of changes for 2015,if any of you have gotten to take that hunter survey you will know what I'm taken about.
 
>
>
> I think
>their is gonna be a
>lot of changes for 2015,if
>any of you have gotten
>to take that hunter survey
>you will know what I'm
>taken about.
talking not taken.
 
Well, i' d like to thank the OP and the rest of you guys that have contributed info, their opinions, and posted up pic's of this great hunt.

We don't get a lot of info from our better "southern" hunts. Not sure why as some of the best threads ever on this Forum, have been about the late hunts down around the G-3 hunt.

Thanks Guys!!!

Joey


"It's all about knowing what your firearms practical limitations are and combining that with your own personal limitations!"
 
Ah, another, hide behind the computer, literary genius, tough guy, heard from.

So Buck, I have lived here all my life and prior to 7 and a half years of military service, and 2 separate trips to hospitals from VietNam, I pretty much grew up and lived in these mountains.

I am an 80% disabled, service connected, Vietnam era Veteran. What war did you get your legs ruined in?

Now I really don't care that you think you and Mulebuck are some special mountain men, but before you resort to name calling and just plain being rude, you might want to think that there are reasons other people do not to have the physical skills that you possess.

In the first place, I posted my OPINION, but you had to use personal attack, rather than simply disagreeing with me and stating your OPINION.

I may be physically challenged, but mentally, you two are seriously impaired!

"If you get upset or offended by ANY website forum
post.....especially mine, you need serious
intervention!"
 
Dang, can't we all just get along?

Lots of sheist flying back and forth. For one, I would like to
see all these critters that Mulebuck and Buck (must be cousins) have seen or know about. If they can hike in and show me half of what Nickman has shown me from the comfort of his suburban seat, I am in! My bet though is that they cant. Or wont.

Now, beating up on a fat, old, half blind and totally deaf twice whacked vet is just plain rude. He never contends that he knows it all, but is not afraid to voice his OPINION. Something that most of us can still learn from. I was always taught to respect my elders, and as far as hunting knowledge and knowledge of his backyard, I am not sure there are any others that can compare. Hear what he has to say, research if for yourself, and then if it is bullsheist, you will know for yourself. In the meantime, cant we just play nice?

As far as these hunts go, I think that hunters believe that because it is a premium hunt like the G3, Doyle, or Devils Garden that their should be 30" bucks around every corner of the road. Fact is that it is hard to kill a great buck from the road, I dont care who you are or what you call yourself on this forum. I have hunted and tagged out in Doyle, and know Devils Garden very well. Neither saw the bucks that they each saw in the winter of '10. That is because these hunts are still weather dependent. In '10 it snowed in Doyle on the Thursday before the season opened and there were bucks everywhere. When you dont get snow in the Petersons and up on the Dixie refuge, you dont get bucks in Doyle. It is just that simple. Devils Garden is different because you can access the whole unit if there is no snow and there are big bucks that live there. The problem is that THEY ARE SMART. Smarter than MOST hunters. Hike into a hell hole and spend time there throughout the seasons and you will see for yourself.

I hope that CA DFW will get their act together, but I dont hold my breath for it. Too many that fill out a hunter survey say they want more opportunity. Well, let me tell you this, our herds cannot take more opportunity if we want to harvest trophy deer. Myself, the only increase in hunter opportunity that I can see as a good thing is on Apprentice hunts as this is the future of our sport. The only way to continue our heritage as hunters. Most of us dads will be the ones taking these young hunters on these hunts, and we will be right there as if we drew the tag ourselves. For me, that is good enough. Is it for you?
If you are lucky, by the time you have grown up, you can afford to hunt in some of the game rich states that really manage game for the hunters, and not just for the $$$$$'s. Great trophy hunts can be found throughout the west, just not in California.
Sad, but true.

Oh well, there is always next year. Happy New Years to all!
Especially to Nickman, but even to Mulebuck and Buck! Passion is a great thing, but dumping on others just shows your ass!

You can't kill one sitting on the couch!
 
Nickman maybe someday I'll run into you in the field and my perception will change but for years I have seen you on MM as a bloviating internet bully ahole who likes to put others down. Guys that have been on the site for some years will know what I'm talking about. The ones that pop in once a year to gather G3 intelligence and worship you won't.
I didn't know you were a 'Nam vet, I thank you for your service.
Were you an Ahole before 'Nam? Just curious.
 
I defy you to show one incident where I "put someone down"?..except in retaliation or in my defense. Don't take it out of context, but show the entire thread.

Regardless, I don't really care.


"Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but they are NOT entitled to their own facts"
 
Thanks for the quick response Don. You don't get too far from that ol? puter do you.

For one minute I need you to stop thinking about the Kern Plateau. I do not need to check any zone boundaries but I appreciate your concern. The area north of G3 contains many more resident deer, that summer in the zone, when compared to the actual resident deer contained within G3 during season. Those deer get plenty of pressure. We don't need to hammer them again with a late season hunt because there are few park deer among them on the winter range. Why do you think Round Valley has gone to chit?

Moving a current late season hunt to an adjacent area, where they've never existed before, IS ?creating a new hunt.? And once it's created, it will likely be permanent. Take G39 for example. In 2004 they created a new hunt and issued 30 tags. Coincidentally that year we had a substantial early snowfall. The deer got hammered. The following year tags were cut to 15, then 5 the year after, where it currently stands. That is proof of making a mistake, followed by attempted remedy.

