Alternate title- Skunked…
Third title- That’s why it’s called HUNTING, not KILLING…
AD was kind enough to invite me to participate in the 2011 Hog Hunt down in Texas, which I truly appreciated. In attendance were Ambulance Driver, TOTW, JB and the Limey (not a blogger). Having not met JB nor the Limey, I wasn’t sure how that was going to work out, but they are both outstanding folks 🙂
Anyhoo… Murph posted a comment on the previous post that kinda says it all…
Karmadillo…
It jumped up and bit us… Turns out that was the ONLY damn thing shot the entire weekend (other than paper while sighting in)…
The weather was a prime factor, going from ‘chilly’ and windy, to HOT (81 deg) and windy (and gusty). What this meant was unless we wanted to hunt between oh, about 0200 and 0400 when the wind laid down for a bit, it was fat chance in hell of getting a hog (I slept in till 0430).
I worked primarily from two locations, and everybody else basically did the same thing…
Location 1
Down on the creek…
Pretty well camouflaged
Location 2
94 yards, big feeder, and nada… fresh corn on the ground, not a hog to be seen or heard (of course they showed up between the time I left Friday night, and the owner’s wife got out there Saturday morning…
We even tried a second flush yesterday afternoon, based on where the owner had seen hogs earlier. AD was the designated shooter, and I was his BUG, further down the creek. After we’d figured out our safe shooting angles, we set up on the edge of the creek and proceeded to wait for the ‘beaters’ to flush the hogs.
EXCEPT, the ONLY thing that flushed was a @#^& skunk!
It was a ‘big’ one, and it came across the creek just below AD (ignoring him of course), and I see movement out of the corner of my eye; about the time the skunk sees me at about 10 yards, it throws its tail straight up and flares it (NOT a good sign). I’m crouched down, gun is NOT up, and I’m trying to back up the creek bank without looking, and trying to figure out which way the wind is blowing… Thankfully, it decided to swim across the creek and go it’s own way.
Last night, nothing (other than a good steak on the grill, thanks JB)…
This morning, nothing, other than a skunk that looked at me though the crack in the blind (and thankfully decided to go his own way).
Some of the others had close encounters with deer, and other assorted things, but I’ll let them post on that 🙂
So effectively, these were the only things killed in any numbers this weekend 🙂
Fun times, good friends, meeting new folks, and a recharge on the personal battery. Well worth it as far as I’m concerned!
And yes, the steer with the butt ugly toupee is STILL there…
We got skunked at Fort Knox too. Saw one little buck that wasn’t legal to shoot and found an almost complete skeleton of a buck that was pretty chewed up. Other than that, it was just a good day in the woods.
Remember, the worst day hunting is better than the best day at the office!
Well, you got your trophy beers, anyway…
Maybe AD should have used his truck. Oh, you weren’t deer hunting.
I think you should have gone on this hunt
Take me with you when you go!
Glad you had a good time down here in God’s country. Come back again and help us get rid of those dang hogs.
DB- True, but I’d really have liked to have SOMETHING other than an @#$& armadillo to my credit… sigh
Suz- There is that 🙂
WSF- Nope, but some folks did see deer.
Sean- I don’t have that kind of disposable income… sigh
Tim- I’d love to…
Shoot, NFO. If you were nearby we could have tried some here, too. Unfortunately, I keep seeing them on the game cam in the middle of the night. My wife and I were in the blind last night and heard them squealing close by, but nothing came in. They’ve been hunted so hard here in TX I think they’re going full-on nocturnal. I guess I should really start thinking about a good NVS.
45- We were a bit South of Mexia…
Hey, only 5 hours away! We’re just NW of San Antonio. I love when people visit here and think that Texans are being sarcastic when they say something is “only a few hours away”. No, really. If it’s under 6 hours away in Texas it’s not that bad of a drive. 🙂
45- Next trip 🙂 Hell I grew up in Texarkana, so I know ALL about driving…LOL
So you are saying you got skunked?
(After watching Hogs Gone Wild, I have no love for those disgusting creatures. . .)
It was epic only in its degree of FAIL. Didn’t anyone tell the hogs they were supposed to cooperate with our plans to slay them mercilessly?
A pleasure to make your acquaintance, NFO, and holler any time you make it Colorado-way. Mi coucha es su coucha, and there’s always some 18 year old Glenlivet in the cabinet.
Despite the distinct lack of hogs, it was a good time. At least I enjoyed the company, the food, and the stories.
Of course when I was at the Tx EMS conference, some guys from Vernon, Tx told me that there were plenty of hogs up their way.