On Sunday evening the last night of our hunt, Ben and I hunted Jim and Irvs new property.
The weather had started to warm up and the wind had shifted from the north to a more north west breeze. Perfect for a stand I had tweeked for both of us to sit on the south side of a feeder the hogs were hammering! Ben and I had decided before the hunt that any hog over 60lbs would be fair game for Dad and the old Blackwidow, given the limitations of Bens equipment.
We were set up by 3:30, feeder went off at 4:50.
A swarm of mosquitos and 7 raccoons started at about 5:30. Ben sat patiently, taking on the biting insects (no thermocell or bug repellent) and holding back on drilling a coon, so that we might get one last chance on a hog...
2 hours after dark Ben sat motionless, except to carefully crush the dozens of bugs biting any exposed skin. Every once in a while we would hear a distant squeal from hogs battling over the best rooting position in the pastures and broken brush that surrounded us. Ben still holding off on the 7 coons feeding in front of us in the red light of our hog hunting lights.
Ben never complained or asked to leave, he just stared and listened into the darkness...
Then they came, just as I told Ben they would (thank goodness)if we just held on. A large sounder, that Ben would later describe as what sounded like a herd of bulls. Pounding the brush and splashing the water as they came.
A dozen or so hogs, all 80lbs plus, boiled under the feeder as battles erupted for the best feeding position. At one point a large boar in the 200lb range, bit the side of a smaller hog, driving it into the ground and out of its way.
I glanced down at Ben who was still seated, knowing these pigs were out of his weight class.
At that point a calico colored hog went broadside, I hit anchor and let fly...the woodsman drove sharp behind its shoulder the glowing nock marking its path as the hog went just 30 yards piling up in a fit of squeals on camera. The remaining hogs blew out and the Florida night went silent. Ben and I quietly celebrated.
Topic: South Florida Hog Odyssey (Read 713 times)
