Got to my stand Thursday PM and had a mama cow and brand new calf about 10 yds from the pen. Ran them off (gently), walked to my ladder, and found this!!! Can you believe the hogs are so disrespectful? Just made me that much more ready to "do" one.
Got all settled in before 8, winds were out of the northeast--perfect! Got semi-settled, took a couple of draws to loosen up and make sure the safety harness was clear, and when I let down from the last draw, dropped the arrow! Oh well, that's why you bring more than one I guess. About 8:30 the feeder spun and I jumped. I got a new hearing aid this morning and I'm really liking it. It has a 3-position switch that allows me to cut out background noise so I tried it--and the loud wind noise was gone!! +1 on the new aid. About 10 minutes later I realize he's standing in front of me, head behind the brush next to the pen, but a little too far to the left for me to shoot (I'm a lefty). Then I began hearing strange noises from the pen--WTH? Then I realized I was hearing the boar crunching corn kernels---+2 on the new hearing aid. I think this is him:
He comes in the pen, a nice 14-yd shot and before I can draw, he's gone--back behind the brush, but still chomping. Comes back into the pen and I'm ready. Peep glowing--check. Pin light on--check. Raise the bow, draw, anchor, aim--and he turns away. Start to let down but he turns back and I touch it off. Pandemonium--lighted nock waving, noise, rocks banging, and then I see him head out to the north minus the lighted nock. Watch him go about 40-45 yds and disappear into the brush. I listen carefully but don't hear him crash. I take a deep breath, set back, pack up my stuff, and get ready to track.
Get down, go to the snapped-off arrow and see no blood beyond where it broke--but got about 9-10 inches of penetration, so I'm hopeful. Walk back to the truck and drive to the feeder. Get my tracking light and start down the trail he departed on--no blood for first 25 yds or so, then I find this:
Keep going, and the blood trail does not improve at all. I'm thinking I didn't get full penetration, and this is drips from the entry wound. The most blood I found was in this shot--
The hog is headed almost straight for the north fence, about 150 yds away, and I figured he was headed back to the bedding area on the next property. After some tough tracking over the next hours, I make about 25 yds progress. You'd think there would be tracks as much rain as we've had--but none. Finally gave up on the blood trail when I was in brush so thick I couldn't see 5 yds and decided to return in the AM. Broke off a limb and laid it on the last blood sign and called it a night.
Got back the next morning, followed the trail to the broken limb, and in the next two hours, made another 50 yds progress, and I'm in sight of the fence. Then the blood just stopped--spent another hour looking and nada. So, went to the fence, checked all the trails and found no blood sign and chalked it up to a poor shot on my part. As I generally shoot high when I'm shooting from an elevated stand, I think I did it again--and didn't get to the middle third or lower in the chest cavity. Oh well--there will be another time. Pulled the camera card and there were 6-8 more hogs under the feeder in the night after I left.
Got all settled in before 8, winds were out of the northeast--perfect! Got semi-settled, took a couple of draws to loosen up and make sure the safety harness was clear, and when I let down from the last draw, dropped the arrow! Oh well, that's why you bring more than one I guess. About 8:30 the feeder spun and I jumped. I got a new hearing aid this morning and I'm really liking it. It has a 3-position switch that allows me to cut out background noise so I tried it--and the loud wind noise was gone!! +1 on the new aid. About 10 minutes later I realize he's standing in front of me, head behind the brush next to the pen, but a little too far to the left for me to shoot (I'm a lefty). Then I began hearing strange noises from the pen--WTH? Then I realized I was hearing the boar crunching corn kernels---+2 on the new hearing aid. I think this is him:
He comes in the pen, a nice 14-yd shot and before I can draw, he's gone--back behind the brush, but still chomping. Comes back into the pen and I'm ready. Peep glowing--check. Pin light on--check. Raise the bow, draw, anchor, aim--and he turns away. Start to let down but he turns back and I touch it off. Pandemonium--lighted nock waving, noise, rocks banging, and then I see him head out to the north minus the lighted nock. Watch him go about 40-45 yds and disappear into the brush. I listen carefully but don't hear him crash. I take a deep breath, set back, pack up my stuff, and get ready to track.
Get down, go to the snapped-off arrow and see no blood beyond where it broke--but got about 9-10 inches of penetration, so I'm hopeful. Walk back to the truck and drive to the feeder. Get my tracking light and start down the trail he departed on--no blood for first 25 yds or so, then I find this:
Keep going, and the blood trail does not improve at all. I'm thinking I didn't get full penetration, and this is drips from the entry wound. The most blood I found was in this shot--
The hog is headed almost straight for the north fence, about 150 yds away, and I figured he was headed back to the bedding area on the next property. After some tough tracking over the next hours, I make about 25 yds progress. You'd think there would be tracks as much rain as we've had--but none. Finally gave up on the blood trail when I was in brush so thick I couldn't see 5 yds and decided to return in the AM. Broke off a limb and laid it on the last blood sign and called it a night.
Got back the next morning, followed the trail to the broken limb, and in the next two hours, made another 50 yds progress, and I'm in sight of the fence. Then the blood just stopped--spent another hour looking and nada. So, went to the fence, checked all the trails and found no blood sign and chalked it up to a poor shot on my part. As I generally shoot high when I'm shooting from an elevated stand, I think I did it again--and didn't get to the middle third or lower in the chest cavity. Oh well--there will be another time. Pulled the camera card and there were 6-8 more hogs under the feeder in the night after I left.
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