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Started By
Message
Hog #4 of the Off-season - 1st AR kill - Night Hog Stalk
Posted on 6/12/16 at 3:31 pm
Posted on 6/12/16 at 3:31 pm
Wasn't planning on going out last night but with much built up frustration from having to cancel a BBQ with friends because of sick children and the lackluster performance of LSU Baseball I decided to head out.
I jumped in the truck at the end of the 7th inning, tuned the radio to 98.1, and got to the lease as the game was ending. Got my pack packed and put the boots to the ground. I was planning and packed to still hunt until daybreak but 300 yards down the logging road I picked up my first blurb on the imager.
What little wind present was taking my scent directly to the 4 pigs so I skirted to the west a little to put my scent above them. The stalk was relatively easy being this section of the woods was mostly open and the forest floor was nice and damp from the day's rain.
After constantly checking my route and ensuring I was keeping up with the feeding hogs I momentarily lost the group. I pushed on and 5 minutes later picked up the group again to my northeast (perfect), and they appeared to be about 30-45 yards away.
At this point I dropped my pack, booted up the scope, turned on the illuminator, and went into full stalk mode. I stalked to what amounted about 15 big paces and scanned again.....HOLY shite, I had a solid red, unobstructed, blurb not 8 yards away.
I shouldered the AR and, while shaking violently, located the sow in the scope. Once making triple sure this was a hog I was looking at and not a bear (deathly afraid of mistaking a bear for a hog while night hunting), I settled the crosshairs center of mass right below the ear and squeezed off the round. BANG. DRT, the AR15 had notched its 1st kill.
After letting her settle for a minute or two I approached the pig to ensure she had expired.
I could not load her on the bike by myself so ended up pulling her out of the woods and up onto the trailer for the ride home.
She weighed in at 185# and had 1" cutters...young sow but nonetheless a great kill.
I gotta say that there is nothing quite like being so close to hog, miles from help, in complete darkness, knowing that any mistake on your part could set the hog off and create a hazardous situation. Hearing pigs grunt and growl in the pitch dark while in close proximity is an adrenaline rush equal to few others I have experienced.
I jumped in the truck at the end of the 7th inning, tuned the radio to 98.1, and got to the lease as the game was ending. Got my pack packed and put the boots to the ground. I was planning and packed to still hunt until daybreak but 300 yards down the logging road I picked up my first blurb on the imager.
What little wind present was taking my scent directly to the 4 pigs so I skirted to the west a little to put my scent above them. The stalk was relatively easy being this section of the woods was mostly open and the forest floor was nice and damp from the day's rain.
After constantly checking my route and ensuring I was keeping up with the feeding hogs I momentarily lost the group. I pushed on and 5 minutes later picked up the group again to my northeast (perfect), and they appeared to be about 30-45 yards away.
At this point I dropped my pack, booted up the scope, turned on the illuminator, and went into full stalk mode. I stalked to what amounted about 15 big paces and scanned again.....HOLY shite, I had a solid red, unobstructed, blurb not 8 yards away.
I shouldered the AR and, while shaking violently, located the sow in the scope. Once making triple sure this was a hog I was looking at and not a bear (deathly afraid of mistaking a bear for a hog while night hunting), I settled the crosshairs center of mass right below the ear and squeezed off the round. BANG. DRT, the AR15 had notched its 1st kill.
After letting her settle for a minute or two I approached the pig to ensure she had expired.
I could not load her on the bike by myself so ended up pulling her out of the woods and up onto the trailer for the ride home.
She weighed in at 185# and had 1" cutters...young sow but nonetheless a great kill.
I gotta say that there is nothing quite like being so close to hog, miles from help, in complete darkness, knowing that any mistake on your part could set the hog off and create a hazardous situation. Hearing pigs grunt and growl in the pitch dark while in close proximity is an adrenaline rush equal to few others I have experienced.
4
Posted on 6/12/16 at 3:34 pm to CroTigerXIII
nice kill! Where are you located?Posted on 6/12/16 at 3:48 pm to eyepooted
Some good eat unless it took you longer then 45mins to gut it open.
Posted on 6/12/16 at 3:58 pm to CroTigerXIII
Nice gun. Pig ain't bad either.
Posted on 6/12/16 at 5:37 pm to CroTigerXIII
Fine hawg there. May not get the stink of the scope! LOL
Posted on 6/12/16 at 6:04 pm to CroTigerXIII
That's a huge bitch
Posted on 6/12/16 at 6:14 pm to REB BEER
quote:
nice kill! Where are you located?
Melville
quote:
Some good eat unless it took you longer then 45mins to gut it open.
