If you don't count the rabbit I shot in my back yard earlier this year I got my first bow kill and first big game kill by any means Sunday night.
I didn't see any deer, but had lots of pigs. The first large group came down the old fence line I was near from behind me. All crossed the old line into the thick young growth, giving me no shot opportunity.
While I managed my disappointment another batch of pigs began feeding towards me. A sow and three little pigs (maybe 20# or so). Mom looked much bigger, perhaps 80-100 pounds. They stay on my side of the fence longer and one piglet pauses at ten yards in the earliest possible shot window. I wait for momma and she runs through that gap and heads away.
Now I'm both excited and super bummed. After listening to what sounded like a couple dozen pigs off to my east for about 10 minutes three pigs begin feeding back towards me, against the grain of most of the movement I saw in this location.
Two of three come out into the open and the left pig appears to eye me in my tree stand while the right pig feeds and then spooked from around 10 yards from me to 30. The left pig turns broadside and I draw my bow. I didn't notice that she started moving after I settled my pin for the 8 yard shot. I squeeze off the shot. She squeals and starts to run, and I see a wound higher and farther back than I thought I was shooting for.
I text Slow and Steady that I've hit a pig in the 40 pound range and I think I hit her back and maybe a bit high. I re-ran the shot through my mind and realized she was moving and I started to wonder/hope/think she was turning away and that I may have caught the offside lung.
I climb down and my partner says he's on the way to help with the trail. I find my arrow stuck in the dirt with some blood...and some foul smelling contents indicating I hit more than just a little far back.
S&S shows up before I find any blood and I'm trying to cut her track (I couldn't see her after she covered 15 yards). I finally find some blood around 15 yards from the hit. It's not much, but it is a good red. It takes us a bit to really pick up her trail, but we begin to find much better blood and some bigger patches of blood. We leap frog on her trail as she started going through some brambles and as I'm on my hands and knees marking last blood Slow and Steady finds the next blood and then sees her down.
I'm not happy with the shot, but I am happy to have my first bow kill. Public land DIY pork has been acquired.
Slow and Steady and I combined for two pigs and doe (all firsts for us with archery tackle) this weekend to go with the many miles of boat travel and miles of hiking to access our target area. It wasn't easy and I'm **** glad he and I ended up as hunting partners back 2012 before duck season.
Our Sunday was about 21 hours long to account for the travel, cleaning, all the **** hiking so just one quick LDP was taken.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I didn't see any deer, but had lots of pigs. The first large group came down the old fence line I was near from behind me. All crossed the old line into the thick young growth, giving me no shot opportunity.
While I managed my disappointment another batch of pigs began feeding towards me. A sow and three little pigs (maybe 20# or so). Mom looked much bigger, perhaps 80-100 pounds. They stay on my side of the fence longer and one piglet pauses at ten yards in the earliest possible shot window. I wait for momma and she runs through that gap and heads away.
Now I'm both excited and super bummed. After listening to what sounded like a couple dozen pigs off to my east for about 10 minutes three pigs begin feeding back towards me, against the grain of most of the movement I saw in this location.
Two of three come out into the open and the left pig appears to eye me in my tree stand while the right pig feeds and then spooked from around 10 yards from me to 30. The left pig turns broadside and I draw my bow. I didn't notice that she started moving after I settled my pin for the 8 yard shot. I squeeze off the shot. She squeals and starts to run, and I see a wound higher and farther back than I thought I was shooting for.
I text Slow and Steady that I've hit a pig in the 40 pound range and I think I hit her back and maybe a bit high. I re-ran the shot through my mind and realized she was moving and I started to wonder/hope/think she was turning away and that I may have caught the offside lung.
I climb down and my partner says he's on the way to help with the trail. I find my arrow stuck in the dirt with some blood...and some foul smelling contents indicating I hit more than just a little far back.
S&S shows up before I find any blood and I'm trying to cut her track (I couldn't see her after she covered 15 yards). I finally find some blood around 15 yards from the hit. It's not much, but it is a good red. It takes us a bit to really pick up her trail, but we begin to find much better blood and some bigger patches of blood. We leap frog on her trail as she started going through some brambles and as I'm on my hands and knees marking last blood Slow and Steady finds the next blood and then sees her down.
I'm not happy with the shot, but I am happy to have my first bow kill. Public land DIY pork has been acquired.
Slow and Steady and I combined for two pigs and doe (all firsts for us with archery tackle) this weekend to go with the many miles of boat travel and miles of hiking to access our target area. It wasn't easy and I'm **** glad he and I ended up as hunting partners back 2012 before duck season.
Our Sunday was about 21 hours long to account for the travel, cleaning, all the **** hiking so just one quick LDP was taken.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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