We're on our way home from a wedding yesterday, passing the garden center farm, and my wife spots a groundhog in the field near the road. I glance over quickly and sure enough there it is. I look at my watch. 6:30 and I'm thinking, I've got time to change and get at it.
In a half hour I'm driving onto the property. As I pull in I spot another one under that same shed where I nailed one a week or two ago when the wife was with me. But of course it sees me too and heads for cover. I keep going to a spot where I figure I can get a shot at the one we saw driving by.
I'm looking around and looking around. I finally spot a head behind some weeds, but based on the direction it's going I won't have a shot. So I turn the truck around and drive to a location on the other side of the property where I'm hoping I can get the angle I need.
I get to the area I want and slowly creep the truck to where I can just see the hog in back of the weeds. I get the gun, flip down the bipods, adjust them for the angle of the hood of the truck and load a round in the 223. Grab the binos and range the hog at 185. Put the crosshairs on it and whack! Not even a twitch. One down.
Hope Photobucket doesn't flag and delete this one. Trust me, there's more guts than what you see in the picture.
Now I head back to where I saw the one duck back under the shed. I pull the truck into position and wait. It's going to be a tough shot because of all the obstacles in the way; fences, tent poles and ropes. The hog finally shows. I take the shot, it flops around and disappears behind the shed. I go for the retrieval, but no body. Grrrrr!!!
In the mean time, I get a text from the owner of the farm that tells me he has spotted two around the barn near the house. I text back I'm headed right over (his house and farm are adjacent to the garden center property). I'm glassing the fields and barns as I drive in, but see nothing. I park the truck in the back of the property with a view of the barn next to the house.
All settled in, gun ready (for a change) and waiting. I text him back (I can see he's not home) "front or back"? He says front. Nuts. I'm in the wrong place. But I glass one more time and bingo. I see a head peaking out of the door to the lower part of the barn. 106 yards. I ease the door open, place the gun between the door and the window frame. She stands up to get a better look at me. Pull the trigger. Another whack! Center punched her.
I drive the truck slowly to the front of the same barn looking for the other one. Nothing. So I drive up to the house to take one more look. It's now 10 minutes after sunset and time to leave. I glass one more time and sure enough, I spot one within 20 yards of where I was just parked. 190 yards. Put the gun on the hood of the truck, take aim, a miss. The hog doesn't move. I'm out of ammo. Go to the cab, retrieve a round, load it up, take aim again, pull the trigger. Love that sound! Whack!!
Just inches from its hole. I was lucky for sure.
Four shots, three down. I know the other one is a gonner, but no body for proof.
Like I said, that was fun!!!
In a half hour I'm driving onto the property. As I pull in I spot another one under that same shed where I nailed one a week or two ago when the wife was with me. But of course it sees me too and heads for cover. I keep going to a spot where I figure I can get a shot at the one we saw driving by.
I'm looking around and looking around. I finally spot a head behind some weeds, but based on the direction it's going I won't have a shot. So I turn the truck around and drive to a location on the other side of the property where I'm hoping I can get the angle I need.
I get to the area I want and slowly creep the truck to where I can just see the hog in back of the weeds. I get the gun, flip down the bipods, adjust them for the angle of the hood of the truck and load a round in the 223. Grab the binos and range the hog at 185. Put the crosshairs on it and whack! Not even a twitch. One down.
Hope Photobucket doesn't flag and delete this one. Trust me, there's more guts than what you see in the picture.
Now I head back to where I saw the one duck back under the shed. I pull the truck into position and wait. It's going to be a tough shot because of all the obstacles in the way; fences, tent poles and ropes. The hog finally shows. I take the shot, it flops around and disappears behind the shed. I go for the retrieval, but no body. Grrrrr!!!
In the mean time, I get a text from the owner of the farm that tells me he has spotted two around the barn near the house. I text back I'm headed right over (his house and farm are adjacent to the garden center property). I'm glassing the fields and barns as I drive in, but see nothing. I park the truck in the back of the property with a view of the barn next to the house.
All settled in, gun ready (for a change) and waiting. I text him back (I can see he's not home) "front or back"? He says front. Nuts. I'm in the wrong place. But I glass one more time and bingo. I see a head peaking out of the door to the lower part of the barn. 106 yards. I ease the door open, place the gun between the door and the window frame. She stands up to get a better look at me. Pull the trigger. Another whack! Center punched her.
I drive the truck slowly to the front of the same barn looking for the other one. Nothing. So I drive up to the house to take one more look. It's now 10 minutes after sunset and time to leave. I glass one more time and sure enough, I spot one within 20 yards of where I was just parked. 190 yards. Put the gun on the hood of the truck, take aim, a miss. The hog doesn't move. I'm out of ammo. Go to the cab, retrieve a round, load it up, take aim again, pull the trigger. Love that sound! Whack!!
Just inches from its hole. I was lucky for sure.
Four shots, three down. I know the other one is a gonner, but no body for proof.
Like I said, that was fun!!!
