Annual Groundhog tally for 2012

Originally Posted By: Jonathanwell I ran out of video before it (the hunting) got good but I have ny first g-hog on video more and better videos to come i hope bare with me folks I am new to the video stuff!

Marlin 1894SS with 265gr hard cast Ranch Dogs (home cast) over a stiff load of H-110

hope this works and that if anything the pro's will get a laugh at my fugly video lol
Jonathan
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Was wondering when you were going to start posting Jonathan. Glad to see you back. Cannot wait to see some video from your neck of the woods.
Beautiful country you have up there!

Dave
 
Nice shootin guys! Would have had one (I hope) at 210 yds tonight with the 223, but the darned thing took a dive while I was getting set up and never showed for 2 hours!!!
 
Okay, I know I can get long winded so I'll try to make this shorter, but no guarantees.

Go back to the first time I went to the new 20 acre property of my friend and the three ghogs I shot that day. Now go to the location where I shot the first of those three. I'll come back there in a minute.

I go back to this farm with the intention of getting the one I missed from offhand that day cause my friend called and told me the hay was cut. I bring the 17 HMR and a mat I can use for a prone position on the top of a knoll that overlooks the whole. Only the hay was not cut all the way to the whole and I can't see for a good shot. Stayed there probably a half hour hoping something might happen. Nada.

So I decide to take a walk just to see what I can see. Big mistake, I left the gun on the knoll. I get down to the location of the first kill that first day, peek around the cedars and wouldn't you know it, there's a hog there. It sees me, but doesn't go down the hole. I back away, go get the gun, go to the otherside of the cedars to take a look, but no ghod.
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I get down in a sitting position with the gun up, scope on the hole and wait. And wait. And wait some more until finally I see a nose. And still I wait. Then a head. And still I wait. I'm going to continue to wait until it comes out of the whole for a clean shot with no chance of losing it down the hole. It's not happening.

The ghog drops down. I think I see it, but I'm not sure. So I'm still waiting and waiting. Once again I can see the nose, then half a head and I'm tired of holding the same position for what seem like forever and shoot. Maybe 50 yards?

I go down to the hole and just what I was trying to avoid, no ghog. Not even down the hole. Pissed! I must have shot over its head.

Walk back up the hill for another chance at my first intended target, but it's just not going to work, so I decide to take another walk and just for the heck of it, I make my way over to a rise that overlooks my waterloo. It's been about 10 minutes. You guessed it, there it is walking from left to right, away from the hole toward the hedgerow and the neigbor's property.

It sees me at first, so I duck down while making my way to the edge of the rise and look up again. This time the ghog takes off running. I get down in a sitting position again, whistle (the first time I've ever tried this) and when it gets to the tall grass at the barbed wire fence, it stands up. I lower the gun, take a breath, put the scope on its chest and pull the trigger. The ghog disappears, but I'm pretty sure I heard a smack. Glass it at 85 yards. Could be my first kill from a sitting position ever?

Walk down to the spot and sure enough, one dead ghog and yet another female. Entrance right front shoulder and exit left rear shoulder. Little bit of mange on its back. Here is the DRT and the details. Moved it out of the tall grass for the pictures.

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Story still not over. (So much for a shorter story)
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I walk back to the house to leave, see the owner, chat for a couple of minutes, put everthing away, hop in the truck and drive down the driveway to the main road (rural country road) and there at the very front of the property is another ghog. I can't resist. While I'm getting the gun out of its case from the back seat, loading it with ammo and positioning it for a safe shot, the hog just sits there and watches. It's asking for it, so I oblige.
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30 yds.

Only one picture from a distance cause I can't get over the barbed wire fence to get any details, but I can see, and I think you can see in the picture, that it's bleeding really good. Shot should have hit it right under the chin.

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All in all a fun, frustrating and exciting evening. Sorry for the length, again. I tried. It's hard for me to be brief!
 
The sun finally came out this morning after several days of rain and clouds, so I headed over to one of my farms about 1 pm where I saw a ghog earlier in the week. I had a spot all planned where I could shoot from 210 yds with my Savage Venture in 223 for the first long shot of the season.

When I pulled onto the property and glassed in the direction of the hole, I spotted the ghog a good distance from the hole. I pulled the truck into position, got out to retrieve the gun and get set up. Just then a friend pulled up in his truck, radio blarring, talking a blue streak. Sure enough, the ghog runs for its hole and disappears. He obviously didn't think a head of time that he could be interrupting my hunt.

It was this same friend that spooked the ghod earlier in the week when he pulled onto the property close to the burrow. That time he didn't know I was there. Foiled again!

