OK, heres a little European wild boar hunting story.
My Friend Martin From Munich arrived by train. I picked him up from the station and gave him a quick guided tour of the European Space Operations Centre where i work when i'n not either building custom rifles or hunting. Martin and I have hunted together several times in Scotland, him having answered an advert I placed in a german hunting magazine several years earlier, since the first day we have become great freinds.
A quick meal on the way to my place and then we donned our hunting gear, grabbed a rifle ( a 7x57 Spanish mouser, that is a real ugly duckling but shoots 1/4 moa groups with the cheapest soft point hunting ammo available, funny how some rifles that realy shouldn't shoot well do. )
we parked the 4x4 and began our stalk, along forest track to start with, and then in througfh the brush heading towards one of my tree stands and a meadow dotted with mature larch trees.
We got within 40m of the tree stand, and i gave a quick 2 flashes of the torch (with red filter) down to the ground, just in case some idiot who shouldn't have been there was up my stand trying to poach some game, i'd hate to get mistaken for a wild hog.
We moved on cautiosly, glassing the meadow, Then i heared them.. boar, I signalled to Martin,, who, having a good 20 years on me is a little hard of hearing, he couldn't hear a darn thing. we slowly moved closer to the high seat. Finaly standing under neath it, i saw a fair sized boar come out of the trees to the left of the stand. i nudged Martin to make him aware, then another 4 maybe 5 boar appeared, milling around and rooting up the grass. Up came the rifle, and a boar moved very conveniently away to one side,
Boom, Thump. and the boar scattered.
We gave it a few minutes and went to check for signs of a blood trail. sure enough there was a fair lot of blood, but dark in colour, my guess was hit slightly to far back, and the liver was taken out, that would mean a tracking job. we waited another 10 minutes and began the tracking, following the blood trail, which occasionaly dried up, Martin with the 7x57 at the ready, me with my S&W revolver. A revolver or pistol is a darn sight easier to use in a thicket than a rifle !!
We followed the trail to a thicket, in i went, on my hands and knees, it was getting exciting ! the blood trail carried on out the other side of the thicket, through some trees, over a forest track to another thicket, again, in on my hands and knees, through the other side, Martin circled around the out side of the thicket each time, rifle at the ready for a bolting injured boar. then it was back on hands and knees through some pig tunnls under some briars, and then it was a belly crawl, well it would have been if i'd continiued, I figured the sensible thing wa sto check the exits from the briars and thorns to see if we could pick up the trail. Nothing, and then we (or rather I, Martin is a deaf old sod) hearded boar, it seemed to be a confused, aroused bunch of pigs, obviously the group we had shot at. and as the sound moved left, i could hera a single pig to the front, it had to be the injured one, i could tell by its movements, it was maybe 15m away, through the other sid eof the thicket.
Then the damn torch went dim, battery empty. Luckily i had another small one in my pocket, i just managed to get it on an thge pigs made a charge. I had the revolver up, hammer cocked and ready to shoot, but the boar broke of its charge about 5m short of us, still hidden from sight in the thicket. it seemed to move away about 30m and then charged again, again to stop short,, it was obviously one angry pig.
Then it made its get away, it slipped silently into the night.
We had folloewd the blood trail , fuilly expecting to find a dead boar, there was a lot of blood.
It was time to get the dog,. so we went of back to the 4x4 and got my English Springer Spaniel, now most folk wopuldn't think of a Rytex kennels field trail ESS as the optimal blood hound, but me and ole Meg have tracked and found our fair share of pigs in our time.
We set Meg on the trail, she reached the place where the pig had charged us and through the other side of the thicket.
She seemed unsure of which direction to take, and we could find no blood. The damn tiny torch we had to use wasn't much good mind. I had to slip the lead on Meg in the thicket and she took off to the east and then north, I took of after, leaving a much dismayed Martin behind.
when we'd gone maybe 400m it was obviouse to me the Meg was tracking the obsconding group of pigs, nose in the air, she was following the scent and no longer a blood trail. Well that was my fault for slipping the lead, The dog knows, tracking lead on, nose down, blood trail, tracking lead slipped, follow game. no lead no collar, quarter back and forth and spirnmg rabbits and pheasants.