FF, I was worried about that...I hardly ever field dress game but given the temps last night I gutted her on the spot and packed her with ice at the 1st ice machine I drove past. She'll be making some fine suppers.
quote:
Nice gun
Thanks Papa....about to fit it with a 10.5" 300BLK upper once my Form 1 comes back. Probably won't be in time for this off-season but in time for next for sure.
quote:
That's a huge bitch
That's how I like 'em
Posted on 6/12/16 at 9:11 pm to CroTigerXIII
Excellent kill you got there! I think I see an integrated trigger guard so I'm assuming S&W M&P15?
And how much did your FLIR handheld and NV scope setup set you back? I bet that makes the stalking exponentially easier.
And how much did your FLIR handheld and NV scope setup set you back? I bet that makes the stalking exponentially easier.
Posted on 6/12/16 at 10:30 pm to bapple
Yessir you are correct Bapple.
I went with the M&P15 for my first AR being I didn't really know what I expected out of the firearm nor what all I would use it for. I knew that I wanted to definitely use it for night hunting hogs and possibly varmint and at its price point and reputation I could not pass it up.
I pieced the night vision package together and was able to catch a few sales and rebates...in total the nv scope (ATN 3x12), Flir (Scout II) handheld, and UNV-20 illuminator set me back just over $3k.
I know the ATN is laughed at by many but I have not experienced any problems with the unit and I get all I need out of it. In my excitement last night I failed to turn on the video capture mode so I missed the opportunity to get the kill on film...hopefully I'll get it on my next opportunity and I'll share.
The illuminator which came with the ATN is junk and replacing it with the UNV-20 was a solid choice.
The Flir handheld has very few limitations and is useful in many different ways.
I have used the unit to inventory deer in fields and have been able to identify animals out to about 600 yards with the unit. Performance while spotting game in woodlands is dependent upon the thickness of the forest floor. Sometimes you'll catch a blurb as an animal is moving between banks of palmetto bushes, sometimes they are totally blocked out, and other times you'll catch a blurb 40-50 yards away. It is advisable to scan every 5-10 paces to ensure you adequately cover your area. As the angles change while you walk, scanning often increases your odds of spotting game especially in thicker areas.
I have found that the performance of the Flir unit is not affected by rain, humidity, smoke or fog.
I went with the M&P15 for my first AR being I didn't really know what I expected out of the firearm nor what all I would use it for. I knew that I wanted to definitely use it for night hunting hogs and possibly varmint and at its price point and reputation I could not pass it up.
I pieced the night vision package together and was able to catch a few sales and rebates...in total the nv scope (ATN 3x12), Flir (Scout II) handheld, and UNV-20 illuminator set me back just over $3k.
I know the ATN is laughed at by many but I have not experienced any problems with the unit and I get all I need out of it. In my excitement last night I failed to turn on the video capture mode so I missed the opportunity to get the kill on film...hopefully I'll get it on my next opportunity and I'll share.
The illuminator which came with the ATN is junk and replacing it with the UNV-20 was a solid choice.
The Flir handheld has very few limitations and is useful in many different ways.
I have used the unit to inventory deer in fields and have been able to identify animals out to about 600 yards with the unit. Performance while spotting game in woodlands is dependent upon the thickness of the forest floor. Sometimes you'll catch a blurb as an animal is moving between banks of palmetto bushes, sometimes they are totally blocked out, and other times you'll catch a blurb 40-50 yards away. It is advisable to scan every 5-10 paces to ensure you adequately cover your area. As the angles change while you walk, scanning often increases your odds of spotting game especially in thicker areas.
I have found that the performance of the Flir unit is not affected by rain, humidity, smoke or fog.
Posted on 6/13/16 at 7:05 am to CroTigerXIII
quote:
In my excitement last night I failed to turn on the video capture mode so I missed the opportunity to get the kill on film...hopefully I'll get it on my next opportunity and I'll share.
I imagine being 10 yards from a big sow would be enough to make me forget to do that too!
quote:
The Flir handheld has very few limitations and is useful in many different ways.
I bet so. If you can hear hogs I feel like all you have to do is scan with the FLIR to get a bead on them.
Posted on 6/13/16 at 7:49 am to bapple
quote:
scan with the FLIR to get a bead on them.
Exactly, however, you have to constantly scan because you will not always hear them before you spot them in the scanner. The scanner put me on 7 total groups...4 kills (3 x .308 & 1 x 5.56), 1 no-shot, 1 spook, and 1 miss (.45 ACP).
Only once of the total above did I actually hear them before spotting them in the scanner. And that is the beauty of it....they cannot hide from thermal.
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