I had my doubts

[tjhunt2]

As I was sitting, looking at cwt, yesterday morning with a cup of coffe I was wondering if Mr. Murphy was going to ride along with me again. As my partner, Scott Henderson, and I drive to our hunting spot we discuss our stragedy on this particular heard. This would make the 7th day we would attemt to shoot another pig. Mr. Murphy thinks we're buds but believe me we are not and I will try my damest to loose this looser today.

 

Day 1. A 2 hour stalk on a shaled hillside with Scott calling my every move. I cuss again at the radio cord as it hangs up for the 50th time and my legs are full of cactus. I can't get any closer than 50yrds. My legs are starting to shake from the strain I have put in to each step along the way while trying to stay balanced on the steep hillside. I pull out my circe cottontail and give it a blast. Pigs run everywhere. A big male charges me. As I drop my call from my mouth I accidently touch off my release and it had just enough tension that my arrow came off the string and was dangling from my whisker biscut with the pig at 10yrds laughing at me. I continued to call in another but didn't have a clear shot. By now they figured me out and the rest is history for day one.

 

Day 2. I'm busted before the day even gets off to a good start. I should have been walking slower and looking more. Stop pushing me Mr Murphy and let me slow down. Scott gets a shot towards the end of the day with a hit but little blood.

 

Day 3. Scott has to work so I go it alone. My legs are sore from all the hiking the first two days and by the time I get to my glassing spot I'm ready for a rest. As I sit glassing I can't help but wonder back to when I shot my first pig. I was 25yrs old and knew little about these things. I shot it with a 7mm because I knew then how dangerous these things could be, and I needed the stopping power for my own protection. 37 years have past since that day and here I sit pondering over the past. It was a long day with no sitings of pigs. I think about a thicket I called last year's pig out of and decided I would stop there on the way back to the truck. I ever so slowly approached the thicket and had a pig at 20yrds in front of me. Dam, it had a little one with her. I wait and another pig at 15yrds gives me a shot and my arrow slaps her sideways. It hit the any branch in the way of me and it. Pigs scatter everywhere hoofing. I draw back on another and let it fly. There is no way I missed that pig at 15yrds but it runs and stops beside me before leaving me behind. I sit and wait and a third pig gives me yet another shot and that arrow caught some grass and flipped end over end. As I turn and reach for another arrow I see some pigs feeding up the hill not knowing anything had gone on. The vegetation is thick so I stalk within 15ryds and pull back. I have to letup on my draw because she had a piglet with her. I will not shoot a mama with babies. I now have 3 mama pigs that all have little ones and I can't believe it. Then out of no where came the pig that Scott had shot the day before. It had a wound along it's shoulder and I knew it was this pig I wanted. I had a pass thru and it ran past me heading for the thicket. The sun was already down with maybe a 1/2 hr of light left. I found lots of blood for 20yrds and then nothing at all. It stopped bleeding and I seached until dark. I go to pull my light from my pack and realized I hadn't transferred it to my other pack before heading out. Thank god I had my cell phone. I called Peg and told her I would be late and what had happened. As I turned on my downloaded version of brightlite I see a shadow. Of course, Mr. Murphy has caught up with me. At least he was some company, I had to talk with while on the 1 hr walk back in the dark.

 

Day 4. If you have hunted long enough then you know the restless night I had thinking about not recovering that pig. I had been sick with a head cold since opening day and it was getting worse so I took my butt to the Dr.and still made my way back to that thicket by 1pm. I was determined to hunt for that pig I hit the night before. I crawled all thru that thicket and searched every exit in and out. I donated the rest of the day looking for that particular pig to no avail.

 

Day 5. It's now sat. and Scott is back with me. We locate the heard and make our plan to come in from the top and bottom. They are back on that nasty steep hillside and resting quite nicely in the sun. Scott goes high and it stakes me 45 min. to get in position. I hear something I thought was ahead of me when all of a sudden I see movement to my left. It's a big pig at 10yrds. He starts out from behind some brush and I draw back. Bad mistake. He spots me before he clears and now we are at a standstill. My arms are giving out and he decides all is good and walks out. As my finger goes up to hit the trigger, he turns into a she and a piglet walks under her. I let down and they haul butt. There is no way them pigs got by us. Scott and I never seen the rest get by us. Them darn things win again. We are putting our bows in the truck and I notice my site has come loose to the point I could move it up and down a 1/2". What else could go wrong? I told Scott my body needed a rest so I was staying home sun. and watching football and rest my much needed body.

 

Day 6. 5 days had past since I last hunted. This friday couldn't get here any to soon. Scott had to work so I head out and hunt all day without a glimpse of a pig up until now. I was working my way back to the truck when I hear a piglet over near the thicket. It's the opposite way but I have a flashlite now so off I go and I know I don't have much time to waste. I manage to get within 15rds of the pigs with 10 min. of shooting light left. The wind is perfect and I have to make one more push thru some brush to clear a shooting lane. I wait for the pigs to fight again and I bust thru. Of course they hear me and now are hoofing and I still can't see them. I hear a pig to my right I didn't know was there and he made his way towards the others which meant he had to pass a clearing. I drew back but he never stopped. I let down and now they really know something is there. One pig was determined to figure me out so he circled me at 15ryds till he was down wind. I pulled back at least a half dozen times. Everytime, my shot was blocked by something. They regrouped and I was left there standing like what the he!! just happened. I get a tap on the shoulder and you guessed it. Mr. Murphy saids let's take it to the barn.

