Texas or Bust II: Bushwackin' em and Stackin' em!

[tmccall]

Dad and I are leaving out in just a while for Texas.  We will be meeting up with Mike and Jason again for another productive pig hunt.  The story of last years hunt is here:  

 http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=90;t=000110

Sometime Friday we will commence with the story telling, hopefully with lots of hero pics!

This trip is about more than just pigs though, Dad and I will be picking up our new Dryad Bushwackers, featured in this thread:

 http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=045590

Hence the theme for this years hunt: Bushwackin; em and Stackin' em!  Which is exactly what we plan to do!  

Stories and pictures to follow!

[bayoulongbowman]

Im so jelious!!!!  :D    

[wingnut]

WE're back home and safe here in Texas.  Haven't heard from Tony and Tony this am yet.  They were laying up for the night near Little Rock I think.

We'll get the pics downloaded and the story together.  I promise we won't drag the story out any longer then the 4 day hunt.  LOL

Here's the short story:

Pigs, arrows, blood on the ground and a lot of wrapping going on.

Mike

[hormoan]

Wrapping wingnut? You break dance too?  :D  

                Brent

[wingnut]

Brent,

That would be rapping and I really suck at that. LOL

Talked with Tony and they drove straight through to get home.  It will probably be this afternoon before we get our stuff together.

Mike

[tmccall]

What a day!  I'm finally home and starting to download my pics... stories and photos will be forthcoming!

The short version:   We had a great time, enjoyed fantastic company, ate some fabulous grub, killed a few pigs... and got our grubby little paws onto two of the prettiest bows that Mike and Jason have ever made!  (Mines looks best!)  Meanwhile we taught Jason how to wrap, while Mike focused on a new career as a rapping bowyer. (I advised him to stick with making bows, he's better at that.)

BTW did I mention that I now own the most awesome bow that Mike and Jason have EVER made?!?!?!

[Bard1]

well I am really looking forward to hearing how my dryad loving brothers faired!  Sounds like good things happened!  

I don't think Mike could Wrap his way out of a paper bag.   :rolleyes:

[T-Mac]

No, The osage and horn looks best, and I'm not sure that it doesn't shoot best also. Oh, Maybe that just me!

[T-Mac]

Guys the pictures just don't do these bows justice. They are the best looking bows I have seen ever. They shoot sweet they're fast, quite, and shoot where you look. I think I have just gotten the bow of a lifetime. The hunt was great the food fabulous and the drive long!!!

[wingnut]

Ready. . .Set. . .Go!!!

The hunt really started on Monday morning when Jason and I finished packing and got on the road headed south.  The plan is that we go in a day early and scout the place while getting in a day of hunting before the Arkansas flash arrives.  We got delayed and didn't arrive at the ranch til about 2:30 and we headed out to get a couple of stands in place before hunting time at 6:00 pm.

We used two spots that have been good for us in the past and were easy to setup.  Our favorite stand set is the top section of a ladderstand in a thick mesquite with cover from a persimmon tree or two.  We got back to the bunkhouse and changed into the light weight camos for me and Jason put on his new gilly for a first try.

Off we went and settled into the stands fast.  15 minutes latter the ranch manager makes his corn run driving the ranch roads at 25 mph with a trickle feeder running.  He speeds by and leaves 20-30 kernels in the dirt 12 yds in front of me.  That'll do I think as I hear him speed off.  I think he's just a frustrated red neck that wanted to drive Nascar.

Ten minutes later I hear heavy footfalls and an occational crunch of corn coming from my right.  I can only see glimps to the right about 20 yds out.  Lots of cover is a good thing.  Finally I see movement and get my bow in position.  Something is coming and it sounds BIG!!

Then I see it moving gracefully into my window.  Dang a European Red Deer is a lot bigger then a pig at 12 yds.  Two Stags jsut startting to grow antlers walk through the two shooting lanes without seeing me.  This is good!!

An hours passes and I hear pigs stirring somewhere behind me.  And I hear them splashing in a wallow that I know is 50 yds back.  Another 15 minutes pass and the shadows fill the trees as the sun slips over the horizon.  It's pig time and I have a good feeling.  As the light gets dimmer, I hear the tell tale grunt of a pig to my left. . .then another.  I hear there feet on the road and crunching of corn.  My vision to the left is slightly better as I stand to ready the left shooting lane over a persimmon tree.  Then there are five pigs in sight . . four black and one liverspot and about 60# each. . .perfect!  They keep coming and are fighting over who gets the next corn as they come into the shot window.  The lead pig is broadside as I draw and release.  A rush of pigs in all directions and then all is quiet.  I look to the road where they were and my arrow is in the far bank.  Hmmmmm!  I get down and inspect it.  I guess I decided to pass him up at the last moment. . .High!  Dang it!