Anyway, he came over to work the garden on a small piece of land the owner lets him use. He plants potatoes, tomatoes, beets, brocolli and other crops to supply a local soup kitchen and our church pantry. And since my hunt was blown, I followed him to the garden to help with some hoeing and planting.

Now it just so happens that the garden is only ten to forty yards from the ghog burrow depending where you are, so while I'm working, I'm checking the hole. About two hours after we started, I spotted the ghog peeking out of the hole. You could just see its nose and eyes. It would be there for a couple of minutes and then disappear. This happend several times in the next hour.

I told my friend I was still planning on the 210 yard shot tomorrow when he asked me if I would bring the hog, or any hog, to him right away so he could gut and skin it for someone who wanted it for food. It was then I decided to harvest this ghog right now. So I walked over to the truck, pulled out the 17 HMR, loaded it up and walked over to my friend's truck on the far side of the garden. Using the side rail on his truck for a rest, I found the ghog peeking from its hole, lined up the crosshairs and shot for the neck. I heard the smack. We walked over to the hole and found a dead, younger male. No time for pictures since we both left right then. Guess the day worked out after all, in a variety of ways.
 
Dogbone - you probably saved his garden from that groundhog! He owes you!
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Way to take care of business.

I also went back to try and get the one that got away yesterday. I parked an extra 100 yards or so away to try and get a longer shot, having to set up in the bed of my truck due to the height of the corn. My little friend showed up not long after I did and he went for a stroll. I stuck a V-max under his belly and he ran back to his hole while the red clay sprayed all over.

By now I am roasting in the 90 degree heat, sweat running off me as I watch through the binos and hope he is the curious type. I'm having issues getting a good return on the laser range finder so not feeling good about my scope adjustments. It is far enough away that being off will make a difference. He sure enough turns out to be curious and his head starts coming back out after only a few minutes. Eventually I see most of him, dial another click of elevation, and find my shot. POW! The V-Max dropped him without a twitch! When I got to the groundhog I found I drilled it right in the neck. I back-ranged and had my personal best at 447 yards. Now I'm wishing I had just driven another 50 yards!
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Later one I decide to try and call in a coyote. My Foxpro was squawking away when I heard the pitter-patter of an animal advancing towards me from the woods to my rear. This red fox pops out abut 20' from me, oblivious to me and focused 100% on the caller! I got this picture after he ran up to the caller, then spun around and ran back to the woods. He stayed behind me for quite awhile moving around, then came back out again when I tried another sound.

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Don't go getting greedy now. Nice shot! I'll probably never see that kind of distance around here. I amazes me that you guys can see that far away at some little spec. Great pics too! Cute little fox. Are they fair game where you are?

How do you put the labels on your pictures (words and arrows, etc.)?
 
There is a season for Fox in the fall/winter. I rely on my binos to see most of my groundhogs, especially anything over 200 yards unless they stand up tall or something. I make it a point to scan for them as far away as possible to get the longer shots. The ones around here run no matter how far away you are so it helps to see them first.
 
Wahoo congrats on your longest shot to date, won't be long and you'll pass the 500 yard mark. Guys I have been out of the game for over a year last time out was Aug of 2010. Went out yesterday saw 5 total and took 4 of them all from the same hole at 175 yards due to hole location and treeline. Anyway will try to post pics later right now at Patient First with daughter looks like twisted ankle.
 
Nice shooting wahoowad!!
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Like you I'm now shooting for the 500 yard club. I got a little piggy in mind that can help me achieve it too. Last time I saw him I was able to get a 525 yd. reading. Just a matter of time before I take him down.

Great pics by the way too.

Dave
 
You guys have been after them. I missed one twice at 575yds last week before work with my 243win. My buddy called and said he had him ranged at 590yds. The chuck walked out from the hole and I shot over his head with the 590yds dope. I couldn't believe I nearly got him in the head the first shot. Second was a hair over his back at the mound. After re-ranging, we realized it was only 575yds to the mound. Today I went coyote hunting and had quite a day. I did manage to take a chuck as a bonus to my calling efforts.
Morning coyotes and a bear
I checked a few brushpiles that usually have chucks when I see a nose sticking up over a log in the pile. I get a safe angle and have to setup on the shooting sticks in a kneeling position to clear the tall grass nearly waist deep. I shot him through the ear at 102yds with my Remington Model 7 in 17rem. He just puffed up and slid off the log in the scope. Some blood around the entrance and had no exit using the 25gr. Berger Target Hp's. Man I love this little rifle.
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Finally got the opportunity to harvest a ghog with the Savage Venture in 223. First of the season. I bought this gun early Fall last year, but did not get the chance to take it to the field.

