Super Duper Hog info thread

[JC]

Originally posted by trashwood:
I admire ya guys that really get into a hunt.  alas that is not usually one of my qualities.  I take my bow, 2 pig arrows, 2 swamp rabbit arrow, 4 squirrel arrows.  If i find pigs, it's a pig hunt, swamp rabbit, it's a swamp rabbit hunt, IT IS always a squirrel hunt (no closed season in this area, thanks to the pecan growers).

Yer a feller after my own heart rusty...I like to hunt fer what I find  

[swampbiologist]

Rusty must have been a Boy Scout! Be Prepared! I like that attitude too.

[swampbiologist]

Here is what one of my hog hunting outings produced along the Coast after Hurricane Rita. Notice hanging over my left shoulder, a rabbit and the skull from a dead spike that I found. A Good Day because I was There!

[trashwood]

LOL - 'at a boy SwampB.  I like shooting my bow more than hunting and I like eating better than hunting.....so if i can eat it and it's in season...i shoot.

OK here is another myth (imho).  Highfences???

Dean, Lew, and I went to south texas for a pig hunt.  here is the layout.  285 acers highfenced with 80 pigs inside.  oh man like shooting fish in a barrel right??????  Nope We hunt hard for 4 days from light till dark.  I was on one stalk or another from dawn to I could not see.  I was running plumb out of adrenaline.  I'll bet I was on at least one stalk every hour I was hunting.  

Now Lew and Dean are good solid hunters.  Lew can bust blue rock ( i saw it happen time and time again after I missed         ) at 20 yds with regularity.  

We each killed one pig.  not because we would  not have take more.  Our duty was to thin the herd        .

So if ya get a chance to hunt pig in a high fence, don't feel to bad for the pigs.  they are fixing to make a fool out of ya        ....and your hunting buds too.

our concessions to fairchase was that we would not hunt the feeder or water trough.   it was gonna be spot and stalk.  

BTW - Dean's shot was a thing of beauty.  at a running 70#er at 15+ yds clean the boiler room.

After my lessons with 80 pigs in 285 acers of highfence I wonder what the heck all the fuss was about.  All the highfence did was make it more exciting in my opinion.  it did not make it any easier to stalk within 15 yds of a pig.  in fact it might have made it harder.

rusty -never too old to change my mind when I find out the facts- Craine

[Littlefeather]

High Fences?    Wait a minute! I gotta get the strap tightened up on my crash helmet for this one.    


 Spot and stalk : Now here is my favorite of all the favorite methods for pig hunting. This most certainly will be different everywhere you will encounter hogs in the world. It's the terrain that will dictate your approach among wind direction and how you hold your mouth. LOL!

I generally have found most of my spot and stalk pigs in the last year to have occurred in the mid-day time frame. For some odd reason the pigs on one of my lease properties like to enter the wide open grasslands during the mid-day. I've found that short of belly crawling hundred of yards, the best approach has been to make a wide berth around the group till I reach a downwind location. I like to use the cover of dry creeks and tree lines for cover as I make my approach. Once I(if I make it) find a point of good visibility overlooking the hogs but remain hidden, I'll watch to assertain what direction they are feeding. As the pigs move along feeding, I get a better feel of where they are heading. Of course this is only one of a thousand case scenereo's(sp). I'll try and keep gaining a vantage and let em come to me if at all possible. I've been busted more times than I can count by pushing myself to gain ground. I've found that I generally am more successful if I employ just a tad of patience. Now, having said that, let me change the scenereo just a touch.

The hogs are in full view but are moving away and you have no choice but to gain ground or loose them. I'll try and move as their heads are down. There is always a few that are looking around so I try and either move or don't move. There just isn't really much middle ground here. Once I've closed the gap to a reasonalbe distance, I employ the "sneak-n-crawl". I've spoken about this in multiple threads. I drop all my gear, fanny pack, extra clothing, AND my quiver. If it has the possibility of making noise, I leave it behind while I close the final few yards. I generally will take only one arrow at this point. I like to make Ferrett proud sometime too! Here is where you make or break the hunt. Ya gotta move quick before they get your wind but you also have to demonstrate enough control not to bust the hunt yourself. Each stalk will be entirely different than any other. This is where real hunting between two opponents really comes into play. Be prepared to fail if you make this your choice technique. Hogs sences inside of bow range get really sharp. If you do fail, shake it off, smile at the moment you just shared and move along to the next opportunity. If hunting is strictly about fun for you, the spot and stalk is the ultimate ticket to the show. It truly is all about having a great time. CK

[JC]

I'm with you on the high fence Rusty, absolutely the most thrilling stalk of my life, all 6 hours of it, was for this herd boss goat at bugscuffle:  

[beachbowhunter]

Originally posted by Littlefeather:
I'd love to go into her lair, find her bedded and give her an aggressive grunt sequence.

Valentines day was last week!  

[Doc Nock]

Rusty,
I'm so proud! Me remembering sumpin from 2 years?!  :eek:  

Guess that thing about half-heimers is true...long term memory lasts, short don't. Can't remember what/if I had for breakfast!

