Lynx Defense

Sharing Experience & Photos from Very First Hunting Experience

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  • Nick!

    Active Member
    Rating - 100%
    3   0   0
    Mar 16, 2017
    618
    76
    DFW
    I grew up in Connecticut and moved down to Texas about 5 years ago. I've always had an interest in firearms and shooting, and also loved the outdoors for all of my life. I've never been hunting, but started seriously considering it about a year ago when I learned about the hog issue down here. I must say, that I was a little intimidated and in a lot of ways, naive about hunting.

    I slowly started educating myself about different hunting methods, and quickly realized I needed to find an outfitter in the state. I decided on a fantastic outfitter called Boars All Day (https://www.boarsallday.com), located in Groveton TX. I got a hold of the owner this past June and he educated me about what to expect, as well as the facility. In short, this is a "high fence" facility that has a lot of wild hogs, but also some exotics as well.

    BTW - I want to give a HUGE shout out to Boars All Day. They were absolutely fantastic and accommodating. I would recommend them to anybody in a heartbeat.

    My friend and I enjoyed our first hunt on Friday, September 30th. We got trucked out to the field and found a shack/blind to start. Within about an hour, I took down my first hog from about 80 yards away, which ended up being only about 55 pounds. About an hour later, I took down another one that was around 80 pounds. On the next day, October 1st, I took down a 140 pounder, that I ended up harvesting the meat from. I walked away with about 35 pounds of meat that consisted of 2 tenderloins, 2 backstops, 2 hams and 2 shoulders.

    This morning, I took the meat to Kuby's Wild Game Processing in Dallas (https://www.boarsallday.com). The fellow helped me create my order, and I decided on a combination of 2 whole 12 inch roasts (from the backstop), tenderloins whole, and a combination of sausages and bacon with the remaining meat.

    At the end of the day, I thought the experience was extremely interesting and eye opening. I always envisioned hunting to be solely sitting infant of the woods with a feeder on private land, however this might just not be practical for many people, including myself. I just don't have access to much of those resources. Additionally, the whole idea of killing an animal and eating it is something I've never personally experienced. There was something very ugly and grotesque about the experience, but it was also humbling to see what a 308 can do to flesh.
    DK Firearms
     

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    Last edited:

    candcallen

    Crotchety, Snarky, Truthful. You'll get over it.
    Emeritus - "Texas Proud"
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Jul 23, 2011
    21,358
    96
    Little Elm
    I spent most of my life till I had kids working or hunting fishing or shooting.

    It's a wonderful life.

    I need to start fishing again but hunting here in Texas isnt like the west with lots of land.
     

    no2gates

    These are not the droids you're looking for.
    Lifetime Member
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Aug 31, 2013
    6,022
    96
    Grand Prairie, TX
    I've never hunted in my life. I don't have anything against it, just haven't done it.
    I don't think I could take a deer or antelope or something like that, but a boar I'm pretty damn sure I'd enjoy killing. Nasty, ugly, invasive (no I'm not talking about Californians this time).
     

    Nick!

    Active Member
    Rating - 100%
    3   0   0
    Mar 16, 2017
    618
    76
    DFW
    Well you took the first step now take another. Not sure about ugly and grotesque in hunting. You want that go to a meat packing plant. Anyway glad you are going to eat your harvest. You really need to try deer doves etc.

    And it is the backstrap not backstop

    Backstop - autocorrect. Darn phone.

    Well, what I thought was grotesque was a filthy, feral hog bleeding out, then getting skinned and quartered. That’s not a regular thing for me to experience.
     

    baboon

    TGT Addict
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    May 6, 2008
    22,450
    96
    Out here by the lake!
    I have been hunting my whole life until I got so gimped out. I liked eating it as much as hunting for it. Hunted all kinds of critters from crawdads to Africas plains game. Now I hunt down junk I really don't need, but want.
     

    Texan79423

    Well-Known
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Jun 7, 2021
    1,204
    96
    Flatlands
    Welcome to Texas. Glad you got to enjoy your hunt and the right to hunt and own firearms. Please help us by voting to support these rights.
     

    Txdweeb

    Active Member
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Sep 23, 2022
    397
    76
    Temple, Tx
    Congrats on the hunt, you should look into helicopter hog hunting it’s expensive but the most fun you’ll have with clothes on.
     

