Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game A Swine Time Was Had By All

My buddy & I ventured down to the GA swamp after a lull of several years. We both needed a break, & it was good to reconnect with the folks down there. We'd first gone in 2008, so we have quite a history with the place.

Being that the default weather there is infernally hot, their last group of hunters is usually in mid-March, with the place then going unmolested 'til the first of October. We endeavored to be the first group in, so as to catch the hogs unaware & oblivious. It actually worked.

First light at my stand brought a sounder of 6 out to the food plot. They appeared small-ish, and I didn't want to limit-out immediately, so I watched. And watched. And they were in no hurry to go anywhere else. Then it dawned on me that I'd never yet taken a hog with a handgun, and I had my trusty J-frame in pocket. I made a deal with myself that if they were dumb enough to meander under my stand, I'd plug one of 'em.

Remembering that I'd replaced 2 of my self defense rounds with birdshot (it's snake season down there, after all), I advanced the cylinder to be sure I'd be sending out a slug. In a few minutes, the hogs held up their end of the bargain, so I obliged the largest:





Down and done. I was glad to get some media testing of those Speer Short Barrel 135 gr. Gold Dots. No exit from the skull, however.

Shockingly, though, the other hogs didn't even flinch. They just kept feeding. I've NEVER seen animals of any kind NOT scatter at a gunshot. Perhaps after not hearing any since March, they didn't make the connection.

Half an hour later, a group of 15 appeared, noses down, not a care in the world. Again, I didn't want to be too hasty, but they were taunting me. Finding the biggest dry sow in the group, I let the trigger break, and she fell in her tracks. A .300 WM wasn't necessary, but it's hard to argue with success: the 165 TTSX severed the spine at the base of the skull.

And yet again, the others all stayed put. In fact, they fed right up to her carcass, seemingly annoyed at her horrible manners of falling on top of the scant trail of corn kernels they were jonesing for.


She was actually a good bit larger than I'd estimated when she was on the hoof, and had a really thick layer of fat. I guess they found plenty of victuals over the summer.





The morning wasn't as fruitful for my compatriot, but he pressed on with it. That evening, he took a nice eater with his 7x57 Mountain Rifle:





... followed by an adorable li'l red boar the following morning:





That rifle favors the S&B factory 173 grain soft points, and they performed like they always do:






Not all of the rifles we brought were bloodied, but I did press Great Grandad's Mauser into service for the obligatory photo op:





We stopped shooting only due to the dwindling freezer space back home. We ate ridiculously well, drank even better, and laughed ourselves stupid. Friendships were rekindled, and glasses raised to those who've passed on. A fine swine time, indeed.

FC

Very cool!!!

Todd

Good deal!

Looks like a swine time was had indeed. Nice write up and pic's. Thanks for sharing. I lived in Ga for 3 years. I did my share of thinning out the pigs there. I have gone back several times with old friends, it is great fun.

Sounds like a perfect opportunity to reconnect with an old friend while at the same time making bacon.

Nice. 👍🏼

Kill all the SOBs you can!!! Got 15 this weekend

Very nicely done!! I need to do that again sometime and soon!

Joe, VERY cool!

My last trip when I fired the hogs only scattered about 20 yards and came right back.....never seen that before, but they did four more times, until I had 5 dead ones stacked up.


Never seen it before or since...

They kept coming back once in east Texas about three years ago. I ran out of shells. It was either several groups of pigs or they were retarded, 358 Win

Very nice !
A J Frame ? Very cool !

Any of those eatable?

I was in MS a while back and the land owner cautioned against it. Too close to the river and worms and other diseases?

The 2 I posted are delicious. Here are their tenderloins rubbed with EVOO, salt, & pepper, then grilled:






Trichinae dies at 137 deg. F - when the meat can still appear largely red. Think light pink, & you're fine.

Being a dry sow and a young boar, the odds for good eating were really in our favor. Now, if the animals had appeared in ill health, had an abcess, etc., then we'd have left the carcasses in the field.

FC

A J Frame Kill... That is rather cool. But the 300 WM I guess you used enough dynamite.....

Sounds like a great time! Thanks for sharing.

Great report.

If you just had enough guns….

Ha!

DF

Maybe next time more freezers and less guns

Nice.

So, what do you do with that many dead pigs?

It's just one more reason for getting that 3-point backhoe for the tractor.