Solana Ranch -What a ride into the New Year

[Guru]

On with my hunt.....

So after a very special morning that included Sky's first bowkilled deer. We prepared for the afternoon hunt...
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My KUIU camo airin' out...
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This would be one very, very memorable hunt for me shared with some great friends. Like I said we prepared for the afternoon, but this one would be about more than I/we could handle!

I was places in a tripod I'd hunted in the past. Last time I was in this tripod I'd killed a hog before first light with the first shot I'd ever taken with my homemade hog light.

The view of the feeder and some critters that are very common to this stand...
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When David dropped me off, he'd said that the hogs had pretty much taken over this spot. So I was ready for them as the sun was getting low.

Until about 4:15 all was pretty quiet. I was just sitting there relaxing, but ready for what I had a feeling would start happening soon.

There is always song birds around the stands messin around in the leaves, but all of a sudden I became aware of a different sound. Not much different, but enough to make me look down behind me...

There, not 10 ft away was a big blackish/red hog!

[sunny hill archer]

Originally posted by Guru:


This would be one very, very memorable hunt for me shared with some great friends. Like I said we prepared for the afternoon, but this one would be about more than I/we could handle!

 

AMEN Brother!!!!!

[cacciatore]

Congrats to all,a lot of fun and good guys.

[pdk25]

Great job on your first trad deer, Skyler.  I'm sure there are many more to come.

[Terry Green]

Originally posted by sunny hill archer:
 

Originally posted by Guru:


This would be one very, very memorable hunt for me shared with some great friends. Like I said we prepared for the afternoon, but this one would be about more than I/we could handle!

 

AMEN Brother!!!!! [/b]

I'll SECOND!!!

[crosseye]

hey solana boys, i have read your accounts for a couple years now...wow, awesome spirit and awesome accounts...this stuff is "primal dreams" and "essential encounters"-worthy stuff...you guys should try to get the mittens/wensels down there to hunt with you and spin their video magic on it...it would be a lifetime treasure fo all of us.

stan

[Guru]

....the hog and the one right behind him had caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting anything to try to get in front of me by walking right under me!

I just froze as they both walked a couple very cautious steps. They knew something was amiss, and just stood for a solid 2-3 minutes tring to figure it out.

My heart was about to pump thru my chest as the tension built!

But the wind would be the deciding factor in this encounter. The whole time they were there it seemed to be just missing them. But.....a slight direction change had then back peddling a couple steps then turning and walking slowly back the way they came....I exhaled!  WOW!!!

But the sun was dipping lower and lower and about a half hour later I heard sticks cracking and leaves crunching again. But this time about 20yds. away and from the sound, I could tell they were coming in!  

I reached for my bow, switched arrows so I had a VPA on the important end, and they appeared about 40yds. away, and closing.  

As soon as I saw them, I could tell it was the same 2 hogs I'd had right under me earlier. One jet black, and one reddish-black. Both good size hogs, both boars!

It was just a few minutes and the reddish one, the cool lookin' one that I really wanted was feeding broadside, about 20yds away.

I picked my spot as I drew the string to anchor and let it rip!

Now for those that don't know, these Solana hogs are wired, just like the deer.  This hog was no doubt reacting to the sound of my shot, and I also might have been a little high with my shot...my arrow looked to miss him as he rolled away from the sound!

I saw it pin-balling off the rocks and stop short against a rock not far away...
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Dang it!  I hate when I miss!!! I should have known better...we'd all taked earlier about the need to aim low on the hogs as well as the deer!

They both ran off about 40yds away and stopped. I nocked another arrow, and hoped they would come back!

The black one that I didn't shoot at, wasn't gonna have any part of it...but...the reddish one that I'd shot at must have been really hungry, he started right back in...

I watched him for a while as he feed around. I wanted him to get as close as possible again. As I waited, I kept reminding myself to "aim low".

Minuted ticked by and soon he was feeding right in the same spot where I'd shot at him not five minutes earlier....

[Terry Green]

More of the Killin Tree before Curt gets to his hunt....

This was Friday afternoon, and my whole day was a wash.  We had a major wind change 30 minutes after daylight instead of around lunch time, and you will see why my afternoon was a hoot.

The this tree is at least 25 feet up, with a lot of steep shooting angles.  With the deer reacting the way they do, you have to aim at the seam of the lower body and the ground below....and they duck right into the shot....


   

     


Glad I wasn't hungry yet....or had an extra $1500 to spend......before it was over, I had 9 eating off of my tree while the deer stood dismayed about 60 yards away pacing around not knowing what to do....

   

[Guru]

...This time as I drew I concentrated right on the body line behind his front leg. If he reacted like he did the first time, the arrow would take him low, and quartering away...

... The arrow hit him perfectly, low and tight to the front leg as he ducked and rolled away!

At impact the arrow knocked him down as it buried in his opposite shoulder and I could see blood gushing in a second!