Define my guarantee? It's just that. I guarantee you can't show me 30? 5x5 off McMurray meadows, ?this week?. Hell I'll give you all the time you need. I'm assuming you're not like some folks that think all the deer around these parts have 24? ears though.

Sorry if words like ?hogwash? and ?bogus? hit a nerve. Pull the string out. I commend you for being so polite but unfortunately for you I can see through all the BS you've burped out over the years. Your forum groupies may eat up your gospel but many of us locals know better.

Sincerely,
Bruce Wayne
 
Was just informed as to your identity. Now I REALLY know this is a useless conversation.

"If you get upset or offended by ANY website forum
post.....especially mine, you need serious
intervention!"
 
Thought I would add my two cents for what its worth. Havent been to G3 in several years, drew in 96 before points system and killed an average 24" four point. Have had friends draw since and most have not even done that well, I think this hunt has gone down hill but dont beleive it was that great years ago. Granted a big buck or two has been killed but for a unit taking the amount of points it does I think most people with high expectations are going to be dissapointed with the quality.
I too used my max points this year on the Doyle muzzy hunt(pics in mule deer section under my Ca muzzy buck) while I am more than happy with the buck I took on this hunt it was the biggest I saw in the unit, most bucks I saw where similar in quality to G3 and most I saw killed were of the same quality. I think most people that have max points are expecting better quality due to the fact that for less points better quality can be found in most other western states.
While Doyle and Devils Garden may have better quality than G3 they still dont have what say colorado can offer as far as quality goes for far less points. Keeping that in mind Im sure there are plenty of hunters who are just happy to be on a hunt where they can see 30 bucks a day and thats what all these hunts are good for.If a 180" plus is the goal I dont think we have a hunt that doesnt take a tremendous amount of luck to accomplish.
Im not trying to be negative I had a blast on my hunts and am happy with the bucks I took, bottom line is we have a few really fun hunts but our quality definately isnt what other western states have, thats probably why so few B&C entries come from here.
 
First off I'll start by saying I've never been to the g3 area and I've never applied for it. All I have to judge it on is based on what ive seen on the interweb and magazines over the years. In all those years, 15-20, ive seen MAYBE 3 bucks taken that I would saw were worth the wait to get that tag. I know not every big buck taken makes its rounds on the internet or magazines. So when I read these threads about how the quality of bucks has gone downhill it makes me wonder, was there a time when a 200" buck was taken every year? Or multiple 30"+ deer taken every year? If so I'd love to see the pics. It seems to me that that area is extremely overrated due to a handful of great bucks taken, and everyone who draws the tag thinks they will tag the buck of a lifetime and when they can't find one the place has gone to hell.
 
It's weird how a suggestion about alternating hunts turned into such a bash. I've been here for 14 years and I have never read where Don talked down to someone or put anyone down. He's been nothing but a helpful hand to anyone who as had a Goodale tag.

The only knock on Don is that I've seen pics of him holding Bud Light. Disgusting...


Cancer doesn't discriminate...don't take your good health for granted because it can be gone in a heartbeat. Please go back and read the last line. This time really understand what it says.
 
GD, back in the late 70's early 80's when I was a kid it was a tradition of ours to go down every thanksgiving and look at the deer up division creek. I wish we had thought of getting pix or video but we never did. There were some crazy good bucks in those days. And we would only look in one small area, from the road. One year, early 80's a friend of my dads drew the goodale tag. There was no scouting, we just drove up division creek (3 trucks) opening morning, parked on the side of the road and broke out the spotting scopes. I remember the guy going from scope to scope passing on bucks until he found the one he wanted. It was a 9x14. Granted, bucks like that weren't plentiful, but it wasn't hard to find a trophy. It certainly is now. 30 plus years of removing the biggest bucks has taken its toll in my opinion. Whether it's an age factor or genetics or a combination of both, I don't know, but the decline in quality is obvious.
 
There's no doubt in my mind that the place place has gone downhill, hell, where in the west is there a place that hasn't gone downhill since the 70s and 80s? Maybe the henries. Ive just never understood the hype of this hunt in my lifetime so I'm just curious how good it used to be. Maybe some pics or statistics on b&c bucks taken back then compared to now.
 
BOHNTR...12 years is probably more like it going back and thinking about the houses I've lived in and doing the math that way.

Cancer doesn't discriminate...don't take your good health for granted because it can be gone in a heartbeat. Please go back and read the last line. This time really understand what it says.
 
I didn't help on the quality front on the deer survey.

I told them "it is what it is" California.

If I want to shoot big deer, I'll go to Colorado or Nevada. I told him my X6A hunt was exactly what I expected, " A few bucks during warm weather and a full moon."

I also told them not to change anything expressing my anger at Colorado changing from 40% NR to 20% NR tags after i was 10 years in. I said something like, "Everybody building points knows what they got themselves into, don't change it on them now."
 

Click-a-Pic ... Details & Bigger Photos

California Guides & Outfitters

Western Wildlife Adventures

Offering some fine Blacktail Deer hunting, Wild Pig hunts, Turkey hunts and Waterfowl hunts.

Urge 2 Hunt

We offer the top private land hunts in all of California, for blacktail deer, elk, pigs, bison and turkeys.

G & J Outdoors

Offering Tule elk hunts for bulls and cows on a 17,000 acre Ranch in Laytonville, CA with 100% success.

Back
Top Bottom