So it was back to the thicket for another look. Picking Martin up on the way. We had a loom for more blood, but it was a waste of time without a decent light.
So we made the command decision to sack it, go get a few hours sleep and try again at first light, by then it was 01.30.
We where back in the woods ate 06.45, and went over the blood trail again very slowly from where the pig had crossed the track, looking for clues, reaching the thicket where it had charged and where the blood trail dried up. I kep the dog held back whilst we circled the area, in ever increasing distances from the last blood. eventualy i found some more spots of blood. by then it was 07.45 and we wher due to be at the meet point for the days driven hunting at 08.30.
I had the dog back on the tracking lean following the trail, she took me straight to the pig, via 2 more thickets. We found the boar, a 50kg sow dead under some briars, handlily only 5m from the nearest track.
We dragged her out and Martin gralloched her whilst i went and got the 4x4.
Loaded her up on the game carrier and sped off to get to the meeting on time. We made it with 2 minutes to go.
The number of guns was about 35 or so. (not sure of the exact number) I had stand nr 18, which luckily enough was the same one i had on the same hunt last year.
The Forester's took teams took out and showed them to thier stands, I was dropped of a couple of hunderd meters from mine as the Forester knew i knew my way and the area,
I stalked into my stand, i was just folding down the plank seat when i saw movement to my left.
A large fallow buck and a couple of antlerless fallow, where milling about grazing at the edge of the trees. Then i saw 2 massive fallow buck out to my front right, coming driectly through the trees towards me, they veered of to my right, The big boys weren't to be shot anyway.
I watched the other group of fallow through my scope. when one presented a broad side i took the shot, it droped traight away, The buck and a kid ran out between the trees to my front, unsure of where the danger was they stopped. I could have easily shot the buck, but again, to big. I could partialy see the kid behing 2 trees, i couldn't get a clear shot, then it stook its head out to the right side, so i took the opertunity and shot it in the head.
2 Deer down and i hand't been on stand more than 5 minutes. My shots where the first of the day.
When the drive got under way, i saw a group of pigs rapidly crossing away far to the right.
Some more fallow far to the left, here and there fell an occasional shot, then a group of 5 boar came running in, they would have crossed to my left at about 40m. i picked a possition between the trees, a "window of opertunity" and took the last and smallest of the group, it dropped at the shot almost immediately. the others about turned and ran back towards where they had come.
We had a break in the hunt from 12.00 to 12.30. during which we had to drag the game to the stand and gralloch them.
I got that done as quick as i could.
maybe 45 minutes later another pig, about the same size, came from exactly the same place, it stopped where i had dropped the other pig, sniffing at the blood, it was unfortunately beging some trees.
It set of at a full bolt across towards where id shot the 1st fallow. as it passed through a gap, befor the thicket i shot at it. It showen no signs of a hit, but it was at a full trot and no doubt full of adrenalin.
later investigation revealed blood hair and some flesh at the spot, and the pig was later found. The Foresters doing all the tracking as the guns where taken to the meeting point.
Martin had shot 2 boar, a smaller one and one about the same size as mine. Which had maybe 60kg. After the game was laid out, the speaches given and the hunting horns had blown thier salute to the game, we all went of to the pub for a meal and a few drinks.
There wasn't as much game taken as on prevous years, but it was a decent bag for the day. I was happy with my 4. and managed to up my hit quota to 100%. But it helped that the fallow where standing.
The pic is taken during the gralloching break at mid day.
Pete [IMG]

Pete,

Great story and pics. There was an error in the second URL that I fixed and reposted. I hope you don't mind.

rgds,
FB

Pete,

Laying on a sofa with a beer and watching someone else work?



Definately My idea of a good time!



Others have tried a life time to talk good sense into me - just doesn't take!

Pete,

This is scary, you posted your story as I hit the send button for last night's reply!


Waidmannsheil!

A very good write-up, photos & shooting!

WELL DONE!

Pete,
Great story and photos.
Q. Is that an Eagle stock pack on your rifle?
- stu

Thanks for fixing the pic..
wish wed have had time to take some of the blod trailed boar,, it was bigger..

Stu yes thats a eagle stock pack.
regards Pete

congrats good pic`s