He regained his feet, and charged off as an impressive amount of blood spewed out of the entrance hole!

He started to faulter withing 15yds, and flipped "end over end" at about 20yds....he laid dead less than 40yds. from me!

Redemption...I missed him once, but not the second time!


As I sat there shaking, I still couldn't believe he'd come right back in after the first arrow!

One out of two...and I was far from done...

[Bonebuster]

Great Story Curt...can`t wait for more.

Terry, I bet you were at least "picking a spot"
on them BIG brown critters that were otherwise off limits.  :D  

Great pics everyone.

[Wannabe1]

I just read this from the first page! Great stuff guys, would love to experience something like that. Sounds like some real memorable times were had by all! Congratulations to everyone.      

[paleFace]

Curt where are the pics of your hog?    

[swp]

How are you liking the KUIU gear Curt?

[Guru]

I re-loaded and sat back and enjoyed the fact that I'd just killed my 3rd Solana hog in three hunts here...then I heard the squealing!

More hogs were coming in!!

This time a sounder of about 15 hogs came in as the light faded. Nothing real big, but I'm not one to be picky when it comes to hogs.

But there was one that caught my eye. Even though there was about every size and color, an "oreo" hog is the one I picked to try for.

It was black the front third, white the middle third, and black the back third...ya know...like an oreo cookie          

They all herked and jerked around as they fed,twisted and turned, jockying around just like hogs always do. Seemingly never standing still at any time more than a split second.

But try as I may, I just couldn't get that oreo hog to come close enough, and clear enough for a shot....and light was fading fast now...

I had my hog light on my bow, but these hogs were a bit far to feel comfortable shooting with the aid of the tiny light.

So I picked a closer hog, a brownish/red looking bugger. As he claered with no hogs right behind, and in front of him....I drew my last VPA tipped, Vapor shaft to anchor, looked low........and shot low!  It looked like I'd shot right under him tight to the front leg....Dang it!

One for three...geez!

It was almost dark now, for whatever reason, I nocked another arrow. This time a big Snuffer160.

I figured by the time I got picked up, more hogs could show up. If they were close, I'd try my hog light.

I quietly packed up some gear in preparation of being picked up soon.

Then I heard walking , but this time off to my right and close!

I looked out and could see the outline of a hog not 6-7yds away, right in front of me!

This was getting crazy now!

As quickly and quietly as I could, I grabbed my bow, turned on my light, and started to draw.

 But in the dark and my haste, I'd forgot about my arrow holder and my "a little too loose nocks", I pulled the arrow right off the string without dislodging it out of the kwik-loc arrow holder!  The hog just stood still....

I fumbled around, got the nock seated back on the string, but as the light hit it and I started to draw, it started to move off.

I mouth grunted, and it stopped quartering away, only ten yards away.  In the red light I saw my arrow come out of the bow, and it looked to take the hog a bit back, but quartering away!

At impact, it squealed and exploded back out the way it had come in. Squealing with every step as the darkness and the cedars swallowed it up...

I'd had about all I could take and just collapsed back into the seat to await my pick-up!!

[Horner]

LOL.......This is great, the suspense is killing me.
Great story telling!!!!          

[NoCams]

Just read three more pages while sitting in front of the fireplace. Now where is the Kettle Corn Popcorn........ This is great guys, keep it coming !!!

[Wile E. Coyote]

As a sidebar and in support of all those who missed game this weekend please remember that being able to place an arrow where you want DOES NOT guarentee a hit on the Solana Ranch.

I was fortunate enough to connect, but know others who are much better shots than me walk away from encounters empty handed and shaking their heads.

If you didn't catch it in his post, Skyler said I shot for her KNEE, not her ELBOW. As Terry would say "You may have to give up the body," and shoot off of the deer. For those who have never done such a thing (that'd be me till this weekend) its difficult to force yourself to shoot off target.  

OK, Now that would be difficult enough, but thats only half the story,as some of the deer and hogs would not duck at all. I know of several encounters where shooting beneath game left the hunters with only a dirty dulled arrow.

Excuses for misses at Solana are unnecessary for those who have hunted it. The game there already come with excuses attached reguardless of the archers skill.

[Jack Guard]

Well Said Wayne.

[EL Mejor]

wow...good story...glad u connected on that second shot...and those shakes that u talk about i guess thats the conformation,that you've been successful...traditional archery i love it...Skylers story was up there too,all u guys tore it up....Congrats to all.

[Jack Guard]

Yes Sir, Friday was quite a day.  

As the others were getting into hogs in the AM i had 4 does and a buck in my stand.  I was sitting in the top of an old oak tree.  It was chilly and a bit windy.  That old tree was swaying and cracking a bit.  Kinda had me worried.  
   

   

 

   

Eventually the wind changed direction and the does ran off to leave a monster buck in my sites.  
   

   

Maybe he was smaller than i thought.  This little guy stayed for about an hour.