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2022 After Action Report

Just returned from our first hog hunt in Southeast Georgia. These trips are always an adventure and this one was no different. This trip was a shakedown for a new RV trailer I purchased. I’m taking it west this spring and I wanted to take a trip to figure out the good, bad and ugly first. We had some successes and some failures but we made it home safely and without too much drama. Weather ranged from 75* and sunny to well below freezing and windy as hell.

This trip would take place on thousands of acres of Georgia State Wildlife Management Areas. Georgia game laws dictate you can shoot hogs using any weapon that’s acceptable for the current season. We were hunting during small game season so any rimfire was acceptable. I put together a new 10/22 for this trip. Shaw barrel, brimstone trigger group, Redfield scope (the leupold version), hogue stock.

We left home at 0700. Including a stop for lunch, grocery shopping, fuel and pee breaks it took us 14 hrs to get into the area. The weather on the drive down went from bad to worse. Rain turned to freezing rain. We chose to spend the first night at a WMA that has a range and allows camping. Sleep came easy that night.

The next morning we arose to cold temps. I took a walk to stretch out and inspect the area. Everything was flooded. This would prove challenging throughout the trip.

We set up a target and proceeded to sight in the guns. I settled on CCI Velocitors for the new build. They shoot into a ragged hole….as almost every different round I tried. 10/22’s are very difficult to make inaccurate.

After sighting in, we made breakfast and some well deserved coffee. A local arrived at the range and we spent some time picking his brain on where to hunt (everywhere according to him), how bad Biden and the Democrats are hurting the country and just general BS. After a bit we broke camp and headed out to do some exploring and trying to locate some pigs.

We spent the next 2 days speed scouting some different areas. Close to the river. Far from the river. In the thick stuff. In the open stuff. In a foot of water and up on the high ground. We found sign in many areas but not as much as I would’ve liked to see. This was turning out to be more difficult than I expected.

Did I mention the rain? The weather was getting colder, the rain made everything a bit more challenging and after 3 days of it all I wanted to see was the sun.

At this point, the rain made most of the dirt roads a sticky, greasy mess. I never realized how bad Georgia clay is to drive thru. At some point, we went somewhere we probably shouldn’t have. The road turned into a trail and there wasn’t a spot to turn around. We unhitched the trailer and I made a dash thru the giant bog….until I got stuck. Unknown to me at the time, someone else got stuck in that bog and dug a giant hole. 2 hours later, we were clear of the incident and looking for a place to camp for the night.

The next day we found a suitable camping area and set ourselves up for the remainder of the trip. We picked a nice spot overlooking a “lake”....basically just a blue hole. Flat ground, a water source, a good view and it wasn’t flooded.

After setting camp, we did more scouting and I found an area that looked promising. I went back for the evening hunt. ½ hour before sunset I had my first pig encounter. I was hunting on the edge of a swamp. I heard some rustling in the palmettos about 30-40 yards away. The wind was shifting and I knew I had to go after this pig or the wind would end my hunt. I picked my way thru the palmettos by sneaking thru the standing water. The pig was feeding away from me. I finally spotted it at 15 yards when it stepped out from behind the palmettos. My first shot hit the pig in the head. It staggered and made a dash out of sight. Naturally, I gave chase. 7-10 yards from the shot sight I saw the pig. He was on his side but suddenly came back to life, rose to his feet and ran in my direction. I shot it in the head again at too close for comfort distance (3’) and it dropped. That was exciting and unexpected but I had my first pig and blooded my new gun. A great eating size was a bonus. sasha grey wallpaper

I drug the pig out to meet my buddy. The drag was without drama….right until he came into sight at the same time my feet got tangled and I did a header into the swamp water. Laughs ensued….
My buddy took over the dragging duties and finished the last leg up the trail to the truck.

The truck was filled so we improvised to get it back to camp. We gave it a quick bath to get some of the mud off of the hide and proceeded to butcher it up and stick it in the freezer. Celebratory drinks, some backstrap for dinner and reliving the hunt (and the fall into the swamp) made for good sleep this evening.

