One of the hardest hunts in a long time! And lesson learned!

Well, we went to the Big Boy Thicket last night. Blake, Jeff, Caleb, Ben who hasn't been out with us in a while, and myself dropped the dogs around 8:15. I had the pleasure of leaving my dogs at home this hunt. Grin

We had Zig, Pistol, Jane, and Jeff's new bulldog named Boone on the hunt with us. The dogs started getting their feet under em and staying busy fairly quickly. We got out into the bottoms and Zig darts off in front of us moving with a purpose, and Pistol in tow. Within about a minute, they sound off. We were about 100 out from em, and eased on to em. We got within about 80 yards and you could hear the group of hogs lighting up the woods and a fight breaking out, so we cut Jane and Boone to em from about 70 out. Ran in, and got the hog dispatched quickly and took a couple pics. Since they found a group we kicked the dogs back out and figured since it had only been 30 minutes we'd try and get a couple more.... LOL well that was not what we were in store for! The dogs went about a mile and came bayed so we headed to em. By the time we got to within couple hundred yards of where they were at when we started to em they were already another mile away. They were making the same route as a hog that I've been on last year twice in the same spot and still not caught so I knew we were going to be in for a trek. We decided to stay put for a while and see what they were going to do because of previous experiences. This hog is a track star let me tell you what. They looped this guy around right back in front of us and opened up, but were walking with it... and you know when Zig opens up that it's going to be a good hog. He pretty much catches, or tries to catch, anything around 250 or under... Since they were open we tried to head to em, and yet again, soon as we got close they started moving again and went 1.1 miles towards a highway. So instead of walking all night long chasing our tails we went and got the back strap out of the sow, and headed a mile back to the truck. Once we got to the truck, and headed around to try and cut them off at the highway, they started heading right back to the spot that we left... I'm talking within 50 yards from it... So at this point it's going on 1 o'clock and we are all about done. Zig is following this BIGBOY and opening up just about every 500 yards or so, which he only does when he is looking at something decent size, and Pistol has found her own group and is running with them. So we parked the truck, and head back down into the bottoms. We walked the mile back down, and got to within 150 yards from Pistol and could hear a decent group of hogs in this thick crap... So as we got within 100 yards they broke and were out at 600. At this point, Blake's Garmin had died, and mine had 1 battery bar left so we're kind of freaking out... So we sat tight, out in the middle of nowhere, and waited. Zig came back to us within 800 yards so we so screw it and headed to em threw some thick nasty jungle chit! He was wide open... we got within 80 yards and decided it was our best opportunity yet, so we cut Jane to him... wait... wait... hear water splashes... wait, and look down at Garmin... they broke and now Zig is 350 and steadily moving out, and Jane is 200+ trying to find him. It's 1:30-1:45 at this point, a 80ft creek in front of us, all of us have to work in the morning, the Garmin is about to die, so Blake decides to head back to the truck and get batteries to come look for them in the morning. We make the mile+ trek back to the truck and Jeff decides to wait out there all night for them. Blake laid his shirt down on a fence line, and we rolled out. I got home and in bed at about 3 this morning. Jeff calls me at 7 to let me know he went after Pistol and Jane and saw the biggest hog he's ever seen, and was able to grab up the two dogs as their collars were about to go dead as well... he also said that Jane and Pistol were about to fall out. He said he couldn't get a shot off because Zig was in the way, and by the time he grabbed Pistol and Jane, and looked down at the Garmin Zig was already .8 miles with this BIGBOY again. Keep in mind that this dog was dropped and had been in hogs since 8:30 P.M. or so.... it was now about 6:30-7A.M. So Jeff waited... After about an hour of seeing him sitting and on point, as Jeff was sitting at the truck, Zig just comes trotting up out of a field ready to go home and barely able to walk; he was done! YAY! So in the end, we ended up getting all three dogs back, got one hog within 30 minutes of being there, and got our arses whipped by BIGBOY Trackstar for the third time in about a year and a half. Lesson learned let me tell you... take the quick hunts as you can get em and don't be greedy. If you get a hog within 30 minutes on a hunt on a work night, cut your losses, grab dogs, and go home! Save the other hogs for another day! LOL! Grin

Father and Daughter (Zig and Pistol)

Jeff's new CD Boone

Caleb on his 4th hog! Lol!

Blake, Caleb, Jeff, and Ben... Oh and Ben's gnarly beard!!!