Spent much of the day working at my place and headed over to my buddy's just before dark to help keep his hogs in check. We discussed night vision, thermal, the upcoming LSB event and such, and at one point in the conversation he said to me, "I don't need night vision. I have you!" It was a nice vote of confidence. I am still trying to get him to come out.
He bid me "Carpe Sus!" and I hiked out to my favorite stand at his place, the "food plot" stand that is sort of in the middle of the property. I was in the stand just after 9:00 and immediately had a buck appear at the feeder...who stayed for 2 hours and apparently devoured most of the corn. He finally abandoned the feeder an milled about the overgrown food plot and then into the adjoining hay field where I was before making his way into the creek bottoms an out of sight.
It was a full moon, about 78 degrees, very light wind from the south and east, and I could see absolutely nothing on thermal or NV in any direction and could not hear any activity in the creek bottom behind me. So I decided to go on a walk about and check out two of the other feeders located on the other side of the creek from me and to the north of me. I made the trek while continually scanning with thermal and saw nothing until I got to where I could see the last feeder and it had a single deer underneath it. So without bettering my situation by going on the move, I decided to return to my original stand and wait out the evening.
I was about 100 yards into the hay field, trying to pie a corner around some trees hoping to spot something under the feeder before it spotted me, and occasionally scanning the food plot and hay field when much to my surprise a hog appeared in the middle of the area where the fields join that moments before seemingly did not exist. As near as I can tell after the fact, he came out from some high grass or had been down in the hay. Either way, he was a surprise to me.
Aside from being caught out in the open, I had the wind in my favor and managed to advance several yards on the hog that had put its head down to root. I took a knee and lined up a great shot on a stationary target behind the right leg, quartered away. No time for video. I pulled the trigger and nothing happened. SAFETY. Errrr.
I disengaged the safety and by now the boar was on the move again. As I was lining up my shot, he turned and looked right at me, saw me, and promptly cut toward the creek bottom at a walk. I fired and he disappeared. He was not visible on night vision or thermal. Not wanting to search the hay field for a potentially wounded hog, I made my way to the stand and got an elevated view. From there was I just able to make out the location of the hog and that he was not moving.
I caught him in the neck below and behind the ear with a quartering toward shot. The shot exited behind the left front leg via a vertical keyhole, apparently from tumbling. The shot appears to have severed or seriously damaged the spine as the hog appears to have fallen over where I shot him with no torn up grass or dirt from doing the death dance.
While on my way to the hog, I received a text message from the land owner, "Solid Hit!" The time was 11:34 for the text. He had been on his back porch at the time, some 600+ yards distant, and had heard the shot and impact. I had an audience and didn't know it. This was the 14th hog I have taken off his place this year.
Rem 788 .308
150 gr. Nosler Accubond loaded by Silver State Armory
Pulsar N550 NV scope
No illumination used because of the full moon
130 yard shot
160 lb. young boar, DRT
And not that it should make any difference, but this was the second time I wore my new LSB patched cap while hunting and both times I have worn it have resulted in success. I will be making another Tollhouse cookie run in the morning.
He bid me "Carpe Sus!" and I hiked out to my favorite stand at his place, the "food plot" stand that is sort of in the middle of the property. I was in the stand just after 9:00 and immediately had a buck appear at the feeder...who stayed for 2 hours and apparently devoured most of the corn. He finally abandoned the feeder an milled about the overgrown food plot and then into the adjoining hay field where I was before making his way into the creek bottoms an out of sight.
It was a full moon, about 78 degrees, very light wind from the south and east, and I could see absolutely nothing on thermal or NV in any direction and could not hear any activity in the creek bottom behind me. So I decided to go on a walk about and check out two of the other feeders located on the other side of the creek from me and to the north of me. I made the trek while continually scanning with thermal and saw nothing until I got to where I could see the last feeder and it had a single deer underneath it. So without bettering my situation by going on the move, I decided to return to my original stand and wait out the evening.
I was about 100 yards into the hay field, trying to pie a corner around some trees hoping to spot something under the feeder before it spotted me, and occasionally scanning the food plot and hay field when much to my surprise a hog appeared in the middle of the area where the fields join that moments before seemingly did not exist. As near as I can tell after the fact, he came out from some high grass or had been down in the hay. Either way, he was a surprise to me.
Aside from being caught out in the open, I had the wind in my favor and managed to advance several yards on the hog that had put its head down to root. I took a knee and lined up a great shot on a stationary target behind the right leg, quartered away. No time for video. I pulled the trigger and nothing happened. SAFETY. Errrr.
I disengaged the safety and by now the boar was on the move again. As I was lining up my shot, he turned and looked right at me, saw me, and promptly cut toward the creek bottom at a walk. I fired and he disappeared. He was not visible on night vision or thermal. Not wanting to search the hay field for a potentially wounded hog, I made my way to the stand and got an elevated view. From there was I just able to make out the location of the hog and that he was not moving.
I caught him in the neck below and behind the ear with a quartering toward shot. The shot exited behind the left front leg via a vertical keyhole, apparently from tumbling. The shot appears to have severed or seriously damaged the spine as the hog appears to have fallen over where I shot him with no torn up grass or dirt from doing the death dance.
While on my way to the hog, I received a text message from the land owner, "Solid Hit!" The time was 11:34 for the text. He had been on his back porch at the time, some 600+ yards distant, and had heard the shot and impact. I had an audience and didn't know it. This was the 14th hog I have taken off his place this year.
Rem 788 .308
150 gr. Nosler Accubond loaded by Silver State Armory
Pulsar N550 NV scope
No illumination used because of the full moon
130 yard shot
160 lb. young boar, DRT
And not that it should make any difference, but this was the second time I wore my new LSB patched cap while hunting and both times I have worn it have resulted in success. I will be making another Tollhouse cookie run in the morning.
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