The next morning we hunted the same area but didn’t have any luck. Wanderlust struck me, as always, and I scout/hunted a different place for the afternoon hunt. I spent my afternoon sneaking thru 6”-16” of swamp water looking for pigs, sign and hoping the alligators weren’t awake. As an aside, I never thought about gators in the water until we saw a dead one floating on the drive to this spot. It looked to be 6-8’. We saw it from the road and we couldn’t figure out what it was at first. It was half floating and we were looking at the belly side. Every log that moved under my feet in the swamp water felt like a gator.. Luckily I avoided getting eaten.

Back to the hunt….I’d love to say I snuck up on this one but I didn’t. I had a herd of what turned out to be little pigs come in my direction while I was creeping thru a small high spot on the edge of the water. I managed to kill one in the chaos that ensued. That little guy was on the grill a few hours later. 10lbs, tender and tasty. 2 pigs in 2 days told me I was doing something right.

The following morning a storm system was moving south. The temperature dropped significantly and the wind picked up substantially. 15-20mph with gusts to 35 according to the weather report. This was the storm system that would dump 18” of snow at home a few days later. We went to another area to scout. I surmised the pigs would head to higher ground away from the water since the temp was in the 30-40’s. My hunch paid off during the afternoon hunt.

I found a high spot between 2 swamps. Lots of pines and scrub brush with palmettos in this spot. I put my nose into the wind and started to ease thru. The noise from the wind made stalking quiet but I had to depend more on my eyes than my ears here. After sneaking around for a bit, at 40 yards away I thought I saw movement. I closed the distance and at 20 yards I could see the back end of the pig. I eased into a good shooting lane and waited for the pig to move into position. After a few minutes she hit a clear spot and raised her head. 1 round put her down. The hill top exploded with pigs but I never actually saw anything to shoot. I had 2 tiny piglets come my way but they were probably only 5 lbs. They stayed long enough that I got a quick picture of them. This pig is the size I wanted for a pig roast at home with my hunting buddies. I’d estimate 30-35lbs. rio 2 blu and jewel Put it in my pack and hunted my way back to the truck. Another great night in camp.

The next day was the last full day of the hunt. This morning we returned to the area I shot the 10lber. I remembered a dry area that was open and I hoped the pigs would be laying in there, soaking up the morning sun. 20 mins after sunrise I started picking my way thru this spot. The wind was relatively still so I was creeping thru as quietly as possible. No more than 5-7 steps a minute and then a minute of just scanning the area looking for a piece of the pig. I thought my imagination was playing tricks on me when I heard a tiny squeal. It was close but I couldn’t see anything. I sidestepped and finally saw the origin. There were 10-12 pigs laying on top of the sow suckling. I couldn’t tell head from tail because she was in a depression behind a tree. I had the wind in my favor but I was worried something would blow up this stalk. After a minute the sow let out a groan, raised up on her front legs flopped ends. The piglets went flying and immediately were back on top of her. I picked a spot and sent a round thru the back of her head and out of the eyeball. She never moved. wish you were here wallpaper Piglets scattered everywhere and ran off to parts unknown. I made my way over to her and started to check things out.

She had a huge frame but almost no meat on her bones. Hips were sticking out, teats were actually calloused. The babies must have sucked her dry. I was undecided on letting her just lay but decided to drag her back to the truck since it was close. I quartered her up and put her in the freezer. If she tastes bad, the dog will eat well.

The afternoon hunt was uneventful and for me was more of a time to reflect on the trip. We drove 750 miles, picked a spot on the map and ended up stalking some pigs and putting meat in the freezer. It was harder than I expected but based on the amount of shooting I heard at night, I think someone is putting a lot of pressure on them. I felt fortunate to find success and spend time with a longtime hunting buddy. We’ve spent many hours together on these hunts and it’s stills fun as the first.



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[img]https://i.postimg.cc/52mJj0nr/004-BD051-72-BD-4-EF3-BF9-E-8-B01-C42341-BA.jpg[/img]colorful lion wallpaper

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The ride home was uneventful. Lots of laughs and retelling stories from past hunts made it go as quick as a 14 hr ride can. Get out and go explore. Grab a buddy, make a plan and go test yourself. Squirrels, deer, hogs or whatever you can find that puts you in the woods with friends is time well spent. Hope you guys enjoyed the story and it inspires you....

I’ll add some pics below