Pigs grunting and acorns were dropping!

[Mint]

On January 2nd I met the guys at the Orlando Airport. I had traveled down with my wife a few days earlier to celebrate New Years with some friends down in Miami. I had brought down some hog Italian sausage from last years hogs and it was a big hit at the New Years Party. My wife went to stay with another friend in Orlando and I was ready to hunt.

We arrived at the Kempher Ranch around 1:00pm and got caught up with Hoppy and his family. This was our 14th year of our annual hog hunt. Roger and I were the only ones that hadn't missed a year.

The ranch is a 25,000 acre cattle ranch in the middle of cattle country and is a little bit of old florida paradise.

Well the acorns had been dropping since September and the hogs were sporadic at the feeders and rye fields. I might have to take one with the dogs this trip. Hoppy uses black mouth curs and they bay up the hog so the hunter can move in for a shot. These aren't the catch dogs that grab onto the hog. It's not a sure thing with the bay dogs since the hogs can scatter and get away in the thick stuff.

That evening I decided to take a stand over a feeder. It's called the fun house and is an old child's playhouse.

 

In!!!

     

Bisch

[Mint]

Last year I took a nice boar from the funhouse ( I'll tack that hunt onto this hunt at the end ) Well I got in at 3:30pm and enjoyed my time in the woods. It was hot this year, in the low 80's. As I'm waiting I hear some rustling in the palmetto's and get ready. Only an armadillo feeding through. Several cardinals show up and they are always fun to see. Well 5:00pm comes and goes and since it was still light out I thought maybe the feeders were set for 5:30pm. I hear some more rustling in the palmetto's so I figure I'm right. Well 5:30pm comes and nothing. Text Hoppy and his reply is "crap, should have went off at 5:00pm" Not good, but it's the first day and that's hunting.

[John146]

Yes!!

 

[maineac]

Looking forward to some winter hunting tales!

[23feetupandhappy]

           

[Mint]

Get picked up by hoppy and we check out the feeder. Well it was a new one and his sons filled it up and went to swap out the battery and forgot to put a new one in. The only one that connected among the five of us was my childhood friend Ed. He uses a compound now so I won't post the picture. He took a 200lb sow.

[fnshtr]

   

[Mint]

The next morning I opted to go stalking with Hoppy's guide Jimmy and his 15yr old son "Fish". I told him I didn't want to stalk up to a feeder but would rather head into some oak hammocks looking for pigs.

We drive to a spot that has a few oak hammocks with heavy cover where hogs have been seen crossing the fields. Once it starts getting light we walk down the road and start moving through quietly and listening. Jimmy picks up a hog in the thick stuff rooting. We are about 40 yards away and the stalk is on. Just as we start moving the hog starts walking away. Jimmy says they are going to an oak hammock that is really thick and wet and we back off and try to get ahead of him.

Not in time, we see the hog about thirty yards ahead of us and we need to move quietly or he will hear us. We are staying in pace with him and then he is out in the field walking away. Jimmy holds back while I try to close the distance while he is slowly walking away. I cut the distance down to 30 yards but the boar suddenly puts his head up and I know it is over. Sure enough he got my wind and took off. Nice small boar of 100lbs though. We walk around some more but nothing was seen.

[Mint]

 

[Mint]

That afternoon I hunted another feeder, one that always produces for me called the Red Barrel. As soon as I settled in and started hearing all the acorns dropping I knew I was in trouble. No hogs came in after the feeder went off. I'm sure they were full of acorns gorging themselves in the thick cover around the stand.

[Mint]

The following morning we went out with the dogs. Not my favorite way of hunting, I'd rather spot and stalk or stand hunt but I do love watching the dogs hunt. To me they are so amazing and you can see they love to hunt even more than we do. We went to an oak hammock that Hoppy thought might hold pigs and sure enough we found a group. I let the other guys go first since I was happy just watching. After hunting a bunch of spots we all had a hog in the truck. Now everybody at least would be going home with some meat. I won't post the group pick since two of our group use compounds.

[Mint]

For the evening hunt I told Hoppy I'd like to hunt the new pine stand. He pointed it out to my on my way to the Fun House stand the day before. The Pine Stand is a high ladder stand in the middle of a huge palmetto field. There were two pine trees by the feeder but unfortunately the one with the stand was about twenty yards away. Fine for deer but I like a closer shot on hogs. I've been shooting really well so I decided to sit the stand and wait for the hogs to come on my side of the feeder to make it an eighteen yard shot.

 

[South MS Bowhunter]

   

[Buckeye1977]

[Soonerlongbow]

Oh yeah!!!

[Cyclic-Rivers]

Sounds like a nice place and y'all had a great time. I'm tuned in for the rest.

[David Mitchell]

Mint, did you like the fun house at the old "crap hole" stand?  The pictures bring back a lot of good memories and get me excited to get back there next month.  I have been hunting at Hoppy's about as long as you have been--probably 14 trips for myself, my son, and some buddies. Glad you posted and love the pics.    

[Mint]

I'm sitting in the high ladder stand looking over the area and it looks like a sea of green palmettos. In front of me about 100 yard outs there is a ridge of 8 foot high bushes, looks like what they call pepper bushes. I figure that's where the hogs are bedded. About 700 yards away is the funhouse stand and the woods. The rest is just palmettos and brushy overgrown fields.

I'm enjoying my sit just taking it all in. Thinking of my friend Richie that passed last year on this trip of cardiac arrest. I've finally come to terms with his sudden loss. He died like a hunter would want to go, after shooting a trophy wild boar with a perfect shot. Miss you buddy!

The feeder goes off and I snap back into hunting mode. After about a half hour I see some rustling in the palmettos about 60 yards out and hear some movement. Then it looks like it splits in two, one coming straight in and another circling around to my right. Now the wind is blowing over my right shoulder so I'm a little concerned with the hog or group of hogs circling to my right.

Well the hog in front breaks cover and stands at the opening and checks out the situation. Looks like a 125lb sow. The other hog stops circling before it hits my scent and starts coming in. There was a break in the palmettos and I see that it is a bigger grey hog. Soon they are both feeding on the corn.

After a couple of false draws since as you know hogs at a feeder never stay still the big grey hog gives me a broad side shot slightly turning away and I make the shot.

The arrow hits the hog and it spins in a circle breaking the shaft. And then busts in the palmettos. I hear hogs running all the way back to the pepper trees. I'm thinking to myself was that a perfect shot or did I hit too low and get the offside leg just skimming the hogs brisket.

I text Hoppy that I hit a hog and I'm not sure if I hit it too low. I sneak down and the picture above is what greets me. Blood on the shaft and blood all over the sand. I text Hoppy not to worry the hog is dead and to take his time coming to pick me up. I look into the palmettos a foot or two and the blood is everywhere. I get all my gear ready and about 15 minutes later Jimmy and Fish show up. Fish loves to blood trail so I let him take the lead. He remarks blood is everywhere and then ten yards in "Here she is"

 

 
 

Way to go!

Congrats on your pig!

Bisch