Parrey Cremeans Tangles with California’s Feral Hogs
John E. Phillips 06.10.13
Parrey Cremeans guides for elk, mule deer, blacktail deer, and other species in California, Mexico, and other areas with Just For Hunting, a full-service outfitter (visit www.justforhunting.com, or call 650-888-0808). If you plan to hunt in the far West, make your reservations now to hunt with this Mossy Oak Pro. If you can’t get in for this year’s hunting season, go ahead, and book for next year.
There are few places in the country that don’t have feral hogs. They’ve become a real nuisance for farmers, landowners and wildlife managers. I think feral hogs are the game we harvest most often in our outfitting business. These hogs tend to get pretty big and have big teeth. Our place has different colors and sizes of feral hogs, including spotted, black-and-white, black, red and other colors. We also have a ranch that exclusively contains Russian boars.
All these hogs are black and don’t get quite as big as feral hogs. If you get one weighing 300 pounds, he’s a giant. These Russian boars have longer snouts than feral hogs, have much higher backbones that drop-off more quickly, so they aren’t as round and are built differently, in that they’re more husky-looking up front and leaner in the back.
There are a number of choices for various prices with our Just for Hunting operation. We have several ranches that charge $600 for a two-day hunt. Some charge $350 for a pass permit to hunt trust lands and $250 for the hog you take. Our premium two-day Russian boar hunt is $750. We have about a 97 percent success rate for hogs. If hunters want to come out here and take a pig to eat, we try to find a hog weighing 160 to 220 pounds. If they’re coming out to get a hog with big teeth to mount, we look for a boar with two to two-and-a-half-inch teeth that’s on the prowl for a sow. We’ve had hunters harvest several hogs in the last few years with teeth measuring more than four inches in length.
Hog hunting is getting more and more popular, because in some states, hogs are seen as a nuisance and can be hunted year-round with a variety of weapons. Young hogs can be delicious to eat, and the meat is extremely lean compared to that of domestic hogs. The food the hogs eat is all-natural, making the meat very tasty. Whether you’re a bowhunter, a shotgun hunter, or a rifle hunter, if you want to take hogs in California, try out this opportunity.
In our final article, predators become prey when Cremeans hunts black bears, foxes, bobcats, and coyotes.
John, the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors.
Phillips has been a contributor to many national magazines, has been affiliated with 27 radio stations across Alabama serving as their outdoor editor and wrote for a weekly syndicated column, "Alabama Outdoors," for 38-Alabama newspapers for more than 13 years. Phillips was Outdoor Editor for the "Birmingham Post-Herald" for 24 years. Phillips was also the executive editor for "Great Days Outdoors" magazine for 3 years.
The author of almost 30 books on the outdoors, Phillips is a founding member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) and an active member of the Southeastern Outdoors Press Association (SEOPA). Phillips also is the owner of Night Hawk Publications, a marketing and publishing firm, and president of Creative Concepts, an outdoor consulting group.
Phillips conducts seminars across the nation at colleges in freelance writing, photography and outdoor education besides teaching courses in how to sell what you write to writers' groups. Phillips received his photography training as a still-lab photo specialist for six years in the Air Force. He was the chief photographer for Mannequins, Inc., a Birmingham modeling agency, for 11 years.
While serving as 2nd Vice President of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, Phillips was in charge of all press releases for the organization as well as serving as Chairman of Alabama's Big Buck Contest, which he founded more than 30 years ago. He also was president of the Alabama Sportsman's Association for three years.
Phillips is the recipient of a Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Alabama and the Department of Conservation for his work in the outdoor field. Phillips is vitally interested in the outdoors and travels the nation collecting personalities, stories and how-to information for his articles and features.
EDUCATION: B.S. degree from the University of West Alabama with a physical education major and a history minor.
EXPERIENCE: 10 years parttime and fulltime physical director for YMCAs and 34 years as a freelance writer, photographer, editor, book author, lecturer and daily-content provider for websites. Currently, Phillips is a field editor for Game and Fish Publications; serves on the editorial board of Grandview Media; is a regular contributor to 12 internet magazines and a daily content provider for 8 websites.
WRITING AWARDS: Runnerup - Best Outdoor Magazine Feature - 1981 - SEOPA; Certificate of Merit - Awarded by Alabama's Governor for writings on conservation; Most Outstanding Sports Writer in Southeast - 1983 & 1984; Best Outdoor Feature in Alabama, 1987 - Alabama Sportswriters' Association 3rd Place; Best Book of the Year - 1989 - SEOPA; 2007 - inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame as a Legendary Communicator; 2008 - received award naming him 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the Year from the Crossbow Manufacturers' Association; 2009 - GAMMA Honorable Mention for Consumer/Paid Best Essay for July/August 2008 in "Southern Sporting Journal."
