Sorry do not have any pictures hope to get some from Dave to add later, and apologize for the length of it.

Back in the Fall early Winter of 2016 a client that had hunted Javelina with me a couple of times in west Texas, contacted me in regards to a possible hog hunt during the first part of 2017.

We kept conversing back and forth and things fell in place and he made it to Olney around Noon on Monday the 20th. of this month.

I was somewhat optimistic about our chances for success due to the area having received around 4 inches of rain in the past 14 days or so. The ground is so saturated there are feed set ups we could not get into with the pick up so on two of the hunts we had to use the Polaris Ranger 4 wheeler.

We met at Robert's families grocery store, the only one in Olney at about Noon on Monday and drove out to the hunting cabin on the 680 acres where the buffalo are kept and Dave got his gear stowed. He did not bring his own rifle and used one of mine, so he really did not bring that much gear.

I carry my .35 Whelen with me daily, loaded with 225 grain Barnes Flat Base XLC's. We did a little driving around the area and about 4 p-m. headed to the blind I had decided on starting at.

I forgot that I had reset the time on this feeder to 6:30 pm. for the afternoon feeding, but that put it closer to dark which works better for pig movement. Also this is one of the few set ups I service that has a fence of wire corral panels around it. The panels are made out of 3/16ths. inch steel wired and have 6 inch high by 8 inch wide openings in them, and the panels are 5 feet tall, this helps keep the cattle and horses out, but deer can jump them, plus I also cut out two or three windows around the perimeter of the pen, about 6 feet wide or so, taking off the top two feet of the panel, reducing the height in those spots to 3 feet. In alternate panels I set two Tee posts about 26 inches apart and cut a door about 30 inches or 5 openings high and 24 inches or 3 opening wide that goes to the ground so the pigs and fawns can walk in to the feed pen.

We got to set a long time discussing the javelina hunts we had done and his African trips and various topics, since I had forgotten about resetting the time.

Around 5:00 or so we had some deer start moving in toward the feeder and then around 6:00 a good sized red pig came out of the brush and headed for the feeder.

Between the time change and the deer the pig was somewhat hesitant about coming on in. It finally moved in toward the feeder, but as is normal with pigs, did not present a shot opportunity. That is one of the things first time pig hunters learn to deal with, when feeding, hogs hold still for about 3 seconds, and that is it, they seem to constantly keep moving.

Add to Dave's limited experience with pigs, a rifle he had never shot and figuring how to put a bullet thru a 6 inch by 8 inch opening at 140 yards and there never was a shot opportunity Dave felt comfortable with. Throw in my own mistake of not realizing that not everyone likes rifles with 5 or 6 pound trigger pulls and the couple of opportunities he might of had passed due to the heavy trigger pull.

Tuesday morning, Day Two started at about 6 a.m. and we moved to a set up about 1/2 mile west of the previous evening's set up. We were hunting in the buffalo pasture this time. Feeder is set to go off at 7:00 a.m. Around 6:45 or so we had 3 small white tail bucks come in, one appears to have potential to be a decent animal in a couple of years.

Shortly after the bucks come in, they moved away from the feeder in a hurry and ran 50 to 60 yards away from it and began watching the brush at the back side of the feeder. A blackish/brindle colored boar of about 120 to 130 pounds comes out and moves under the feeder. This was an exceptionally good looking animal because whereas the red pig from the evening before was normal pig shape, this one was built like a true European wild pig, front legs and shoulders made a hump sloping down to the tail. Really nice looking animal.

Again due to the animals movements and the heavy trigger of my Whelen, Dave was unable to make a shot, and for some reason known only to the pig, about 3 minutes before the feeder went off, the pig left out, headed west. At least we had seen pigs at both set ups, but I was hoping for a dead pig.

That afternoon, I decided to load the Ranger on its trailer and move to a set up about 12 miles south of the cabin. We got down to that property, unloaded the Ranger and was in the blind by a little after 4 pm. Around 5:15 or so, two 50 pound sows and a dozen piglets that were not more than a week old, I don't think any would weigh more than 3 pounds came in to the set up. This set up and two more that I service are the ones I like the best, we have two feeders set up 80 to maybe 100 yards apart that are set to go off 5 minutes apart. The blind is set up 100+ yards away watching both feeders.

The sows and piglets fed around for 10 minutes or so and I was not all that hot on seeing either of those little sows shot or the piglets and Dave was not in any mood to do so either. Should we have shot those sows, probably, but we didn't. Superstition wise, that may have proven to be a good idea.

Anyway after the sows and piglets had been messing around for about 15 minutes a larger black sow moved out of the brush, but not really far enough for a good shot. One thing I forgot to mention was that after the first two hunts results, while doing an errand at home at Noon, I got out my .300 Weatherby and brought out, hoping its trigger pull would be better for Dave to deal with, and that turned out to be a good move, although it didn't work with the big sow as she never came on in or presented a real clear shot, so we ended the third hunt oinkerless.

We drove back to the pickup and trailer, loaded the Ranger and went back to the cabin. Lora was there and had supper ready for us. After supper, I unloaded the Ranger and was going to move the trailer and unhook from it but the pickup decided it was not going to start! Luckily I caught Lora before she left for home, so left the pickup and trailer hooked up and rode home with her.

