Got up to yet another cold clear early morning. Went out to the same stand I was on the "Day 1" evening. A few turkeys came in, but nothing else. Not even the group of small pigs that were there the earlier night came in. Rick came and got me and we (Nathan and Judd were out that morning as well) went back to the lodge.
We went to breakfast in Johnsonville. Judd, Nathan and Rachel went for supplies while I fed stands with Rick and Will. We fed all the Hemingway stands with no more hog sightings, even small ones.
Everyone met back up at the lodge and after a short break, we headed down to Georgetown. Rick fed a few stands and I was put on the OK Corral. The stand was a tall ladder stand the leaned forward slightly. It was a little tougher to stay comfortable, but the temperature was near perfect. I didn't see anything until around 5:30 when an antlerless deer came bounding through the woods behind me. It went almost directly underneath my stand and out onto the corn pile. This deer was followed by several more. There were a total of at least 10 deer and almost all of them had antlers. One was an OK 8 point and another was a very wide but spindly 6 point. It will probably be a pretty decent deer next year. The deer were all skittish and I was hoping hogs would push them out. The larger deer roamed in and out of the immediate area, but there were deer on the pile until well past shooting light. I could still hear animals on the pile after dark, but I strongly suspect they were still the deer.
After it was dark for about 45 minutes, a Suburban pulls up under the stand. I didn't recognize it and Rick was a bit sick so I didn't hear him say my name. After a few seconds, I figured whoever this was knew where I was so I got out of the stand. It was Rick. Apparently, he was feeding other stands and had hit a tree with his truck. Back at the skinning shed, the damage didn't look too bad, but apparently the radiator had been damaged badly enough that all the coolant was gone.
Nathan had shot a smallish (50 pound) hog. After he was finished with it, we transferred all our stuff into the Suburban and headed into Georgetown for subs.
Went back to the lodge for the end of another day. Still a great day, but with less hogs.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
2012 Pig Hunt Day 2
Got up to another early cold morning. Went out to sit on the "L" field to first wait for hogs, then call for predators. Sat in the stand until about 7:30 with no hog sightings. Started calling for about a half an hour with the mouse distress call to hopefully coax a bobcat out.
Around 8:00 three deer came out. I switched the call to the rabbit distress call. The deer took three steps towards me, stopped and ran back into the woods. I wished I had tried the deer call on the caller to see what the reaction would have been. I was picked up around 9:30 with no other interesting animals coming into the field.
We fed stands around Hemingway for a while and headed back to the lodge. After a short break, we headed down to Georgetown. After feeding several stands, I was seated on the "Green Strip" stand. It was a very nice late afternoon. Sun was out and temperatures were in the 60s. There was a bald eagle flying around which was really neat to see on such a clear day. Not much was happening, but the stand was a big double ladder stand with camo covering so it was very easy to stay comfortable. Around 5:30 a pig came out from behind the corn pile. It ran to the corn pile and started rooting at the corn. I watched it through the scope for a few minutes. After not seeing anything else, I waited for it to turn broad side and head-shot it. It flopped around for a few minutes and dropped to the ground. It seems like all hogs look very small once they are on the ground and this one looked like the size of a cocker spaniel. I saw two other hogs way past the pile over the next half hour. First, a smaller hog came out, then a much larger pig was seen in the same area. I thought about trying to shoot the bigger one, but it was a very long shot and the angle wasn't real good with the rise of the ground. Also, I has just shot one and it is best not to be greedy. After dark, Rick came to get me. He had already gotten Judd who had shot a large sow and with the same shot killed a very small pig.
We went to get Rachel who had also shot a pig. We trailed the shot pig, which had a decent blood trail to the edge of the rice swamp. Nathan went quite a ways into the swamp, while being "coached" by Rick about the alligators, but he never was able to find the pig. We packed up the truck and headed to the skinning shed. My pig was about 120 pound boar - a good eating size pig. Judd's was approximately 150 pounds and the small pig was a couple pounds. After skinning and cleaning the hogs (Judd's wasn't skinned because it was going to the processor), we headed back to Hemingway.
And two more days to hunt still.
