I started an earlier thread "I'm so excited"....about being asked to come to a woman's horse farm. She said she's infested with groundhogs on her 10 acre home. I go out there, she shows me around. Out back is about 6 acres of riding field. She hasn't cut the brush/weeds in quite a long time, and I won't be able to see any hogs in there. But the front part of the property is two small homes and a barn. The driveway enters in the middle of the property and on each side is a smaller riding area until you get up to the house area.
After having little success hunting groundhogs in the area near my home, I finally have found a place with lots.
Sunday's take= 6 groundhogs shot!
I initially set up on the 2nd floor of the barn (hay loft), looking out a window (no glass, just open to the air) where I could see over a large portion of the property. Initially, when the woman showed me around the property, there's a white car parked in the grass behind the home. There was a groundhog next to the car as we're walking by. (didn't have the gun out yet) From the 2nd story window, I have a clear view of the white car. And a few minutes after I set up, two groundhogs showed themselves near the car. Distance is about 50-60 yards. I've got the 17hmr. For the first hog, I have to shoot over the hood. Shot it, and the second hog (in front of the car) didn't move. Reloaded and shot it too. I was going for a head shot on each. I leave the loft to check the kills. But I only find the first kill. (shot 1/2 inch below the ear.) I can't find the second hog...the one in front of the car. I even look under the car...can't find it. I'm surprised as I knocked it over when the bullet hit.
I go back up to the loft for a while, but nothing happens. I come down from the loft and start slowly stalking the area around the barn. (It's rather overgrown with vegetation.) There are areas the woman showed me, where everything is close quarters and you'd come around a corner to where holes are. I went on the side of the barn to one of these place, and low and behold, there's a hog about 12 feet away, not moving in the tall grass. I can't use the scope at this distance, so I raise the 17hmr and turn it on it's side to get the scope out of the way and fire it like a shotgun. Head shot...dead. Now I'm up to three.
I go back to the car and switch to my 12 gauge for more close quarter hunting. There's a car port style storage barn with a aluminum wall on one side...she says they go underneath the wall all the time. I slowly went into the storage area. I startle a hog...again about 12 feet from me, it pauses..I raise the 12 gauge and fire. Dead hog #4.
I go back up to the loft with the 17hmr and wait. A while later I see a hog crawling through the grass and it goes under a fence into the back field. This one's about 100 yards away. I take aim and fire. (I'm sitting and using shooting sticks in the loft) I hit it, knocking it over. I watch through the scope, and after 2 seconds or so, it starts crawling away. I quickly reload but by this time it's escaped into thick weeds. Another crawl-away. After this, I'm thinking I need to be a better marksman....as I'm discouraged at two crawl away hogs. I know I hit both, solidly too as they were both knocked over.
Still in the loft window, about 20 min later, I see yet another hog in almost the same spot as the previous...about 100 yards away. I bring up the gun, but this time I'm determined to place a better shot. The hog is laying low...in grass that's about as tall has it is. And I can't get a clear head shot. So I whistle as loud as I can. And sure enough, the hog stands up. I put the crosshairs on it's head and fire. Dead. No crawling away this time.
After another 20 min or so, there was yet ANOTHER hog crawling in the same place...the 100 yard spot. but this time, the hog..when it comes to a tractor path..pauses, the RUNS across the path. With that kind of behavior, it seems like they know what's going on! I couldn't get the cross hairs on it fast enough and it disappeared into the thick weeks. That was enough for the day.
The woman spent most of this time cutting the back 6 acres. (man, her tractor moves SLOW!) She ended up cutting only 1/2 the field or a little less, and she said she saw 8 hogs back there. I'm going back Thursday!
I saw her later that night. (our boats are docked at the same place.) She thanked me again, and said she told another neighbor about how I came out to her place to shoot groundhogs. The neighbor responded with "How much does he charge?" So looks like when I clean out this 1st place, I'll have another place to go!
I'm considering taking the 223 out on Thursday as the shots in the back 6 acres could be longer than 100 yards. But it's considerably louder. And remember, there's a bed and breakfast right next door, and I don't want to upset it's customers.
