TEXAS pigs!

[Alleycat72]

[Alleycat72]

10 in hand on this trip. 3 around 300 lbs. 3 in the 45 lbs range. The others were 150-250 range.  A 300 # wild pig is huge . Some of the pig got to the wood line. It's a no go zone and we don't count them. If we don't have eyes on he won't let us go in after them. 

 

[Lumber_Jack]

9 hours ago, Erik88 said:

That's good to know. What's your take on the hog population in TN? Again, I've heard a lot of different things. A friend of mine has a family farm in Fentress county(800 or so acres). He says they have never come across evidence of hogs there which surprised me. 

Im actually shocked that anyone in fentress county hasn’t seen any hogs. We used to manage 25,000 acres up there and it was flat out covered with hogs. One neighbor farmer killed 35 in one weekend. 
 

as for Tennessee as a whole we have plenty of hogs but nothing compared to some other southern states especially Texas. A few years ago TWRA took hogs off the big game species list making them illegal to hunt. Now you can still kill them on private property and such but the biggest problem was commercial hunters and guides were transporting wild hogs all of the state to make a profit. So delisting the hogs made it easier to prosecute and cite anyone who had hogs. Hogs are one of those things that we’d never eradicate. Not enough hunters or trappers anymore to even make a dent. 

[Quavodus]

I worked with an older guy a few years ago that was from Fentress. He said he had a lot on his land. He couldn't have a garden at all. Started trapping them all the time. Still don't think he had made a dent in them.

[Alleycat72]

Not a monster, but I wanted something besides pictures. 

[Quavodus]

Real nice skull mount.

[Alleycat72]

Getting ready to head out to Texas again. 

[Handsome Rob]

Man, i really want to dip a toe in this night hunting! 

I reckon if I had skin in this game I could really nail a few.

[MacGyver]

41 minutes ago, Handsome Rob said:

Man, i really want to dip a toe in this night hunting! 

I reckon if I had skin in this game I could really nail a few.

I think it’s kind of like shooting with a suppressor.

Once you’ve done it - especially with a nocturnal creature like a pig - there’s no going back to how it was before.

It seems like it’s a pretty sizable lift to get started though. 

[Handsome Rob]

Unfortunately it's both fiscally & legally beyond my capabilities!

[Omega]

19 minutes ago, Handsome Rob said:

Unfortunately it's both fiscally & legally beyond my capabilities!

You would be surprised, a TX trip is not all that expensive as long as you stay away from the high fence places, and NV has some inexpensive options out there, at least until the bug bites and you go for a more expensive option.

https://smile.amazon.com/Sumger-Infrared-Cameras-Riflescope-Portable/dp/B07BS42JLG

[Handsome Rob]

Unfortunately, ITAR regulations prevent me, legally, from even looking through NV or thermal scopes!

Just in case i'm a spy. 

Seriously. 

Q: Is Night Vision / Thermal Legal?

A: Yes, here in the United States, citizens may own and use Night Vision and Thermal Optics. However, it is against the law to take these devices out of the country for any reason. It is also against the law to allow a non-U.S. Citizen to look through these devices. Night Vision and Thermal devices fall under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR for short. To make a long story short, the goal here is we don’t want these powerful devices to fall into the hands of our enemies. If you have questions on any of this information, we will be happy to discuss and clarify.

[Omega]

27 minutes ago, Handsome Rob said:

Unfortunately, ITAR regulations prevent me, legally, from even looking through NV or thermal scopes!

Just in case i'm a spy. 

Seriously. 

Q: Is Night Vision / Thermal Legal?

A: Yes, here in the United States, citizens may own and use Night Vision and Thermal Optics. However, it is against the law to take these devices out of the country for any reason. It is also against the law to allow a non-U.S. Citizen to look through these devices. Night Vision and Thermal devices fall under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR for short. To make a long story short, the goal here is we don’t want these powerful devices to fall into the hands of our enemies. If you have questions on any of this information, we will be happy to discuss and clarify.

Seems like a bunch of BS, I know for a fact that we train many a foreigner, under NVGs, here in the US and abroad.

[Chucktshoes]

6 minutes ago, Omega said:

Seems like a bunch of BS, I know for a fact that we train many a foreigner, under NVGs, here in the US and abroad.

Different rules for .gov orgs. They aren’t bound by ITAR in the same way. 

[Omega]

4 hours ago, Chucktshoes said:

Different rules for .gov orgs. They aren’t bound by ITAR in the same way. 

Yes, I know, but it doesn't take away the fact that it's BS.  I can understand not exporting tech, but WTF are they protecting when they prohibit viewing through one?  If that is the case just about every gun owning foreigner, as well as YouTube poster has broken the law with all those videos of night hunting.

[MacGyver]

The whole thing on ITAR/NV is suspect at best. But it’s one of those things you don’t really want to test - especially over the last few years.

I’ve never thought about whether ITAR applies to foreign made tubes. I mean you want to stay away from the old Soviet era ones that’ll burn your retinas out.  But the new Russian ones that frankly already show that ITAR needs to be overhauled are pretty decent. 

