Pigs in the SHNF

[Buck-Chaser]

Shot this one a couple of weeks back.[IMG][/IMG]

[raceruss2003]

4th trip out to the woods today. After waiting in the truck for the rain to stop I went on a hunt at about 4:30. I was hoping that after the rain stopped the animals would be roaming around but nothing. Saw where the tornado ripped through the woods west of Lake Conroe. Trees broken, knocked over, and thrown everywhere. Must have been a real show. Got tired of seeing nothing and went over to the east side of the lake to a different spot at right around 7:30 hoping I might see something just before dark. More deer but no hogs, even saw an orange house cat in the woods today...

[Werewolf]

We went out after a good rain a few weeks back to a dry almost old creek bottom. Lots of sign!!! But no shows during the day. It DOES happen but most of the hogs I've seen on game cams happens around 2-4 a.m. Unfortunately. Still great to be out hunting though.

[WhiteBoy]

Went out looking for hogs again yesterday. I got out in the woods a little later than I had hoped at about 7:30 and ended up covering about 9 miles altogether.

I went back to the last spot I went (off 1375) since it had rained and hoped to find some good fresh track to try and follow. I ended up walking up on at least 2 different herds of deer 3 different times. All does, and they were making quite the fuss when they realized I was standing there looking at them. I did manage to come across some "fresh" hog tracks but not as many as before. About 3 miles in I did see a very large set of tracks that led into a big thicket. It looked like they had been going in and out of there a lot. I circled and tried to find a way in but it was super dark and no way in.

Once I gave up on that and was walking out to the truck I did come up on a gray fox. He was walking on top of a downed tree and just cruising a long. Let him go as I was not sure if they are in season or not.

I decided to switch locations and try the area off of 208 since the ATV trails have been closed for several weeks and it has been quiet over there. That was a complete waste of time as I found nothing.

Tried to switch areas one more time. Went to another spot just off 1375 and about 3/4 of a mile in my wife started texting me. I knelt down for a quick rest to text her back and as I was doing so I heard something coming at me through the woods...fast. I drop my phone and spun around and as I did so a coyote jumped out of the woods about 10 yards from me. He saw me and back tracked the way he came and disappeared as quickly as he popped out. That was when I realized there was another one now behind me on the other side. So I once again spun around and he saw me when he was about 20 yards out. He turned and ran about another 30 yards away and stopped to take a look at me but all I could see what his head looking straight on at me. Could not get a good shot on his body.

So that was my excitement for the day. No hog kill, but I will keep trying.

When are you going out again? I would like to go out and tag along for some stalking.....

[HDsHuntingHoney]

hogs

About to go on my first HH. Very encouraging! Thanks.

[raceruss2003]

Hey Whiteboy, sorry for not replying in a while. It has been a while since I last checked this thread. You would be more than welcome to ride out with me and do some stalking. Would be much better than talking to myself the whole time. I usually plan hunting trips on a spur of the moment type deal as I always need to surprise my wife with it to get me out of the house. I will let you know next time I am headed out.

So, as I mentioned above it has been a little while since I last checked this thread. I have been out in the woods several times since and have not shot a hog yet, but yesterday did manage to get a shot off...I will explain in a second.

So I have been hunting two different spots. One I was seeing a lot of hog tracks on. Single hogs or doubles, but no big herds. A few weeks back I wanted to go hunting one morning and there was already a truck parked at the trailhead, so I went to another spot I had scoped out with the help of google earth, although it was just a pretty good guess at the best. The new spot didn't look very good for the first .75 miles, but then I started seeing hog signs...LOTS of them. Big herd tracks and lots of wallows that were really torn up. Big hogs, small hogs they it looked to be a bunch of them. The problem with the new spot though, is it is super thick. At some spots I can barely see 5 yards off the jeep trail I am using to access the forest.

I went out Friday evening with my son and we walked about 2 miles in and didn't see very much fresh signs given the recent rains earlier in the day. There was what looked like one big hog who worked the road in but then dipped into the very thick woods that I had no interest in walking into. It was getting late and about 15 minutes before sundown we were at a crest of a slight hill so we could see about 100 yards in each direction of the trail. I spotted something walking down the trail towards us but I could not identify it. The sun was in my eyes and it was in the shadows. Too short to be a deer, but didn't move like a hog, more like a coyote but then turned and was gone in about 10 seconds. I don't think it saw us, just was turning into the woods. So I was ****** yet once again as coming home with an empty cooler is getting old.

Yesterday morning I went out to the same spot and walked about 2.5 miles into the woods. Didn't really see any fresh tracks at all as it rained the night before. Back tracked to the spot my son and I were on Friday and just picked a spot and waited. Waited there for like an hour and a half. Nothing was coming so I was mad, talking to myself. Should I be walking more, is it better to sit/ambush these hogs, why am I not seeing as many signs, have all the hogs left, can't wait to deer season, it is getting hot, I'm hungry, that is a pretty bird, etc... I decided I had enough at about 1 and started walking out of the woods. In the tight stuff I came around a sharp bend and saw something dark in the woods. I picked up the rifle and looked at it through the scope and it was a pig butt with a little wagging tail. I was stoked! They do exist! 5 seconds after I got a bead on him he randomly turned around, ran out onto the trail and started running the other way...ran about 15 yards and then made a 90 degree left into the woods. As soon as he was out of site, a larger hog appeared at the same spot, but he was already moving pretty fast. Showed me his rear for the same 20 yards and I knew he was going to make the left to follow the other guy. I tried to time up the turn with my shot and when he did I pulled the trigger a second too soon and shot just in front of him. They must have run about 40 yards in and then I heard a pig scream. I was not sure if I hit him or if they were laughing at me. I tracked them for about 60 yards into the woods but did not see any signs of blood anywhere. So I turned back and headed towards the truck. At that point I noticed my nose was dripping blood. The past few weeks I have been shooting my 7.62 SKS with a "loose" trigger, and this trip I switched to a scoped 7MM Rem Mag with a hair trigger (hence the early shot). Apparently I was not ready for the extra recoil in conjunction with the hair trigger and pulled a total rookie move as it came back and popped me in the face. Just glad there were no video cameras around to put me on youtube.