Here's the day's tally. The one on the right is the shotgun kill. The three on the right are pups...the one on the left is an adult female..but man, she was BIG!
After having little success hunting groundhogs in the area near my home, I finally have found a place with lots.
Sunday's take= 6 groundhogs shot!
I initially set up on the 2nd floor of the barn (hay loft), looking out a window (no glass, just open to the air) where I could see over a large portion of the property. Initially, when the woman showed me around the property, there's a white car parked in the grass behind the home. There was a groundhog next to the car as we're walking by. (didn't have the gun out yet) From the 2nd story window, I have a clear view of the white car. And a few minutes after I set up, two groundhogs showed themselves near the car. Distance is about 50-60 yards. I've got the 17hmr. For the first hog, I have to shoot over the hood. Shot it, and the second hog (in front of the car) didn't move. Reloaded and shot it too. I was going for a head shot on each. I leave the loft to check the kills. But I only find the first kill. (shot 1/2 inch below the ear.) I can't find the second hog...the one in front of the car. I even look under the car...can't find it. I'm surprised as I knocked it over when the bullet hit.
I go back up to the loft for a while, but nothing happens. I come down from the loft and start slowly stalking the area around the barn. (It's rather overgrown with vegetation.) There are areas the woman showed me, where everything is close quarters and you'd come around a corner to where holes are. I went on the side of the barn to one of these place, and low and behold, there's a hog about 12 feet away, not moving in the tall grass. I can't use the scope at this distance, so I raise the 17hmr and turn it on it's side to get the scope out of the way and fire it like a shotgun. Head shot...dead. Now I'm up to three.
I go back to the car and switch to my 12 gauge for more close quarter hunting. There's a car port style storage barn with a aluminum wall on one side...she says they go underneath the wall all the time. I slowly went into the storage area. I startle a hog...again about 12 feet from me, it pauses..I raise the 12 gauge and fire. Dead hog #4.
I go back up to the loft with the 17hmr and wait. A while later I see a hog crawling through the grass and it goes under a fence into the back field. This one's about 100 yards away. I take aim and fire. (I'm sitting and using shooting sticks in the loft) I hit it, knocking it over. I watch through the scope, and after 2 seconds or so, it starts crawling away. I quickly reload but by this time it's escaped into thick weeds. Another crawl-away. After this, I'm thinking I need to be a better marksman....as I'm discouraged at two crawl away hogs. I know I hit both, solidly too as they were both knocked over.
Still in the loft window, about 20 min later, I see yet another hog in almost the same spot as the previous...about 100 yards away. I bring up the gun, but this time I'm determined to place a better shot. The hog is laying low...in grass that's about as tall has it is. And I can't get a clear head shot. So I whistle as loud as I can. And sure enough, the hog stands up. I put the crosshairs on it's head and fire. Dead. No crawling away this time.
After another 20 min or so, there was yet ANOTHER hog crawling in the same place...the 100 yard spot. but this time, the hog..when it comes to a tractor path..pauses, the RUNS across the path. With that kind of behavior, it seems like they know what's going on! I couldn't get the cross hairs on it fast enough and it disappeared into the thick weeks. That was enough for the day.
The woman spent most of this time cutting the back 6 acres. (man, her tractor moves SLOW!) She ended up cutting only 1/2 the field or a little less, and she said she saw 8 hogs back there. I'm going back Thursday!
I saw her later that night. (our boats are docked at the same place.) She thanked me again, and said she told another neighbor about how I came out to her place to shoot groundhogs. The neighbor responded with "How much does he charge?" So looks like when I clean out this 1st place, I'll have another place to go!
I'm considering taking the 223 out on Thursday as the shots in the back 6 acres could be longer than 100 yards. But it's considerably louder. And remember, there's a bed and breakfast right next door, and I don't want to upset it's customers.
Here's the day's tally. The one on the right is the shotgun kill. The three on the right are pups...the one on the left is an adult female..but man, she was BIG!
Fun isn't it. 
WD
WD
I shot 9 this evening sitting in one spot on a farm where I could see two hay fields and parts of a pasture. Two were just over 500 yards, two over 400 yards and the rest were between 200 and 400 yards. Three misses too. But I got two of them on second tries. The third got away never to show again.
