250lb hog | Belton, TX
First kill of the 2014 fall season on my pops' property. Known as "Dice Grove" among our family members, it's a 300-acre piece of land that includes 6 ponds and Little River running right through it. It's one of my favorite places to be and one of the most beautiful pieces of land I've ever seen. Not to mention the history behind it is pretty spectacular! I will make a post about it at a later time.
I was in a tree stand about 20 feet up and this big girl came tearing through the brush. She wasn't trying to be quiet, that's for sure! And she was ALONE! I'm so used to hogs being in a sounder, especially making the kind of noise she did. She wasn't around long, but obvoiusly long enough. She turned perfectly broadside and I will admit, I pulled left, shooting her in her jugular vein instead of behind her shoulder as I planned. You can imagine the blood trail. INSANE. Honestly, it's probably a good thing I pulled because hogs are so tough, especially at this size! I've seen perfect shots behind the shoulder and they run for hundreds of yards. She ran about 75 yards and crashed. With it being such a big one, I waited an hour to go get her and I took my dog, a catahoula-pit mix named "Junebug" with me. She's a tough girl and went straight to her. This was the perfect start to my deer season, getting my confidence built up for the rest of the fall and winter. Believe it or not, we ate this girl and the ribs were phenomonal!
WHAT I LEARNED:
Sometimes a "mistake" can be a blessing in disguise. As I mentioned before, this was not where I intended to shoot her, but I don't think I would've had an equivalent blood trail behind the shoulder. Don't be so hard on yourself, a kill is a kill, and you will continue to learn with every hunt.