    Bully

    Active Member
    Rating - 100%
    9   0   0
    That's straight up depredation. It doesn't fit my definition of "hunting" in the least. I'm not at all against it but it's just a different thing.
    @Nick! Congrats on your first success. It's a lot of fun. I just moved to the country from Allen and am hoping to get out and get on some pigs after deer season (I am not partaking in deer season this year). I'm from NJ and a pretty new hunter that has only bow hunted. I have a 6.5G that I plan on using and if my reloading set up isn't set up... I'll run my 223. Should be a good time.

    Welcome to Texas from another new Texan!
     

    Double Naught Spy

    Well-Known
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Mar 4, 2008
    1,043
    96
    North Texas
    2009 May 30 250 lb Boar (5).jpg


    This was my first hog kill. I made notes on the event and even saved my .45-70 brass.
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Posted: Tue Jun 02, 2009 12:16 am Post subject: My First Hog! Forestburg, Montague County, Texas.


    For the past several months I have l tried taking my first hog in Montague County, north of DFW. I have 46 acres and several game cams that have been catching hogs for the last year, though I have only had sight of them three times including two nights ago.

    So after more than 6 months of trying, my boar finally came in! Unlike what I have read, my hogs have been very irregular in their timing. They may come three days in a row and not show up for two weeks after that. Or they may come at night for a while and then switch to coming during the day and vice versa. So whatever I try to plan based on the data from the game camera, it hasn't worked so good until now.

    He actually was about 3 hours earlier than expected based on his previous visits the last couple of weeks. I heard him crashing through the woods slowly, maybe with a partner that often accompanied him to the feeders. He/they passed by my stand (but out of sight in the foliage) more than once and I think even walked under it or very close and then camped out very close to the stand for about 10 minutes, not moving.

    At that point, I had no idea what creature it was, but knew it was big based on footsteps I heard (deer maybe?). Then the noise started anew and the animal continued on around to my front left, still in the woods and out of sight, but making noise. Then the noise stopped again and I spied a shadow crossing the meadow in front of me. It was a half moon that was lighting the meadow. So the animal was out of the woods now. I took out my night vision scope and saw that this was indeed a hog and I promptly hyperventilated. I was making so much noise breathing that I thought he would hear me for sure.

    Everything was set up and ready - a benefit of sitting for hogs and guarding the corn some 40 or 50 times thus far. I got my breathing under control and shouldered my rifle -steadied it up on the rest and looked for the shadow in the meadow. I put my sight on the shadow. The shadow was crossing from left to right, but I apparently made enough noise that he turned around with thoughts of returning to the woods he just left, but had not opted to run just yet. I didn't think I was making too much noise, but given how close he was (25 yards it turned out), it wouldn't take much.

    I turned on the light on my rifle and centered the red dot of the sight on the shoulder of the hog and he bolted for the woods from right to left. I caught up with the dot and tracked him a few feet and squeezed the trigger as he started up an incline. There was a flash, report, a lot of smoke reflected in the light, and when the smoke cleared, Hog Down! I chambered a new round and waited to see if he was down for good or not. He was. He had traveled about 20 feet from where I first put the light on him to where I shot him.

    The whole event was something of a surprise. He arrived much earlier than expected. He didn't come in and go directly for the feeder but seemed to survey the area before coming into the open. He was nowhere near the feeder when I shot him and he had not been to the feeder. He popped out of the woods much closer than I expected. Even close, he didn't look large as he was partially hidden by tall grass. It wasn't until after getting down on the ground and seeing my neighbor Ken next to the hog that I realized how big it was. About the only thing about this event that wasn't a surprise was the hog running after I got the light on him.

    I did learn a valuable lesson. You don't do your happy dance while still up in the tree stand. Trust me on this.

    Details:
    Estimated @ 250+ lbs. (weighs more than me), boar, 1 shot from 14' elevated stand, 25 yards, dropped immediately and flopped for about 30 seconds.
    Ammo: Hornady Leverevolution .45-70, 325 gr ammo chrono'd @ about 1800 fps from my rifle, no exit from hog.
    Rifle: Marlin 1985, 22" barrel (40" overall length - used for scale in pictures)
    Light: Olight M20 Warrior Premium mounted on a Pro-Mag offset light rail
    Optic: Aimpoint Micro T-1
    Muffs: Peltor Comtac electronic muffs
     
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