Went squirrel hunting this AM with my neighbor. His family has 100 ac with a wooded creek bottom and maybe 30 ac of mature hardwoods. I saw a large black boar running away across the pasture as I was preparing to step into the treeline--big one. I walked into the woods to a small clearing with a tree that looked comfy to sit against and set up. 10 minutes later the first squirrel shows up, but is a traveler and I never got a shot. Then a second one shows and I drop it, a 3rd one, and I drop it as well. Then about 15 minutes later I shoot a third. 5 minutes later another traveler comes from the left across my front and leaves the area, never slowing down or pausing to offer a shot opportunity. THEN, I hear dogs barking in the distance and in a minute or two I realize they are coming towards me, closing fast. It gets really loud and hectic when a large black boar appears, headed straight towards me with a pack of hog dogs in hot pursuit. They bay the boar against some thick brush about 20 yds away and I got to watch the show. Needless to say my adrenaline was pumping and I'm thinking "Which tree am I gonna climb if the hog or dogs come after me? The boar has one dog on each ear, one on each jowl, and two more dancing around him. Then the boar decided he had enough and shook 'em off, throwing one yelping dog maybe 4' in the air to land abut 10' away, only to have them get right back on him. Next I hear voices and two guys come running thru the woods towards the melee, and the one in front says "Whoa! It's a big f'n boar!" About a minute later fat Bubba comes lumbering into the picture, semi-running with about a 12" Bowie knife in his hand, unsheathed and running! Hog decides it is time to leave and does, gets bayed again about 40 yds away, then breaks away and into the pasture. Heads across the pasture with 6 dogs and 3 guys chasing him. He went into the creek bottom or a small tank about 150-200 yds from me, and in a few minutes it got quiet. Don't know if they finally dispatched the boar or whether he ran off the property, but never heard any gunshots. Spent another hour sneaking and peeking but no more squirrels. Guess the noise of the chase sent them into their dens/nests.

Sounds like fun to me any way ya' slice it.

Fox or cat?

Didja skin em out?


Fixin' to do some soon myself at my honey hole as soon as it cools down a mite.

Best,

GWB

Quite the story. Did those guys ever see you sitting there?
Thanks for sharing the fun n games people play.
George

Squirrels were southern fox squirrels. These 3 were all young, not much bigger than cats. All we have in these parts it the southern fox species.

Forgot this part of the story--first two guys ran right by me and as they were focused on the hog and dogs, and I was in full camo sitting against a large tree, didn't see me. When Bubba came lumbering by, I couldn't resist and said "You're gonna need a bigger knife" and that brought him up short and started to look around for the strange voice. Still took him a few seconds to pick me out and when he did, he hollered at the other two, "Hey, there are hunters in here." One of the first two, who was my neighbor's nephew and son of the landowner had seen his uncle when he ran by.

Gonna call my neighbor and ask if he ever talked to his nephew to get the rest of the story. I'd sure like to know if they got the hog, what he weighed, and how many dogs were hurt.

Turns out they didn't get the boar. Dogs couldn't hold him long enough for the guy to do the deed, and the hog ran off the property. The land is long and narrow and the boar ran across the narrow part.

Sure shocks hell out of folks when they almost step on someone and don't see 'em.
I've been in similar times while elk hunting a few times.

Even shot a buck that was browsing on the other side of a tree I was sitting under once. Not ten feet. "06 can sure blow big holes in things that close.

Enjoyed reading this, thanks for sharing.
George