[221 Fireball]

5 hours ago, Handsome Rob said:

Unfortunately, ITAR regulations prevent me, legally, from even looking through NV or thermal scopes!

Just in case i'm a spy. 

Seriously. 

Q: Is Night Vision / Thermal Legal?

A: Yes, here in the United States, citizens may own and use Night Vision and Thermal Optics. However, it is against the law to take these devices out of the country for any reason. It is also against the law to allow a non-U.S. Citizen to look through these devices. Night Vision and Thermal devices fall under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR for short. To make a long story short, the goal here is we don’t want these powerful devices to fall into the hands of our enemies. If you have questions on any of this information, we will be happy to discuss and clarify.

Wow. Just not fair for a dedicated pig hunter! You're doing the U.S. a favor!

How many more dogs do ya have to groom before you can turn that green card in for the permanent one? 

[Chucktshoes]

2 hours ago, MacGyver said:

The whole thing on ITAR/NV is suspect at best. But it’s one of those things you don’t really want to test - especially over the last few years.

I’ve never thought about whether ITAR applies to foreign made tubes. I mean you want to stay away from the old Soviet era ones that’ll burn your retinas out.  But the new Russian ones that frankly already show that ITAR needs to be overhauled are pretty decent. 

According to the best information I have, ITAR works in amusing ways. Once foreign made tubes or other ITAR controlled items hit US soil, they are ITAR controlled. So that full power Russian Perst laser that my buddy ordered from Ivan Tactical became ITAR and it can’t be shipped back for warranty repair if it breaks. ITAR rules are nonsensical in many respects, but I don’t recommend playing games on that front. 

[Chucktshoes]

2 hours ago, Omega said:

Yes, I know, but it doesn't take away the fact that it's BS.  I can understand not exporting tech, but WTF are they protecting when they prohibit viewing through one?  If that is the case just about every gun owning foreigner, as well as YouTube poster has broken the law with all those videos of night hunting.

Gotcha. I agree. Still doesn’t mean I’m playing those games. 

[Omega]

10 hours ago, Chucktshoes said:

Gotcha. I agree. Still doesn’t mean I’m playing those games. 

Yea no, I wouldn't either.  I usually follow the law as much as possible, whether I agree with it or not, but that doesn't mean I won't decry them when I find out about them. 

[Alleycat72]

19 more down Friday night. Our buddy opened up with his M16. 33 hours from middle Tennessee to Texas and back to Tennessee. Planning 2 to 3 more runs this year. Probably going to do a 2 night hunt October or September. I did laugh my ass off at my buddy. He had a 200 lb hog almost get him with its cutters. I popped it and we discussed his octave range. 

Edited June 27, 2021 by alleycat72

[Frog4aday]

Dang @alleycat72, you and your buddies have definitely found a hot spot of hogs there in TX. I used to hunt south of San Antonio, near Devine, and we'd get maybe three apiece (3 hunters) on a weekend hunt & we had fun & were happy with that. Your setup is sweet, too (night vision & suppressor.) Definitely the way to go. Maybe that's what's helping you all get so many multiples; you aren't nearly as loud as we were, running our unsuppressed guns.

 

And - for the record for those still unsure since it came up earlier - hogs are perfectly fine to eat. Just gut 'em, skin 'em, & get them on ice (in a cooler) quickly. Roasts & sausage were my favorite "wild boar" meats.

Edited June 28, 2021 by Frog4aday
Loud, not load

[ACfixer]

Is this a paid hunt alleycat72? If so, do you want to share the outfitter?

The prospect of a non-resident going down for a couple days in TX and killing wild hogs on public land is laughably small. I've "hunted" high fence place before and they run the gamut but most aren't real challenging and it's expensive.

[Alleycat72]

1 hour ago, ACfixer said:

Is this a paid hunt alleycat72? If so, do you want to share the outfitter?

The prospect of a non-resident going down for a couple days in TX and killing wild hogs on public land is laughably small. I've "hunted" high fence place before and they run the gamut but most aren't real challenging and it's expensive.

It's paid. $250 a night if you have your own equipment. $300 if you use his. I've hunted private land that was free. It was a small airport that was having problems. We killed 17 in about 20 minutes, but that was it for that trip.  They were happy. If you have never hunted at night, I strongly suggest you go with an outfitter first. At the very least don't go alone. It's a very different type of hunting. They keep an eye on you a try and keep you out of trouble. This time of year I hunt about 3 to 4 days a week at night on depredation permits. We pass up a lot of shots due to shooting vectors in relation to houses. We hunt with T4 outfitters in Texas. They have access to 46k acres. No high fence. They even offer knife hunting. We are currently looking at a few others. Hog swat is in South Georgia and will give you a bunch of options. We've had people offer to pay us if we'll come kill hogs. 

[MacGyver]

South Georgia is worth having someone who knows what they’re doing the first time, too.

Same feeders that attract pigs attract gators and big snakes too.