 

Day7. Scott and I head out from the truck and it's 22deg. I have on 4 Tshirts. I hate to wear a jacket and then have to carry it all day after it turns hot. What a mistake that turned out to be. It never warmed up yesterday. Peg said I deserve to be sick if I'm that stupid but been doing it for years and this old dog might give it another thought if tomorrow has us back here in the morning. We figured we would head for their bedding ground and wait for them to arrive. It's now 10am and the pigs don't show. I tell Scott to go check the flat on top while I check out another spot. Scott heads up hill and within minutes of reaching the top he calls on the radio and saids he has pigs at 50yrds and for me to get my butt up here. Oh yeah, and his pig is dead. This is the same nasty shale hillside I don't really want to climb but I haven't a choice if I want to get on these pigs. I make it up in record time but find myself bent over breathing like a honeymoon night. My lungs were burning like never before and Scott is motioning for me to get my butt over here fast. Yeah right, I needed some oxygen. He shows me the pigs and I start my stalk when something catches my eye to my right. I see a lone pig closer that had seperated from the heard. I turn and start towards him and a rock comes flying by me. I look back and Scott motions that I was going the wrong way. He doesn't know I see a pig. I continue and another rock hits by my side. I look back once again and he is furious I'm not listening to him. I motion it's alright and signal I'm after another pig. I reach my pig with the help of a palo verde tree and step out around to see my pig 30yrds away. As it starts feeding towards me I see a cactus waving back and forth to it's left. I'm thing back at everything that has happened up til now and can't believe this might be a baby pig. I can't see what's moving the cactus so it must be. Sure enough it's a little guy but it's mother steps out from behind some cactus and now I know my pig doesn't have any young. I figure 20 yrds by the time it hits my shooting lane. It's head and front leg enters and I pull back. No way in He!!, it stops, and I'm at full draw. It was the longest I ever held a draw. The mama pig was now approaching me and I could not let down without being detected. My arms were beginning to shake and my pig took it's final step of her life. A perfect double lung and she ran straight towards me and dropped at 5 yrds. I turned to signal Scott pig down. Of course I didn't have my camera and forgot I had my cell phone but that didn't seem to important at the time. We just scored on a double and it was only 11:15am. As Scott approached me with high fives I ask him if he saw him. He said, "saw who"? He was nowhere to be seen. I said, "Mr. Murphy. We just kicked his a$$."

 

It's been a frustrating hunt on the one hand but a fun hunt as well.Thanks for those who suffered thru this marathon.

 

TJ

 

ps Sorry no pictures but having a problem posting for some reason. OH NO! Don't tell me he's back.

[firstcoueswas80]

Nice! About time you got it done! I agree with your wife! If you go out in the 22* air and don't look at the weather you deserve to get sick you old dummy!

[lucky2hunt]

"I make it up in recoed time but find myself bent over breathing like a honeymoon night"

Hahahaha - Oh TJ!!!

Congrats on a hard earned pig! Sounds like you experienced a little bit of everything on this hunt, you've earned some rest and relaxation so you get over your cold!

[WHALE]

Way to stick with it TJ. That looks like a big pigs congrats

[kidso]

Great perseverance! Sounded like you were on a week long elk hunt!

[Pixman]

Congrats on your pig, way to stick with it!

[Willyhunts2]

Great write up and congrats on yet another pig!

[CouesWhitetail]

Congratulations TJ!! Glad you finally beat Mr. Murphy! Thanks for the write-up and the pics!

[Jimmyc]

Congrats TJ! If anyone deserves it, its you. Job well done. Nice size pig.

[Outdoor Writer]

^{Way to go TJ. Nice javelina.}

[standman]

Awesome TJ. Isn't javelina hunting supposed to be easy?

 

Brian

[cosninocanines]

Good Job and don't worry about Mr Murphy he's here in Winona disconnecting the Inet every few minutes then back on for a very short period. It took me 30 minutes to read your post with all the interuptions. Let me know when you want him back!

[tjhunt2]

Thanks everyone for the congratulations. I forgot to mention a few things. I told the wife this morning I was going to go back a few years and change my luck. I saw Casey wearing his cwt Tshirt and decided I was going to wear mine for good luck. Thanks Casey! I also changed my hat and picked up the first white rock that caught my eye. I use to do this for good luck. Bingo! It all came together. Yes. I believe this stuff actually works. How could I not believe.

 

TJ

[Couestracker]

Great hunt TJ, way to get 'er done! Sounds like one of those never-forget hunts that are made extra special, being with friends and encountering difficult conditions/situations. One you'll always remember with fondness I'm sure. I have yet to get one with a bow...going to try again Feb 8th.

Couestracker

[Elkhunter1]

congrats Tj, nice looking pig. Great story, Mr Murphy has nothing on you!