I have just come back from my first proper hog hunt, what a blast! Three of us braved the cold of February and camped out in tents at a National Park that offers hog hunting from Jan16th to end of Feb. Our combined hog hunting knowledge could have been written on the bag of a postage stamp. The area is very hilly, very thick and very unhospitable. We decided to hunt the creek areas, did I mention thick cover? We were lucky enough to jump some pigs on Saturday morning but with 10-20 yard visibility, what to do. I decided to try out the Foxpro on them, I had hog sounds but didn't know what to expect, never having tried them before. Here is a lesson I learned, do not put the caller by yourself!!!!! Never, never, never, put it at least 20 yards away. I used a mixture of piglet distress and Sow protection calls. I was using the rifle/scope combo I mentioned in the guns/optics section, IE Tikka 243 and new Bushnell 6500. I had the scope set at 2.5 magnification, even that was overkill in the thick stuff. Well.... the sow calling from the FX5 suddenly got augmented and a sow with piglets came racing up on my at about 20 yards, heading straight for me. I had the crosshairs right between her eyes, her face filled the scope. Dumbass.....I had left the safety on. By the time that I released the safety, I had been busted. I managed to get the 2 young'uns. Man what a thrill, I cannot describe what it feels like to see a hog running towards you at that close a distance. I am also aware of how that could have turned out, could have been nasty, always check the safety!!!!
Anyway, had to drag out two 40# piglets, about half a mile to the truck through the thickest stuff imagineable. I was absolutley exhausted when I got back and extremely grateful that I had my GPS!!! In retrospect it was a belssing in disguise that I didn't get the adult, I'm not sure we'd ever have got her out. We cooked the hams over hot coals that night, some good eatin'!!
One little group pick of us all! The 243 left some pretty wicked wounds, don't know if I can post them or not?
Click to view attachment

Now thats the way you want your 1st hunt to go!! Congrats!!




Go ahead & post what load combo you used.

Well Glen I used the 243 Tikka with new Bushnell 6500 scope, 2.5/16 *42. I only got the rig together last week so I used the cheapest Federal 100 gr available in Wally world. I posted pics of the grouping in guns/optics last week. Suffice to say it was accurate enough. I will be handloading for it this week, see what it can really do. Following pics show what happens when 100gr Federal bullet does when it meets flesh!!

that looks painful....geez..astonishing

w00t

Juilang,
Messed up some pork chop's but, like to see thing exploed

YEP!! Them worked!!

what rounds were you useing those are apsolutly devistating wounds!!!!!!!!!!!! AWESOME

Thats a shame all that good meat! Get a 22 Hornet and shoo them in the head next time. That wild hog is the best meat to bad the backstraps on that one are gone. We use 22 mags 17s 5mm down here in Arkansas and thats all you need.

Great pics . Good luck next time and keep the pics coming!

Doug

Very Cool! I guess I never realized or considered that hogs could be called.

Sounds like you need a close up, big bore, lever gun with iron sights Don't tell the wife it was my idea tho

Red, I was talking with my wife yesterday... She bought me a shotgun 3 years ago for Valentine's day. I complained she hadn't bought me a gun since..... I see a Marlin 30-30 as an Easter present. She wants a purple handsaw and a wagon.... When we met she was a Milwaukee city girl and I am from London. Living the Tennessee wild life has changed us!!!
Now have a 953 acre lease in East TN which is crawling with hogs. We all signed and paid yesterday. Good weather forecast for this week and no work. I will be charging the ATV battery and Foxpro today and getting the tent out again!!! I am tempted to take my Rem 7400 in 30-06 with a 10 round magazine.....Now that is an assault rifle.