This old boar had been coming in late at night and had been ultra-skittish. I've caught glimpses of him a couple of times, but he always skirted the brush where he blended in and didn't afford a shot opportunity. But last night, under a clear sky and with the moon and stars there to betray his presence, he made a mistake.

As he stepped away from cover and into a wide clearing, his form materialized on the recently-shredded grass that was already scorched by a lack of rain and the Texas sun. I wasted no time and put the dot of the L3 reticle where it would do the most good and sent a 130 grain Accubond from the 6.5x30-30 AI downrange. The impact of the bullet, which leaves the muzzle at app. 2525 fps, was loud in the night air, and as I recovered from the modest recoil, I could see he was down on the spot.

The Accubond entered the very front edge of the quartering target's shoulder, where it heavily damaged the lungs and a portion of the liver before unzipping the edge of the stomach and then skidded along and broke the 4th and 5th-to-last ribs. It was recovered under the hide.

This boar was on the decline, and -- as such -- you can really see the outline of his shield under the sagging hide. It measured over 1.25" thick across the center of the shoulder.

Good shooting Bobby... He does look kinda poor....he needed killing for sure!

Bet the hogs can hardly wait for the new moon.

And me...I can't wait for the full moon ha ha! Under good atmospheric conditions, anything over a half-moon gives you a fairly decent opportunity. We had just a sliver of moon last night, but the twilight was better than average for whatever reason. A light colored hog (rare around here anyway) in that particular clearing would have been safe, but the black body against that light-colored grass made it possible. If he had stayed closer to the darkened brushline, though, he'd have blended in and had been safe, so luck had a lot to do with this one biting the dust.

Great job regardless.

Do luv the accubonds, from 6mm thru .375

ya!

GWB

Good for you Bobby.
He died easier than if the coyotes had
caught up with him in that sad shape.
You did him a favor.

George

(side note: looks like a new knee coming
late July/Aug-48 yrs is about long enough
to wait imo)

George-

Keep us posted. I'll put you in my prayers that it all goes well and that the rehab time is short. A friend had it done last year and now is more mobile than ever. Made a world of difference for him.

Thanks.
Know I've lost at least 5-6 years of my life over these torn up knee's since Aug '70. Tore 'em up deer hunting the high country. Then that Jan I joined the Army long before they'd healed.
Sure giving me fits again this year too.
Lap around W/M or grocery and it's all I can do to make it to the car. Almost need wheels under me.

Did he have the full size replacement? OR the refacing type? Those only take about 3 months to heal up.

That fellow at Austin we were going to hog hunt with had one put in, infected and died from it last year. My age too.

George

George-
I'll have to ask. I think it was the full replacement but won't swear to it. My short-term memory is the pits these day.

you ought to write professionally... your stories are better than anything in the current rags....good luck!! and keep 'em coming...

Good pictures too

Bobby- you're as good with the telling as you are with the killing.

Great kill and wonderful prose. Thanks.

X3 on the telling and on the accubonds.

Great story and great shot as usual. Good to see you are still working on them.

Nice shooting, great hog.

Nice fat one again Bobby. You guys got me hooked on hog hunting now. Just got my second hog out by Olney. Not a bigun but it made my day. Pix are up.