Coach Report post Posted February 27, 2012 Hey guys, we had a heck of a youth hunt going 4 for 4 with my two older boys and two buddy's daughters getting their pigs. This year, my youngest son, Josh, turned 10 on Jan 28th - a little late to put him in for the youth hunt so I had to put him in for the general hunt so we'd be sure to get his field day in. Josh has been chomping at the bit to finally have a tag of his own, and he's gone along on all his brothers' hunts. Finally it was his turn this weekend. We set up camp Thursday night and were up by 5:30 on Friday - he was ready to go. I haven't been hunting during the general season for quite some time, so I was surprised to see how many other hunters were out. We got to our glassing spot early, but there was a truck parked just a little bit down the road, so I figured there was no sense glassing where these guys were probably hunting. We head down the road a bit to where I intended to hike in a ways and get away from the roads. As soon as we hit the top of the first hill, I see some javi's moving off a hillside into a drainage but coming right toward us. In hind-sight, we could have just sat tight and they would have come right to us, but I wasn't sure if they would hit the drainage and go up or down, or continue to us, so we busted tail off the hill and started sneaking to the edge of the drainage. Well, of course as soon as we get about 10 yards from the edge, the whole herd is right there coming straight at us. The one in front must have seen me duck and motion to Josh to get down because they came up a little to our right, just behind some bushes and cactus. I could see them clearly at 15 yards, but Josh just couldn't get one lined up as they moved in and out of cover. They worked their way past us before we could get a shot, and the wind was now unfavorable, so we backed out and circled around trying to get ahead of them. As we approached the top of the hill where we had first spotted them, they spooked slightly and ran single file through an opening. Again, Josh wasn't in position for a shot (first hunt ever, bless him). This time they seemed a little more spooked and were heading into some thicker brush, so I thought we were probably out of luck and would have to find another herd. However, we continued to sneak over to where we last saw them and just sat tight for a while to see if we could hear or see them again. Finally, I catch them on the next ridge over working through a wash into a bedding area I had found during the youth hunt. I point them out to Josh and tell him it's going to be a little longer shot than we had planned, but they were relaxed and we had plenty of time to set up. We work down to an opening where we can shoot across the canyon and extend the bipod. We picked out the pig he was shooting for and I told him when he felt comfortable to squeeze the shot. BOOOOM! Thwack!!!! When he shot I kind of jerked my binocs so I didn't see the hit, but I sure heard it. He whispers, "Dad, I got him!" I find the pig again and sure enough he was hit hard - he laid down, then stood up, and started walking in circles. I could see blood on his nose so I knew it was a good hit. I had Josh set up for a follow-up shot, but could tell the second shot missed as he tried to follow the herd out of there. We busted down the hill and over to where he was hit. I was a little nervous - sometimes those little buggers are tough and don't give you much of a blood trail, and this was some thick stuff. There was good blood where he was hit and I started following the trail to see where he went. Well, turns out he only made it about 10 feet. Josh's hit was a little low but clipped lung, and the boar was still alive, but immobile. We put a finishing shot in to make sure he didn't suffer, and it was done. Josh took his first pig less than a month after his 10th birthday. Whew - I can't tell how much pressure that took off dad. LOL. Funny part is, we had these pigs at 10, 12, 15 and 30 yards during the stalk and couldn't get a clean shot. The shot Josh made was 154 yards sitting on a rock with a harris bipod - pretty impressive shot for a 10 year old, IMO. BTW, Thanks to Mark for loaning us the perfect "pig rig" his Ruger m70 in 22-250 and for loading up some great rounds. I know, too much story, too few pix, so here are the pictures... We have a tradition where before each kid's first javi hunt, I draw a javelina target to practice on... Blood at the point of impact... Josh with his pig... Dad & Son shot... One more... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bowhunter4life Report post Posted February 27, 2012 That is one happy kid! Pretty cool drawing also....Congrats Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stanley Report post Posted February 27, 2012 AWESOME!!! Congrats to Josh! There is nothing like hunting with kids! Thanks for sharing with the site! S. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CouesWhitetail Report post Posted February 27, 2012 4 for 4, that's great! Congrats to Josh and all the other kids! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WHALE Report post Posted February 27, 2012 Great job, way to get the kids out and having fun in the outdoors Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bonecollector Report post Posted February 27, 2012 Way to go Josh!! Good shooting and congrats on your first of many big game animals. Good job to Dad for getting all those kids on the pigs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chef Report post Posted February 27, 2012 Way to go Josh!! Welcome to the hunting club! Good shooting and congratulations! From the smile, I know you were PUMPED! Great picture set up too Dad. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coach Report post Posted February 27, 2012 Thanks everyone! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
out2hunt Report post Posted February 28, 2012 Huge congrats Josh! That sure is a pig to be proud of! Many Blessings on future outings with the Family Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
plumber Report post Posted February 28, 2012 Good job Josh! just don't forget how much fun you had, that is something that you will always enjoy. also remember to thank your Dad for the special day. Jason, you could always work as a Police sketch artist with that kind of drawing skills. JUST KIDDIN! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues 'n' Sheep Report post Posted February 28, 2012 Way to go Jason and Josh!! Awesome! ...and congrats on all the Youth success in your camps!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tjhunt2 Report post Posted February 28, 2012 Jason, please give my congrats to Josh again for me. You had an awesome year with all the success on them pigs. Glad to see Josh is now among his brothers with his own success and stories. Great job bringing them all along Jason! TJ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coach Report post Posted February 29, 2012 Jason, please give my congrats to Josh again for me. You had an awesome year with all the success on them pigs. Glad to see Josh is now among his brothers with his own success and stories. Great job bringing them all along Jason! TJ Hey TJ, Thank you so much - that means a lot to me. And thanks again to everyone for their positive replies. Josh is on cloud-9, of course, and he really enjoys coming on here and reading all the nice replies from you guys. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gotcoues Report post Posted March 3, 2012 Congrats on your first young man! And put me in Coach! 4 for 4... That's a great job leading the pack Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coach Report post Posted March 4, 2012 Thanks, gotcoues. Actually Josh's pig made it 5-for-5 for the youth hunters in our party this year. Here's a link to the story of the first 4... http://forums.coueswhitetail.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30496 Josh just didn't get to be one of the hunters in the first hunt because his birthday was smack in the middle of it, and he still needed to get his AZGFD Hunter's Ed field day in. Thanks again for the replies. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