Jason had much the same luck that evening with pigs presenting and being passed.  I guess we should shoot more and build fewer bows.

Darkness falls without any more pigs and we hit the rack at 11:00.

Mike

[tmccall]

While Mike and Jason were hitting the rack, we were cruising TX trying to decide how far we could go before we stopped for rest at a motel.  We drove until 1:00a.m. that night before finally rocking out.

BTW Have I mentioned yet that I killed Hog-zilla?  I'm getting ahead of myself, but let me tell you that I have killed a TROPHY, possibly a record book hog!

[Littlefeather]

  LOL!

OK, Lets see this zilla thingy-majiggy, record book sumtin or nuther.   :D

[Bible5]

I am listening....ready for more...

[Budog56]

[wingnut]

At 05:00 the alarm goes off and we are up and at em again.  We head to the other end of the ranch for a little of what I call run and gun.  We take a stool and a pair of clippers.  Setup in a hole in the brush and get after the pigs.  I find a nice spot where a dozer pushed up a birm with some brush on top.  It'll do for the morning.  Once again we settle in and wait for action.  First I have three angora goats come from my left.  Those suckers will flat clean up the corn so I waved at them and off they went.  An hour goes by without a sound and I hear the crunch of corn to my right just out of sight.  Sounds kinda piggy to me.  So I get pig small and wait in my hidey hole.  A couple minutes pass and here he comes.  A nice boar about 100#s or so and he's on a mission.  He covers the 40 yds pretty quick and soon goes behind the only tree between him and me.  At about 18 yds he turns broadside and I come to draw again.  Well I wasn't high. . .I was left.  I was really trying to do as Curtis told me and break the shoulder, cept I pulled it a little and slip right in front of him.  Off he goes and for the next hour and a half he would come back into sight and look my way.  Woof a couple of times and turn and leave.  I walked out to Jason's stand as the sun got up high and the critters settled into the brush.

Jason had a nice boar visit him that morning also and slipped and arrow right under him.  So we had two hunts done and no pigs down.

When we got to camp and shot some before I called Tony to check on his progress.  He was at the exit to the ranch road and would arrive in 15 minutes.

They arrived and we said our howdys and unpacked everybody.

Mike

[T-Mac]

We have pulled into a motel6 around midnight monday night only to rise at 6am tuesday morning to continue our trip to the ranch. We arrive at the gate around 9:30 am and head toward the bunkhouse at the ranch hoping for a glimps of a hog. Sure enough a few hundred yards before the bunkhouse about 10 or 12 piggies of varies sizes come out of the woods and into the road. The bows are well out of our reach but the thought was running through our minds to get a shot but that was going to be impossible. We eased into the bunkhouse area after also seeing a couple of black buck deer as well.

[T-Mac]

Mike and Jason had just come in from their morning hunt as we arrived. We exchanged greetings and asked about the morning events only to find that things hadn't gone quite as planned. We unloaded the vehicle and were quite anxious to get a look at the new bows, but we both tried to play it cool as not to show our over eagerness. We new it would only be a matter of time before they would be broke out for our inspection. Finally they were bought out and we were able to get our little hands on those beauties. We shoot them both for a while and just enjoyed the moments as it begin to sink in that they were really our bows. It was and still is an awesome thought.

[T-Mac]

We planned a little for the evening hunt and we set out to put up a few more blinds and stands to hunt out of. Tony and Jason began working on getting some strips and such put on Mike's truck and back glass. They were sharp and were making the truck really become a looker. I am sure Tony will have a few pictures a little later of these. Things were looking good and I hoped that was a sign of things to come that evening.

[tmccall]

I'm back,  I was busy fondling my new bow!  Pics are uploading to Photobucket right now, the photo narrative will commence shortly... Did I mention that I killed a HUGE hog and that I have the prettiest bow in the entire world?

[tmccall]

As dad was saying, after a short night of rest we got back in the saddle and headed into the ranch.  When we pulled off of the highway and started towards the bunkhouse we were greeted with this sight:

 

Things were looking good!