Around 8:00 three deer came out. I switched the call to the rabbit distress call. The deer took three steps towards me, stopped and ran back into the woods. I wished I had tried the deer call on the caller to see what the reaction would have been. I was picked up around 9:30 with no other interesting animals coming into the field.
We fed stands around Hemingway for a while and headed back to the lodge. After a short break, we headed down to Georgetown. After feeding several stands, I was seated on the "Green Strip" stand. It was a very nice late afternoon. Sun was out and temperatures were in the 60s. There was a bald eagle flying around which was really neat to see on such a clear day. Not much was happening, but the stand was a big double ladder stand with camo covering so it was very easy to stay comfortable. Around 5:30 a pig came out from behind the corn pile. It ran to the corn pile and started rooting at the corn. I watched it through the scope for a few minutes. After not seeing anything else, I waited for it to turn broad side and head-shot it. It flopped around for a few minutes and dropped to the ground. It seems like all hogs look very small once they are on the ground and this one looked like the size of a cocker spaniel. I saw two other hogs way past the pile over the next half hour. First, a smaller hog came out, then a much larger pig was seen in the same area. I thought about trying to shoot the bigger one, but it was a very long shot and the angle wasn't real good with the rise of the ground. Also, I has just shot one and it is best not to be greedy. After dark, Rick came to get me. He had already gotten Judd who had shot a large sow and with the same shot killed a very small pig.
We went to get Rachel who had also shot a pig. We trailed the shot pig, which had a decent blood trail to the edge of the rice swamp. Nathan went quite a ways into the swamp, while being "coached" by Rick about the alligators, but he never was able to find the pig. We packed up the truck and headed to the skinning shed. My pig was about 120 pound boar - a good eating size pig. Judd's was approximately 150 pounds and the small pig was a couple pounds. After skinning and cleaning the hogs (Judd's wasn't skinned because it was going to the processor), we headed back to Hemingway.
And two more days to hunt still.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
2012 Pig Hunt Day 1
Got up to an early cold morning and got ready. Nathan Judd and I headed out with Rick. Nathan and Judd were hunting hogs, I was after a bobcat.
We dropped Nathan and Judd off and then went to a brushy field on a tall tripod stand. I called using the electronic caller for about 2 hours, more on than off. The caller is enough to make you batty for that long. No predators showed during the time. It was, however, a beautiful morning. Very sunny and rapidly warming. Rick picked me up and showed me where there were bobcats tracks in the road. Maybe.
Judd hadn't gotten anything and Nathan had seen one smallish hog on the stand but it was moving too fast to get lined up on it. We fed the stands around Hemingway. All had been hit hard. The stand I was on during the previous evening had several very small hogs on it.
Went back to the lodge and then down to Georgetown. Ate breakfast at a really good breakfast bar and fed the plantation stands.
Headed back to the lodge for a while and then went out to hunt hogs for the evening around Hemigway. I was on the same stand Nathan was on in the morning. As I was getting into the stand, several (around 10) small hogs were running around the corn pile. They were there for around an hour and approximately 16 turkeys came in for about 10 minutes. They left and a short time later the little hogs came back. Weather was nice; cooling and extremely still. About half an hour before dark, the little hogs returned and stayed there until it was too dark to shoot.
Nobody else had seen anything. We went back to the lodge and ate spaghetti for dinner.
Nice day, but wish someone would have been able to connect with a pig.
We dropped Nathan and Judd off and then went to a brushy field on a tall tripod stand. I called using the electronic caller for about 2 hours, more on than off. The caller is enough to make you batty for that long. No predators showed during the time. It was, however, a beautiful morning. Very sunny and rapidly warming. Rick picked me up and showed me where there were bobcats tracks in the road. Maybe.
Judd hadn't gotten anything and Nathan had seen one smallish hog on the stand but it was moving too fast to get lined up on it. We fed the stands around Hemingway. All had been hit hard. The stand I was on during the previous evening had several very small hogs on it.
Went back to the lodge and then down to Georgetown. Ate breakfast at a really good breakfast bar and fed the plantation stands.
