Hog/Gator hunt

[bambam]

Took my daughter, RayElla ( Lacie23 ) on a gator/hog hunt this past week in Okeechobee Florida. Had a great time and a great hunt. We started off after the hogs, riding in a swamp buggy . Saw lots of game...... water buffalo, corsican rams, even bison, but the hogs were hard to find. Our guide, Justin, decided to turn loose one of his redbone gyps to see if see if she could run one out of the thick swamp brush. It wasn't long before she was baying in a nasty thicket. We sneaked in and Justin saw the hog's head through the brush. I got RayElla into position and told her to shoot it right behind the ear. ( It was facing away from us and quartering to our right. She shot and the hog's head flew sideways and down it went !!!  Before I could give her a high- five, the hog was up and running straight us !! 

  I grabbed the gun at the same time Justin yelled  "RUN"  !!  He and RayElla took off for the swamp buggy as I took aim at the hog. I really didn't want to shoot it again because I knew she hit it hard and wanted her to have a clean kill, but I couldn't let it get past me and get to them so I didn't have much choice. Just as I started to shoot it veered off to my left and into the brush.

  Soon after, the dog started baying again about 100 yards to the west. We sneaked around but could not see   the hog anywhere. We decided to take the dog back to the original spot and put it back on the hog's trail. We went in and turned the dog loose on the trail. As we started to walk out, I heard something moving in the exact spot where the hog was when RayElla shot. I whispered to Justin, " It's back in the same spot ". We eased in and suddenly Justin turned to me and smiled.  " It's laying there kicking, " He said.

  We looked at each other and said at the same time,  " There were 2 frickin' hogs ! "


RayElla had made a perfect shot. Her hog had dropped in its' tracks, and the hog that charged us had been a second hog lying behind it that we couldn't see for the thick brush.   By the time we loaded her hog in the swamp buggy, the dog was baying again back at the second spot it had bayed. We went back around and after a while Justin spotted the hog's ear in the brush. I worked around and finally could see the back of it's head, but the dog was barking in it's face and I had no shot. After a while the dog finally moved out of the way but before I could shoot the hog took off.

  It crossed the trail into a brushy ditch. We followed the hog and dog up and down the ditch. Every time I could get a clear shot, either the dog was in the way or the hog would take off. After a while, I got a clear shot with it quartering to me and the dog out of the way. I shot it in the neck and it dropped like Obama's favorability rating. 

  It didn't stay down long though. It jumped back up and took off up the ditch.    We took off on a dead run after them . We now had a 180 pound wounded, mad boar, being chased by a 30 pound redbone gyp, and I was praying out loud that the hog would not hurt or kill the dog.


We ran as fast as we could in the 95 degree heat for about 800 yards. Finally, the hog and dog broke out of the brush into a cattle pasture. The hog backed up against a barbed wire fence with the dog right in its' face. I got a rest on a fencepost but my heart was beating 800 times per minute. When it finally slowed to around 500 beats per minute, I shot again. The hog's back legs buckled, and he finally went down and rolled over.   By the time we got to them, that redbone had him by the head and was really going to town. I rested in the shade of the barbed wire  while Justin went back for the swamp buggy. We got him loaded up and took the hogs back to the ranch house and put them in the cooler.


 

  Next it was time for the gator hunt. Another guide, Javier, the gator man, joined us for the gator hunt. We started off in the swamp buggy to check some canals for gators. We saw several but they were really skittish and would go down as soon as they saw us. We couldn't get within 100 yards of any of them, and I wasn't sure I could hit a target the size of a walnut at that distance from the top of that swamp buggy. The only rest was a low rail that was too high to shoot prone and too low to shoot sitting or kneeling. This was going to be a challenge.

  Finally Javier said we would check a pond that had some soft-shelled turtles that the gators liked to eat. As we neared the pond, he saw a gator that was the size we wanted, but it went down. He parked the swamp buggy about 40 yards from the pond and we waited. after about 40 minutes, the gator came back up. Unfortunately , the grass and weeds were so tall, that I could only shoot off-hand. I took several slow breaths, steadied the gun , and took the shot.   The gator rolled several times and went down . Javier threw the hook in and dragged him up on the bank. The 222 had taken the top of his head off. It was a nice 7 - footer.

  Now it was RayElla's turn. I had wanted her to shoot the first gator, but she was nervous and wanted me to shoot first. I hoped she would get an easier shot than I had. We went to another pond and immediately saw several gators. Javier pointed one out that was the size we wanted but it went down before she could get a good rest. We worked our way around the pond but every time she got a rest they would go down. Finally, one went down about 40 yards from us, so we got a good rest ready and waited. It finally came back up in the same spot. She took aim  and shot it but it went down. Javier threw the hook in and snagged it on the first try. He pulled it up to  the bank and she opened its' head like a canoe. A nice fat 8 -footer !!   

 

We spent the rest of the week fishing and caught some nice catfish and saw a lot of gators, some really big ones. The Good Lord blessed us with a great hunt and brought us home safe. 

[possumal]

Great story and pictures.  I really like the part about the little redbone hound giving that hog what for.  Glad you two had a great trip.

[coyotehunter_1]

It sure sounds like you two had a blast, put a hurtin' on some hogs and swamp lizards too.

[bambam]

Great story and pictures.  I really like the part about the little redbone hound giving that hog what for.  Glad you two had a great trip.

I know I've seen braver dogs in my life possumal, but I really can't remember when. That was one brave dog. 

[FinsnFur]

Geez, I'm jealous. That sounds like an awesome way to spend a few days
Tell Lacie congrats on the hog for us. That was some good reading especially the two hog ordeal.
Thanks for sharing it.

[HaMeR]

Super cool trip you 2 had!! Congratulations on your success!! 

[HuntnCarve]

Congrats to both you and RayElla.   The young lady is turning into quite the hunter. I know you are very proud of her, as we all are here.  Sounds like you had a great adventure.  The memories will last a lifetime for sure.

Dave

[iahntr]

Very nice ! Sounds like a really great time,
and even better sharing it with your daughter.
Thanks for sharin it with us.   

[Frogman]

That sounds like fun!!

Jim

[shaddragger]

  Quite an adventure you two had! The young lady is obviously an accomplished hunter and shooter!