So, with that said, I have another question... What type of firearm are you guys using to hunt these pigs (yes I know this is a bow forum)? With all the rain we have been getting the SKS was my choice as it is a cheap gun and if it got rained on it is not going to kill me. I switched to the 7mm because it is scoped, but it is "a bit" too big for the tight woods and bolt action so a second shot is near impossible. The SKS has a red dot and open sites. I was thinking of bringing my M4 with open sites and Trijicon Tri-Power, but it is heavy. The SKS is a little lighter and has a single point sling and the 7mm was much lighter than both of those with a 2 point sling. I have thought about picking up a 30-30 with scope as they are pretty light guns and relatively cheap, or maybe an AK variant with folding stock as it would be easier to carry for a longer amount of time. Also have considered bringing a shotgun with slugs. Thing I am looking for here is sufficient knockdown power, easy to carry, and won't make my back sore after carrying through the woods all day.

[raceruss2003]

Hey Whiteboy, sorry for not replying in a while. It has been a while since I last checked this thread. You would be more than welcome to ride out with me and do some stalking. Would be much better than talking to myself the whole time. I usually plan hunting trips on a spur of the moment type deal as I always need to surprise my wife with it to get me out of the house. I will let you know next time I am headed out.

So, as I mentioned above it has been a little while since I last checked this thread. I have been out in the woods several times since and have not shot a hog yet, but yesterday did manage to get a shot off...I will explain in a second.

So I have been hunting two different spots. One I was seeing a lot of hog tracks on. Single hogs or doubles, but no big herds. A few weeks back I wanted to go hunting one morning and there was already a truck parked at the trailhead, so I went to another spot I had scoped out with the help of google earth, although it was just a pretty good guess at the best. The new spot didn't look very good for the first .75 miles, but then I started seeing hog signs...LOTS of them. Big herd tracks and lots of wallows that were really torn up. Big hogs, small hogs they it looked to be a bunch of them. The problem with the new spot though, is it is super thick. At some spots I can barely see 5 yards off the jeep trail I am using to access the forest.

I went out Friday evening with my son and we walked about 2 miles in and didn't see very much fresh signs given the recent rains earlier in the day. There was what looked like one big hog who worked the road in but then dipped into the very thick woods that I had no interest in walking into. It was getting late and about 15 minutes before sundown we were at a crest of a slight hill so we could see about 100 yards in each direction of the trail. I spotted something walking down the trail towards us but I could not identify it. The sun was in my eyes and it was in the shadows. Too short to be a deer, but didn't move like a hog, more like a coyote but then turned and was gone in about 10 seconds. I don't think it saw us, just was turning into the woods. So I was ****** yet once again as coming home with an empty cooler is getting old.

Yesterday morning I went out to the same spot and walked about 2.5 miles into the woods. Didn't really see any fresh tracks at all as it rained the night before. Back tracked to the spot my son and I were on Friday and just picked a spot and waited. Waited there for like an hour and a half. Nothing was coming so I was mad, talking to myself. Should I be walking more, is it better to sit/ambush these hogs, why am I not seeing as many signs, have all the hogs left, can't wait to deer season, it is getting hot, I'm hungry, that is a pretty bird, etc... I decided I had enough at about 1 and started walking out of the woods. In the tight stuff I came around a sharp bend and saw something dark in the woods. I picked up the rifle and looked at it through the scope and it was a pig butt with a little wagging tail. I was stoked! They do exist! 5 seconds after I got a bead on him he randomly turned around, ran out onto the trail and started running the other way...ran about 15 yards and then made a 90 degree left into the woods. As soon as he was out of site, a larger hog appeared at the same spot, but he was already moving pretty fast. Showed me his rear for the same 20 yards and I knew he was going to make the left to follow the other guy. I tried to time up the turn with my shot and when he did I pulled the trigger a second too soon and shot just in front of him. They must have run about 40 yards in and then I heard a pig scream. I was not sure if I hit him or if they were laughing at me. I tracked them for about 60 yards into the woods but did not see any signs of blood anywhere. So I turned back and headed towards the truck. At that point I noticed my nose was dripping blood. The past few weeks I have been shooting my 7.62 SKS with a "loose" trigger, and this trip I switched to a scoped 7MM Rem Mag with a hair trigger (hence the early shot). Apparently I was not ready for the extra recoil in conjunction with the hair trigger and pulled a total rookie move as it came back and popped me in the face. Just glad there were no video cameras around to put me on youtube.

So, with that said, I have another question... What type of firearm are you guys using to hunt these pigs (yes I know this is a bow forum)? With all the rain we have been getting the SKS was my choice as it is a cheap gun and if it got rained on it is not going to kill me. I switched to the 7mm because it is scoped, but it is "a bit" too big for the tight woods and bolt action so a second shot is near impossible. The SKS has a red dot and open sites. I was thinking of bringing my M4 with open sites and Trijicon Tri-Power, but it is heavy. The SKS is a little lighter and has a single point sling and the 7mm was much lighter than both of those with a 2 point sling. I have thought about picking up a 30-30 with scope as they are pretty light guns and relatively cheap, or maybe an AK variant with folding stock as it would be easier to carry for a longer amount of time. Also have considered bringing a shotgun with slugs. Thing I am looking for here is sufficient knockdown power, easy to carry, and won't make my back sore after carrying through the woods all day.