Headed back to the lodge for a while and then went out to hunt hogs for the evening around Hemigway. I was on the same stand Nathan was on in the morning. As I was getting into the stand, several (around 10) small hogs were running around the corn pile. They were there for around an hour and approximately 16 turkeys came in for about 10 minutes. They left and a short time later the little hogs came back. Weather was nice; cooling and extremely still. About half an hour before dark, the little hogs returned and stayed there until it was too dark to shoot.
Nobody else had seen anything. We went back to the lodge and ate spaghetti for dinner.
Nice day, but wish someone would have been able to connect with a pig.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
2012 Hog Hunt Drive Day
Got up at about 3:30 and was out the door by 4:00. My "antique" Magellan Meridian GPS wasn't working. I ran back inside and changed the batteries and was out the door for the second time. Temperature was near freezing and damp as I left. Headed south and got through Cincinnati. I had packed the night before (Friday) instead of Thursday because I worked too late Thursday to get everything done at work before vacation. I always seem to forget something on any trip and an hour south into Kentucky I realized I forgot a camera. I have a decent camera on the phone; I also decided I could stop somewhere if I saw some place.
Continued south through Kentucky. Saw a gorgeous sun rise at the Tennessee Kentucky border. Tried (unsuccessfully) to get a picture on it. There have been many sunrises I've seen while on the way to South Carolina, and I have never gotten a good picture. Since I'm in driving mode, I won't let myself stop.
Headed through Tennessee and into the mountains. Light traffic most of the time except around the cities. Weather was almost perfect especially compared to some previous years when snow and rain were the norm.
All through Tennessee the GPS started to act up. I was listening to the book A Short History of Nearly Everything and I envisioned aliens messing with the GPS system. More likely, the aging GPS is on its last legs. It got annoying after a while; after a few attempts it seemed happier after resetting the SDcard.
Stopped at a Walmart in Tuberville, SC to look at cameras. Decided I didn't want to pay nearly $200 for a camera that I wasn't sure I would like. I'll have the phone. Rick, Nathan and Rachel will also have cameras and the magic of email.
Got to Waccamaw around 3:30pm. It was perfect weather - upper 60s and not a cloud in the sky. Talked to Rick for a little bit and he asked if I wanted to go out hunting. Since it was early enough - I decided I should.
Rick dropped me off on an L-shape food plot. Saw nothing until around 5:30 when five deer came out. The first one was very small, almost hog like. As it got dark, 3 more deer came out but no hogs.
Another guy in camp, Judd, shot at a black boar. We trailed it for a while, but it was not recovered.
Spent a bit of time chatting. In camp are Nathan, Rachel (Virginia) and Judd (Florida).
It was an easy drive down and a bonus day on the stand.
Good enough start...
Continued south through Kentucky. Saw a gorgeous sun rise at the Tennessee Kentucky border. Tried (unsuccessfully) to get a picture on it. There have been many sunrises I've seen while on the way to South Carolina, and I have never gotten a good picture. Since I'm in driving mode, I won't let myself stop.
Headed through Tennessee and into the mountains. Light traffic most of the time except around the cities. Weather was almost perfect especially compared to some previous years when snow and rain were the norm.
All through Tennessee the GPS started to act up. I was listening to the book A Short History of Nearly Everything and I envisioned aliens messing with the GPS system. More likely, the aging GPS is on its last legs. It got annoying after a while; after a few attempts it seemed happier after resetting the SDcard.
Stopped at a Walmart in Tuberville, SC to look at cameras. Decided I didn't want to pay nearly $200 for a camera that I wasn't sure I would like. I'll have the phone. Rick, Nathan and Rachel will also have cameras and the magic of email.
Got to Waccamaw around 3:30pm. It was perfect weather - upper 60s and not a cloud in the sky. Talked to Rick for a little bit and he asked if I wanted to go out hunting. Since it was early enough - I decided I should.
Rick dropped me off on an L-shape food plot. Saw nothing until around 5:30 when five deer came out. The first one was very small, almost hog like. As it got dark, 3 more deer came out but no hogs.
Another guy in camp, Judd, shot at a black boar. We trailed it for a while, but it was not recovered.
Spent a bit of time chatting. In camp are Nathan, Rachel (Virginia) and Judd (Florida).
It was an easy drive down and a bonus day on the stand.
Good enough start...
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