Tactical hog hunting

[Tom]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HzNuuJVTRk

Night hunting with lights even is legal here for hogs, with landowner permission.

 

[Bio Bo]

While deer hunting this past Saturday, I saw a couple of hogs... but no deer. I almost took the 1st one while moving through the brush at about 70 yds; but he turned away and dropped down in a hole on me, and I never saw him again. Appeared to be a real nice young one about 200 lbs and only about 300 yds from my PU. It would have been worth the effort...
The 2nd one I stumbled onto in a plum thicket while slipping around the edges. He busted out of there from about 15 yds away!! A big old Russian boar looking thing about 3' tall at the shoulders... Thank God, he went the other way!! Had he charged me... I would have maybe had time to poke him with my rifle and pull the trigger!! Damn! That thing was fast!! I don't know who scared who... the most!!

 

[Bio Bo]

Got a nice 22" 11-pt. Friday morning chasing a doe and only 200 yds from where I ran into those hogs. I'll post the story when I can post a picture. He was a nice main frame 10-pt. w/ a crab claw on the rt. side... best whitetail so far for me... and on public land in Texas...

 

[Bio Bo]

Got a nice 22" 11-pt. Friday morning chasing a doe and only 200 yds from where I ran into those hogs. I'll post the story when I can post a picture. He was a nice main frame 10-pt. w/ a crab claw on the rt. side... best whitetail so far for me... and on public land in Texas...

I finally got my pictures back of this deer. I didn't have a camera w/ me when I bagged him, but I got these done of the cape later.
I'm a fat old man and I still do things the old fashioned way, most of the time. That's why the delay, and that's why I'm having so much frustration getting these pictures posted. I hope these attachments work... I got the pictures uploaded on an album on my profile and I've been trying to follow the directions on your posts on how to download them, but nothing seems to work. Maybe this will?? If it does, I'll post the rest of the story...

 

[noharleyyet]

Nice public land whitey Bo. Rifle, slug gun, bow?

 

[Bio Bo]

OK, I finally figured out how to get these pictures on a post, I think... But I couldn't get both pictures on the same post, so here's the rest of the story w/ another picture.

As mentioned before in this thread, I had hunted this place on opening day due to the heavy pressure where I had planned to hunt. The 1st weekend of the season they had a doe hunt, and it was way too crowded.
I had hunted here opening day, and I had the 2 hog encounters w/o getting a shot. But I found abundant deer sign, as well, and excellent habitat; but I didn't see a deer that 1st day. However, I made a mental note to hunt this area again... and soon.
After hunting on Monday where I had done most of my preseason scouting w/o any luck, I hunted across the road from this unit on Wed.; passing on 2 spikes (legal) and a 6 pt.(illegal) that afternoon. This area has a 13 in. inside spread minimum or at least one spiked antler, to be legal. I was looking for meat in the freezer, but these spikes were too small, plus I wanted a mature buck as well... so I passed. But I thoroughly enjoyed every encounter since these little bucks were chasing each other around and obviously feeling their juices.
On Fri. AM, 11-13, the weather report said winds from the SSW; so I decided it would be a better approach to hunt where I had been on Mon. However, as I was making the hour drive to the WMA from my home, I noticed some flags indicating wind out of the east. So I decided on the way to hunt this particular unit, because this area would be better approached and hunted than where I was originally planning to hunt that day.
Before daylight I moved into an area that was an edge between an oak grove and a pine thicket surrounded by an old field overgrown by early successional growth. There was a fire lane here that made a 90 degree turn, so I set up where I could see down both lanes yet be hidden somewhat in the brush. It was a good spot as I was facing into a SE wind, and I could look east or south down this firelane.
After the sun had gotten above the horizon, I began grunting and bleating alternately once in awhile. Almost immediately, I had a young doe come within just a few yards looking for some company, I guess. She hung around eating acorns and wondering what I was until some hogs crossed the firelane about 150 yds to the east. I moved to get my scope on them, and she busted me. That was OK, since I was tired of playing w/ her anyway.
The hogs, 6 of them of all ages, crossed w/o giving me an ethical shot. But they stayed in the thicket to my left for quite awhile, since I could hear them grunting every now and then. I even tried to sneak up on them once, but it was so thick out there in that old field that I went back to my spot before I scared everything out of the county while trying to navigate that thicket. Besides, I wanted a deer... and after that close encounter w/ that big boar near here on opening day, I wasn't very anxious for another one like that one.
About 10:30 I hear something coming in the oak grove in front of me. I could tell by the sounds that it was either deer or squirrels chasing... so I got ready. It was thick enough that I couldn't pick anything out of the woods until, all of a sudden, this young doe sailed across the opening to my left and stopped on the other side about 30 yds. away.
So now I'm ready like only another hunter knows, and I see and hear this gray shadow step toward the edge of the opening. He's 30 yds. away too, but on the other side from the doe and still hidden in the thick stuff.
Gradually, I can make out enough horns to tell he's a pretty good deer from his tines and mass, but I can't see how wide he is since he's watching that doe. Then he turns slowly to look in my direction, and I can see he's plenty wide to be legal. So now I have to find a hole in the brush to get a clear shot at a vital area. I can make out the left front shoulder and there's a hole about a foot in diameter through the brush that gives me a clear opening to that shoulder. I'm on my sticks, so I figure it's now or never before he takes off after that doe again... and he's gone.
The bullet dropped him in his tracks, entering behind the shoulder and exiting at the neck V on the other side. Evidently he was half quartering away from me when I shot. Had he not been so close and had I not had that window through the brush, I would not have been able to take such a shot. But, having grown up hunting in this part of the country and in such thickets, you get your shots when you can as long as they're safe and ethical... and I'm sleeping just fine after that one.
When I walked up on him, my comments were " Now what have you done? This one is going to cost you some money..." My taxidermist is the guy who took those pictures w/ my old 35 mm camera...

 

[Bio Bo]

Nice public land whitey Bo. Rifle, slug gun, bow?

30-06, 165 grain BTSP... The same load I've been using for 30 years in that gun. This one was a short shot, but I got a 4 pt. muley in MT in '86 at around 400 yds w/ the same gun and load. I learned a long time ago... if it ain't broke, don't fix it...

 

[SWWA_Ben]

Congrats on a nice buck I like how that story played out I could actually picture it as if I was there.