posted
Lately I have been messing around with a feeder light, and this was my third night-time sit. Average temps here are 95-97 in the afternoons, so I've been hunting after dark.
I walked to my tripod at about 8 o'clock since dark rolls in about 9 these days. About 845 a big boar hog started walking toward the feeder. He strolled in broadside about 11 yards. My legs were a little shaky. I drew my bow, forgot to pick a spot, and sailed an arrow right over his back. Ugh!
I scrambled down and retreived the arrow. I took some deep breaths and reminded myself that I still had plenty of time.
9 o'clock rolled around, but the feeder light didn't come on. I investigated and walked back to the truck to get new batteries. (Note: It is difficult to remove phillips screws from a feeder light without having a phillips screwdriver).
Back in the tripod with light fully functional, I gazed at the stars and enjoyed the sounds of the night. I saw a shooting star and made a wish (to kill a hog).
A little after 10 a hog began grunting and 2 boars walked out of the shadows 20 yards away. One of these was a big pig, and I made up my mind that he was the one.
I use green LED's for my feeder light, and the light had been on the feeder for 8 nights in a row. They say that pigs don't notice the light, but that big hog wanted nothing to do with it. He would feed around the edge of the light but would never walk straight up to the well-lit area.
Finally he turned broadside at about 10 yards, and I slowly drew. I anchored and picked a spot this time. When I released I saw my lighted-nock streak straight to the pig. With a thunk and crash the pig was gone. The hit appeared too far forward, and the arrow snapped off on the feeder leg, leaving my lighted nock and a big piece of arrow laying on the ground. So much for using the lighted nock to find the hog.
I waited 15 minutes and slowly crept down to investigate the arrow. Unfortunately only 6 inches of arrow had broken off. I figured with only 6 inches of penetration, I would not be recovering this animal. My spirits were pretty low.
After getting my flashlights in order, I took up the trail. After 10 minutes of circling and looking, there it was; BLOOD!
A small splash of about 10 drops of blood was in the dry dirt. About 5 yards further there was a stripe of blood about a foot long. It looked like someone had poured blood on the ground out of a cup.
I followed this outpouring of blood for 20 yards further then found several small pools of blood with fresh dust on top of them. OH NO! I thought he must have bedded down here, and I jumped him up. For a moment I felt stupid. Six feet further lay a big dead hog. He made it about 80 yards.
This guy weighed about 200 pounds and the arrow had entered just above and forward of the elbow. When the autopsy was concluded, the Zwickey Eskimo was stuck in the off-side shoulder. The broadhead passed just above the heart through both lungs.
I began dragging him to the road but soon realized I needed a break. I decided to leave him in the brush and walk to the road. Once on the road I relocated the truck closer. Upon returning for the hog I only had one problem: I couldn't find him. After zig-zagging through the mesquites for 30 minutes I was pretty upset.
How does a man misplace a dead 200 pound hog?
As a final sweep I walked closer to the road and truck. About 30 yards from the road I found him. I had been looking much further off in the brush for 30 minutes.
After getting him loaded into the truck (which required a combination of engineering and brute strength), I chugged a 32 ounce Gatorade.
Tired, sweaty, dirty; It was awesome.
Brett
-------------------- 50# MAX Widow 54# Sapphire Hawk 53# Schafer Silvertip TD 45# Hill Country Bobcat Posts: 605 | From: Seguin, Texas | Registered: Dec 2006
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-------------------- For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. Posts: 1055 | From: Greenville, Mi. | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
Great!! Hunting in the dark adds another level of complexity. congrats ont he shot and recovery!
-------------------- "Our outdoor heritage owes more to the countless Lords who questioned and explored than to Lord Ripon, who simply chose to shoot and tally." E.D.Thomas Jr. Posts: 3130 | From: Waldoboro, Maine | Registered: Mar 2008
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-------------------- If God didn't want man to eat animals, he wouldn't have made them out of meat. Posts: 194 | From: Hawaii | Registered: Feb 2004
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