Next morning I am back at the cabin at 6 am. and just for the hell of it tried starting the pickup, it started at once.

Anyway I had already decided that Dave and I would take the Ranger and try the set up on the west side of the Buffalo pasture, as it is my favorite set up although most of the rest that hunt the property do not like it, because it is in a secluded spot, shot is about 80 yards and except for an area just under the feeder and behind it and off to the right of the feeder, it is hard, impossible to see bame coming into it.

One second there is nothing under the feeder, next second there is an animal there providing a clear/close shot.

Once again, Dave and I are in the blind 30 minutes or so before the feeder goes off, waiting for the fun to begin, HOPEFULLY, as this is probably Dave's last day to hunt. Feeder goes off at 7 and NOTHING. By 7:15/7:20, a group of does 3 or 4, can't recall how many, come in eat for a while and then leave.

About 15 or 20 minutes later, I look out and about 30 to 40 yards from the blind a nice buck body wise is walking past us looking at the feeder. This was the first buck I have seen down here this tear that has shed, all the rest I have seen still have their racks.

About 5 minutes more or less after the buck moves out of sight, I am not paying attention and suddenly Dave says "Pigs". I look down at the feeder and a group of at least 8 have appeared from nowhere, and are actively feeding. They are all decent sized 60 to 80 pounders with one really large black pig feeding in the middle of the group.

Dave has the Weatherby out the window ad I say shoot the big one. ne gets lined up, squeezes the trigger and "CLICK", not the loudest empty chamber click I have heard, but definitely a click. Dave gets a shell in the chamber at light speed, and thankfully the pigs are make enough noise that they did not hear the click. The black pig has moved into a situation that enough is clear from the group to shoot and Dave does.

At the report the black pig and two others take off to the right of the feeder and some draws and the rest of the group goes back to the left. Dave gets out of the blind ready to go try and find the pig and starts up the ridge, but I get him to come back to the blind as I was watching a good sized red pig that had been in the group that had stopped about 100 yards out on a small rise, presenting a fairly clear shot.

By the time dave got back and spotted the pig it had begun moving around and it and two others I had not seen, headed for thicker brush. Dave was ready to head after the one he shot at, but I got him talked into getting on the Ranger with me and driving around to to feeder and start looking for blood. When the shot was made and the pig took off, I really could not tell if it was hit, as due to the range 75/80 yards, the muzzle blast negated any sound of a hit, and visually the pig did not look hit.

As we drove around to the trail leading down to the feeder we kept looking for blood or tracks crossing the road and into the draws as best we could. Upon getting to the spot where I park the pickup to fill the feeder, I was looking at the area at the base of the feeder outside the mud hole for blood, before getting off the Ranger and Dave got off the Ranger, turned and looked up the draw in the direction it had run and it was lying about 25 yards from the feeder.

The reason for the lack of reaction at the shot was that the hit was immediately behind the right shoulder and this was one time when the animal was almost perfectly sideways to the shooter when hit. Actual no real damage to either shoulder, but the 168 grain Barnes TSX out of the Weatherby did what it was supposed to. The shot was made at 8:30 A.M.

I took a few pictures for Dave and he took a few and hopefully I will be able to update this post in a few days.

As for my mention of superstition, for 3 hunts we saw pigs that for one reason or another, were either unable or in the case of the little sows and the piglets, unwilling to make the shot.

Wednesday morning the perfect shot presents itself, Dave is using a rifle with a more comfortable trigger pull and makes a great shot on a pregnant feral hog that hanging ungutted weighed 186 pounds.

It was a great few days spent with a good client/friend that ended about as good as anyone could hope.

Great story...thanks for sharing.

Thank You Bobby.

No problem! I really enjoy your attention to and rendition of the details...makes me feel like I am there. Thanks again for sharing.

Don't know why I hadn't seen this til now.
Enjoyed the hunt and shoot.

Thanks for sharing Randall.
George

I have got some pictures of the pig finally, will trying picking a good one and adding it to the OP.

Thanks for your comments George.

With your attention to detail it felt like I was there with you on the hunt.

One day maybe I will get a chance to hunt for pigs.

Very nice, Randall. Makes a guy feel like he was there. I could almost hear the empty chamber "click."

Makes me more than want to get out to some hogs.

After having been in some of those empty chamber situations, both my own and those of folks I was guiding, this was one of the quietest "Clicks" I ever heard. I remember pulling the trigger on a .44 Rem Mag. 788 Remington back in the late 70's, shooting at a white tail and it sounded as loud as slamming a door The deer was about 70 yards out and went 4 feet in the air when it heard that "Click".

I had one on a 6pt bull elk at about 30-50 feet one late evening back about 1960, I can still hear it!! By the time I jacked another in he was gone of course.
he was so close that thru a K-4 I couldn't tell what part of his shoulder/chest I was looking at it filled the glass more than double.

Yep, young kid learning how to reload killed the primer using motor oil as case lube.
Hey, we all had to learn one time or another, right?

George