Hog Hunt At Sweetwater Creek Ranch
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First Hunt

Mike Little drove Rick Philippi and I to the area he told us about earlier. Mike pointed out a large watering hole in the valley below us and the gully the hogs frequently use. He suggested we hunt from a clump of Black Locust trees where the gully ended. You can see these trees in the picture below and the winding gully that goes right to it.

The surroundings may look baron in the picture but that is not the case. For instance, the hill on the far side of the trees is all knee high and waist high broom weeds and other natural growth. The trees are up against a fenced in food plot area.

We walked down to the Black Locust trees and found a place to wait for hogs. We sat on the ground. When Rick hunts deer or hogs he likes to put out cover scent and uses Scent Wafers from Wildlife Research Center. He got some from his backpack and hung a couple on a small limb ... just as a small hog walked out of the gully 28 yards in front of us. The hog saw Rick and boogied up the hill.

Rick waited a few minutes and hung up WRC Scent Wafers in 4 more places. As he hung the last one an adult hog came trotting out of some broom weeds uphill and veered off away from us. We had been here less than 5 minutes and had already seen 2 wild hogs.

The wait began. 

Here is Rick on the lookout for wild hog action. The Black Locust trees are mostly thin trees with a dense canopy of small leaves that make for excellent shade as well as cover for us.

Cloud cover set in as the sun got lower. A few minutes after 8:00 I saw the backs of three hogs sticking up above the broom weed, moving in the direction of the field next to us. Our clump of trees is up against a ranch fence that runs around a 25 acre field that has some kind of food plot plants growing in it. 

I signaled Rick that hogs were coming and in seconds they came into the field at the rusty pipe H-Post corner 60 yards from us. I took their picture at 8:08. 

Whatever was growing in the field had their interest and they gobbled down the green leaves and stems. In this picture they are getting closer to us. You can make out the cross fence in the background. 

I laid belly down on the ground to take pictures and Rick inched himself into a better position for a shot. The hogs came closer to us.

The lead boar walked by me at 15 yards. Rick was a few yards to my right and was waiting for the hog to get to an opening in the trees so he could shoot.

The boar stopped and looked toward me as I took this picture. You can see the green stalk of one of the plants he is eating. I was hoping he hadn't busted me and froze solid.

But the hog didn't make me and it continued on, getting closer to Rick with every step. I stayed frozen in place and the hog went out of my view. 

Crack! 

The loud noise as Rick shot didn't sound just right. The boar ran back the way it came and the two others followed it.

"Did you get him?" I asked. "What was that noise?"

Rick's arrow had struck a small limb and deflected under the wild boar. Rick recovered his arrow to be absolutely certain that he hadn't hit the boar. He hadn't. 

Once again we went into "waiting" mode.

At 8:21 the back of another black hog caught my eye as it walked though the broom weeds toward the H-Post corner.

CONTINUED...

ARRIVAL DAY

Rick Philippi and I drove to Decator, Texas and took the road to Sweetwater Creek Ranch. Mike Little met us and took us to the lodge we will be staying and we unloaded our gear. Mike told us about a gully that hogs frequently use when they come out of the seep areas and a swamp. The gully has a fence running through it and the hogs have dug a hole under the fence. Mike said we can stalk them in the gully. He thinks we might do good there. 

Mike will pick us at 6:00. We'll be ready.

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