Went back to the farm where I got skunked yesterday. Only this time I spotted one almost immediately after parking the truck. I quickly ranged the hog at about 140 yards. A distance I was not comfortable using the 17 HMR.

Got the gun, walked to the back of the truck, opened the window of the cap, lowered the tailgate and lowered the window. Stepped up on the tailgate, lowered the bipod and searched for the quarry. Nothing. Waited awhile and still nothing. I was sure the hog didn't climb over the berm it was on. I figured it must have dropped down below the visble plane between me and it. After 45 minutes of waiting, it finally reappeared, headed for the top of the berm and I was ready.

I placed the crosshairs on its shoulder and let fly a 45 gr hollow point. Wack! The hog didn't move. Once the tail flag went up I knew it was over. Ranged it again at 137 yds. Cold bore shot with the Venture.

Here is the DRT, the entrance wound and the ID. A smaller male with some light mange on its head.

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Enjoying some quiet time on my back porch reading when I start hearing noises and I realize I've got another ghog in the burrow under the porch. It's whoofing and what sounds like knawing on the beams. I've already shot two so far from that same burrow. How many more are there???

I should have gotten up right then and there, gone inside and readied my Marlin Model 60 in the bedroom at the opposite end of the house where I've sniped the other two, but instead I kept on reading. Next thing I know it pops up on a large boulder maybe 15 feet from me. I freeze. It lays down on the boulder facing away from me. I'm not moving, just watching. Then it turns and looks straight at me. Now it's a stare down. This happens two or three times until it settles down, sunning, with its back to me.

Very slowly I drop my right leg from the lounge chair to the floor. So far so good. Then I swing my left leg to the floor. Still good. Then, I stand up and start moving for the sliding glass door to the house. It turns, sees the movement and disappears under the porch. Nuts!!! Let the game begin.

I go to the bedroom, raise the blinds, open the window and position the gun in the window for the shot and wait. About five or ten minutes later it's back up on the same boulder. I'm in the kitchen watching. I move to the bedroom and attempt to shoulder the gun while kneeling, but it's on high alert and must have spotted movement through the window. Again it disappears under the porch.

This time I rearrange the gun and shooting position to afford as much stealth as possible if another opportunity presents itself. I'm going to have to be very stealthy cause this one is unusually wary.

For the next half hour I'm back and forth between the window in the kitchen and peering through the blinds at the window in the downstairs rec room that looks out under the deck. I can't see the entrance to the burrow because of a support beam, but I do see some movement once and awhile. Between my trips up and down the stairs, the ghog appears two or three times at the edge of the porch, peeking out, but not exposing itself.

Then it finally comes out and heads for the top of another boulder, but I can tell that I have no shot from the bedroom. It climbs down and I'm thinking it might start feeding up the hill from the porch, but nothing. So I head back down to my peep in the rec room and observe the ghog just sitting there. Then it starts grooming itself. A couple of time it looks right at me. This lasts at least ten minutes until finally it ventures out from its hide.

By the time I get to the kitchen, it's back up on the original boulder, standing straight up and sniffing the air. My wife and I watch it for several minutes while it looks at the house then looks left and then right. I decide to head to the bedroom and wait for my best shot. It finally seems to settle down a little, staring at the porch and presenting me with a broadside facing left. I crouch down, crawl on my hands and knees until I'm in position behind the gun. I raise up ever so slowly, take aim with the iron sights and pull the trigger. The 36 grain Rem hollow point finds its mark and the ghog tumbles off the boulder about 25 yds away and dies withing three feet of the first time we spotted each other nearly and hour ago. Don't mess with the supreme hunter! Boy that was fun!!!

Here are the DRT, the exit wound (looked, but could not find the entrance) and the ID shots. Looks like a mature female, but it's not nursing. I forget the sex of the other two I shot before? Wonder what else could be in the borrow???

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By the way, the Venture is a T/C, not a Savage. My bad!
 
Haven't really had the time to get out much but did manage a couple more took this one with the 17 FB about 100 yrds

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and this with my new CZ 17 M2 at 50 yrds
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After a solid 1.5 days of hard rain, it let up for a few hours today. I got a later start than I wanted,but did see 7 in about 1 hour! After missing the first little one with the 22 pistol ,I got 2 with the 223 AI . Saw 2 adults that I could not shoot,no permission. Returned to where I got the 2 little guys and killed one with the pistol.


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