CALIFORNIA IS HUNTING

Having enjoyed hunting all his life, Tim Lockwood, owner of Lockwood Hunting

Services, chose to become a hunting guide as a means to pay his way through college.

However, as his name made its way around the industry and the guiding took off, in

2004 at the age of 23, Lockwood quickly realized what his career path was going to be.

Today, Lockwood Hunting Services specializes in hunting both blacktail deer and wild

pigs in Mendocino, California. Offering two different packages, a client can choose to

participate in either a fully guided hunt, or upgrade to a fully outfitted hunt offering meals

and lodging as well. With private land access, Lockwood Hunting Services is confident

they can put a client on record class animals.

While pig season runs year round in Mendocino California, archery deer season runs 23

days starting the second Saturday in July followed by the general season opening the

second Saturday in August running 44 days. To hunt one of these species, a client

would simply need to purchase an over the counter tag form a sporting goods store.

In March, shortly after attending a sports show in Southern California, Lockwood

realized his hunting season was going to be affected by COVID-19. “We noticed the

attendance was extremely slow and we booked nothing which was extremely rare for

us,” said Lockwood. Following the show, Lockwood received roughly 30 cancelations on

pig hunts throughout the entire spring. “We didn’t have a single hunter from mid March

to early June,” Lockwood said.

Lockwood chose to make the best of a bad situation. With no clients and his daughter

home while schools were shut down, “We just played on the ranch.” said Lockwood.

“We practice falconry and recently picked up a new hawk so we were working with him

and hunted with him everyday then we would go scouting for game just like we were

getting ready for hunts.”

Finally, in late June, Lockwood received a rush of pig hunters. “I think people were

getting stir crazy,” said Lockwood. In reaction to COVID-19, many hotels in the area of

Lockwood Hunting Services had been shut down, however, Lockwood says, “we have

cabins here the hunters can stay in.”

With several weekends still open in October and all of November and September wide

open, Lockwood encourages clients to come down and enjoy prime pig hunting on

private property. For more information, visit www.lockwoodhuntingservices.com