I would like to share a few funny, well maybe not so funny, things while out in the field. After being teamed up with Shannon and Kristin we found ourselves tagging along with mentors Deb, Michele, and their hunter Carol. The first day we spent glassing an area we were sent to and ended up a wash that just kept getting narrower as we went. After walking ahead we decided we better back up before it was to late to turn around. This was the start of mine and Deb's new pinstripe makeover on our trucks. After returning to camp for lunch we moved to another area a little more promising with lots of country to glass. On our way back that evening Kristin sees a pig running along side the truck and we all bailed out with little light to pull this off. I varmit called but to no avail. While walking back to the truck Kristin saids, "you're pretty good with that call". And I said, "are you making fun of my calling since I didn't call anything in?" Well, it was funny at the time.
Day 2: We all decided to go back in the same area, as the night before, after getting some information from Jake (aka Tines). We saw lots of deer and covered lots of good looking spots with our binos only to see more deer. We came across 3 military tanks, which are in the pictures below, that were very interesting. Not sure why they were there. I had to be back in time to help Peg with some cooking so we headed for camp around 3pm. Along the way I somehow managed to get my truck alittle to close to a tree limb which was poking my back passenger door. It didn't sound to good but didn't give it much thought until we stopped and got out. At the same time, Kristin and I said OH SH!!T. Along with the pintriping my truck was definitely taking on some serious character. I decided to let the girls take my truck back out for the evening hunt, while I helped Peg, and thought it would be a perfect time for me to act surprised when they returned with my damaged truck. I could put the blame on them. lol Not yet knowing Kristin and Shannon to well I decided my chances with Peg might be better so I finally told her before they arrived. Peg went along with the fun and asked both girls what the He!! did you do to my truck.
Day 3: This moring had us in another area just after daylight. On our second stop I glass up some pigs and while I turned to tell the girls I moved my binos and then couldn't find them again. After, what seemed like hours, I think it was Deb who found them again. All the girls had them in their binos before me and it took all their coaching to get me back on them. Having had a cold during this time, I start one of my coughing spells and had to go back to the truck for water and cough drops. I'm thinking to myself, some mentor I turned out to be. After my little episode we get back on the pigs. The pigs definitely decided they had somewhere in mind and were on the move. Lucky for us it was in our direction but now they had disappeared behind the ridge we were on. The distance we last saw them was about 1/2 mile out so we all decided as a team to split up and go in their direction and hope one of us runs into them. The wind was blowing left to right so I felt comfortable someone was going to get some action. Deb and Carol took the far right off the ridge. Michele and Kristin would stay on top and Shannon and I took the left side. Our plan was to walk as slow as we could and take our time. We all had radios but weren't aware of each other's pace. About a 1/2hr into our stock Deb comes on the radio and saids they had just bumped into the pigs and they were heading up towards Michele and Kristin. The pigs ran by them but the vegetation was so thick they couldn't pull off a shot. I decide about this time I'm going to shut off my radio, in fear of the pigs hearing it, and take a chance they might be running our way. Wouldn't you know it, huh: I start another coughing jag and now have Shannon handing me a kleenex and telling me to hack it up. I don't know when I have felt so pathetic as a guide and apoligized for my actions. Why, I don't know, but Shannon showed no signs of being worried as she nursed her big sissy guide. I just knew I'd blown this one for sure. After looking over the terrain I decided our best bet would be to get in the bottom and hope the pigs find their way up to us. We were 10yrds from the bottom when Shannon saids she heard something ahead and I catch a glimpse of a pig heading our way. We're caught in the open, with no time to move, so we sit down and now hope the pigs continue up the wash which would put them broadside in front of us. Here they come and I was as nervous as all get out. I tell her to pull back the hammer. I see the first two pigs are small ones followed by a bigger one, but the first two are way big enough to be on their own, so I tell Shannon to take the third pig. As they start to pass us at 10yrds she saids "I'm not going to shoot the mother and I said "shoot that pig". Shannon once again said she wasn't going to shoot her. I say to myself OK and as the next big one passes it stops broadside and I say shoot. BANG! The pig stands there and we both expected it to fall over any moment. I said shoot again and Shannon pulls the trigger. As I say shoot for the third tme the pig runs and she shoots just in fron of it which made the pig turn and run up a small incline and stop. I said shoot again and the gun goes off for the fouth time and we can clearly see the pig reacted to that shot. As it trotted off along the side of the hill I could see it didn't appear hurt to bad. I tell Shannon to reload and she tells me she doesn't have any more amunition. They were in the truck. I said WHAT and we both started laughing. We had one more in the gun so what's the worry right? I decide we would wait at least 1/2 hr before tracking and sat down for our wait. I turned the radio back on to let our party know what was going on and found I couldn't understand a thing they were saying due to the ringing in my ears. I handed the radio over to Shannon. I joked about her getting stuck with an old man who couldn't hear, sick, and had a runny nose with no hanky. It probably doesn't sound as funny as it did at the time but we were laughing so hard. It gets better. After we stand up to look for blood, Shannon yells OUCH! She has got part of a junping cacti stuck to her butt, yes I have permission to tell this part, along with about 20 other stickers that cover her bottom. Although she hurt we both couldn't help but laugh and I don't know when I ever felt so helpless in a situation. Shannon tells me to pull them out. I look around to see if anyone was looking and spot our truck. We both are wondering, lauging aloud, what someone will think if they witness this. As my sworn duty as a mentor it was my job to see this thru. He!! yes I was embarrassed but will make for a good camp fire story sometime. Now on to the pigs.
We found very little blood and stuck with it for 3 hrs. Kristin brought us water and helped with the tracking. I'm certain the pig will survive and Shannon showed exceptional patience from the first shot to the end of our tracking. Even though our party didn't harvest a pig I was extremely proud of how they handled their weapons and their glassing ability. I couldn't have asked for a better bunch of women to share them three days in the field with.
Thanks Shannon and Kristin for being so patient with all the driving we did. I felt, not knowing the area, that was our best chance of finding pigs. Thank you both for the lessons in bird watching and the education in praying mantis. I come away from this with much more than I gave. Thank you both and thank you again Amanda for pairing me up with my two new friends.
Thanks for the read if you took the time to suffer thru it.
Our great cooks from YOU
campfire
campfire
campfire
Kristin pledging "what goes on in pig camp stays in pig camp"
Bill and Amanda going over maps
a cool building we found the first day out
our hunting party
Our hunting party
If Shannon and Michele could have figured out how to shoot this thing we would have spooked shoot some pigs up
campfire