Great read even 2nd time around. I love that part of the pig cussin mikey...2 times! Blood just a pouring out... "c'mon down here coward and I'll shove that li'l stick poker of  yours where da sun don't shine!" (pig translation)

I think the best image for giggles was you two trying to load that big hog inta th truck!  

[trashwood]

dang that is just beautiful JC.  what a goat  

DocNock if Wingnut was not a strong as an ox "we" would never have got the pig  loaded in one piece     I make sure my hunting buds are stronger, smarter and better hunters than I am before I go with 'em  


I just don't hunt big pigs anymore.  I like them purse size, think ya very much.  I hog tie all four their legs together and throw 'em over I shoulder and carry 'em out like a purse.  About 5 or 6 months after they lose their strips will do just fime for my macho image  

rusty -not too tall, not too smrat, but real tricky- Craine

[Littlefeather]

Sweet Ram JC. Real nice!

Hey, didn't Guru kill a wopper hog a year or two ago. I wonder what the specifics were on location, bedding, hunt techniques, etc. Seems there may be a few things to learn from that big girl too. CK

[JC]

Sorry Curtis, didn't mean to highjack the thread about the ram, just hate people bashin high fences that haven't hunted em. You can tell by the lean in the trees, that is some rough country. And everything there is covered in something spiny or sharp whiterock.

Yeah, Guru did kill one that looked like VW bug was in his avatar I think before that hoss buck. Speak up Curt, school's still in session.

[Littlefeather]

Aww, I don't see a hijack. Nice ram though. I aint touchin the fence issue. Just techniques from here on out Bud. Just techniques!

You guys who've been emailing for info should start asking openly so that everyone gets to learn or share ideas. CK

[Scott G]

Here's a question for you Curtis (I didn't email you with this question, but I was thinking about it).

When I hunt deer in Texas it's from a treestand and I try to do everything I can for scent control.  Clothes washed in no-scent detergent, Scott washed in no-scent soap, rubber boots, probably scent-loc if it isn't too dang hot, scent loc head mask whether it's too hot or not.

When your stalking hogs how much scent control do you personally use?

[knife river]

Thanks to all of you folks!  Curtis, especially!  Never thought much about hog hunting but it just went on my "must-do" list.  

[beyondmyken]

Ok, I am curious how many people use 2 vs 3 blade broadheads and what grains/lb.  I am thinking of some 2020s with 100gr inserts for about 650 grains with Wensel Woodsmans.  Shoots real nice out of my Fedora 54 lbs at 27 1/2 in long bow.  Does anyone carry 2 blade for 200 lbs on up pigs and 3 blade for smaller pigs?

[trashwood]

oh man I like the 2020 a lot. I shoot them out of a bit heavier bow and no extra weightg up front but 'em skinny little shafts will pentatrate.  I used to be sold on two blade but I'm always open to changing my mind. The woodsman did change my mind.  65# recuve and a tuned 2020 with a three balde woodmans is death on a stick  

rusty

[trashwood]

beyondmyken, in fact ya know what,  in this day of carbon arrows and the return to wooden hours the 2020 is likely the best kept secert of pig hunters    of course it want necesarily shoot out of the "my 50# bow will kill anything" bows    but if ya got enough bow to fly it it will be a bane to big pigs

rusty

[tms]

2020s?

Oh man, don't tell me that; I'm going to Texas tomorrow for my first bowhunt , for hogs, with the Wensels.  I decided on 2117s with a 40gr adapter and WW for a 640gr arrow out of my 50# Thunderbird, or my 60# bamboo backed jatoba longbow.  I figure I get somewhere around 34 ft. llbs. of KE, if that means anything.  Mostly, I was just satisfied with the "whump" factor I got on the foam target.

Tom

[mo bo hunter]

does hunting hogs in the swow make it more difficult or make it easy wehave about 4 in. of fresh snow and thougt i would go later

[Littlefeather]

You are gonna be fine with that set-up Tom. Just shoot straight!

 Scent Control Excellent question.
I guess Im going have to talk about this in general terms. I need to do this because most hunters hunt the weekends or a few times a month. For these hunters scent control is quite attainable and is of utmost importance when hunting pigs. The better your scent is controlled or eliminated, the higher your success rates will surely be. Pigs have a sence of smell that is truly incredible. I still do not know how they can smell food a foot under the ground. Remember the fletching on your arrows, your quiver, boots, hat, leather grip on your bow, etc when exercizing scent control. Ah yes, Breth! Breath is your biggest stink factor. Mix some baking soda in a Baby food jar with water. Place it in your daypack and just before you go hunt, shake it up and rinse your mouth very well. This will give you a great deal of control with scent. Using the wind to your advantage is the greatest tool but only works when you yourself are mobile. If you are stand hunting you really can't use the wind but are actually at the winds mercy. I personally try very hard to remain scent free but there is just so much I can do. I hunt 3-4 days a week and it gets really hard to guarantee I'll remain non-smelly. I do hang my camo on the fence when I get in after the hunt so they can air out. I try and not leave my quiver or arrows anywhere that they will soak up lots of smell. This year I experimented extensively with scent control products. I must say they work incredibly well on deer but every  hog that got down-wind still busted me. You can't imagine how many times I got busted for the few measly hogs I did shoot. So, I suppose the answer to the question is to really watch your scent and play the wind when at all possible. CK