My Wife scored her first Javelina today in 37A

[Gduncan]

My wife scored her first Javelina today in 37A. She picked up one of the leftover tags after I was drawn for mine so we could go figure out how to hunt them together (I have never hunted them before either). We have been scouting all over 37A since the first of January seeing good sign in several areas but never seeing any pigs, one area only lots of other hunters. On Monday having no success so far we tried a different area only to walk up within 40 yards of a herd of at least 7 or 8 pigs that took off before we could do anything. But we knew then where we would be hunting the rest of the week! Today we made our way in before daylight and sat on a water hole to wait them out. We where there long enough for the birds to quit alerting anytime we moved at all. I was watching one trail and Angel was watching another one coming in from another direction. The one I was watching had enough Javelina traffic to work the trail to powder dust. A little after 8 am I saw one javelina in the brush and got ready for them to come up the trail to the water where one or both of us would have shot opportunity. But after almost 15 mins of them not appearing I hear a splash of water to my right past my wife and looked to see her with gun drawn and down on the scope. I looked toward the water and saw two pigs on the far side of the water just before she shot. I started in with a call but they only continued to run the other way. So I get up and go over to where she was sitting and she's shaking from the adrenaline rush and saying that it had to be a good hit because there was nothing but hair in the scope! Her shot was no more that 25 yrds at a third pig that I hadn't seen. Two adults and a youth with the one she shot at being the smaller of the two adults because it was drinking and didn't notice her very very slow movements to get her rifle up. The youth was apparently the one that spotted her and startled and made the spash that I heard. So after a few minutes to let the adrenaline slow a bit we started looking for blood trail. It was probably a good 30 yrds up over the dam before finding the first sign of blood and heading into some of the thickest brambles I think I may have ever seen. So we hiked back to the jeep and lightned our loads and went back to continue tracking. Another hunter stopped while we were still at the jeep and offered to help track the pig since he'd been hunting the area for archery and knew the area pretty well. We didn't get a last name but Rick with the white dodge pickup Thank You!!! My wife was starting to cuss the people that left there shotgun shells all over since the red ones she'd see in the grass was confusing the attempt to find blood. We ended up on our hands and knees crawling to get through the brush and thorns. Angel was in front of me and when she spotted her pig and I had to slow her down a bit and give her my 9mm just in case before approaching the last bit. Good thing he was dead because if we had needed to run we couldn't have hardly moved let alone run in the thicket. Rick had found a small wash just a few yards to the east and that made getting him back out to the jeep much easier than trying to drag him back out the way we had tracked him in. It took us about an hour from the time he was shot until we had him back to the jeep. All 56 lbs of him!

 

[Chef]

Way to go!

That's a nice big smile, as it should be in a trophy pic!

Congratulations t your wife on her first. I hope you get to tag one soon too.

[PatrickJr]

nice, looks like she shot it with a Ruger mini 14

[papa]

56 lbs. that's a good one for sure. Congrats to your wife.

[Gduncan]

She's still wearing that big smile tonight!

 

Yes, it is one of the infamous Mini 14's! And can't talk her out of it!

[Coues Kid]

Congrats to you wife they sure are fun.

[kidso]

Great job! Thanks for the sweet story.

[Couestracker]

It's awesome that you both hunt together! Congratulations to her on a nice javelina. Hopefully you'll both get one next time.

[couesmagnet]

Right on , congrats.

[Adicted]

good job guys...congrats

[tjhunt2]

Like Chef said that's a big smile as it should be after shooting a trophy like that. I'm sure your husband was as proud of you as you were yourself. Congratulations and kudos to Rick for lending a hand with the tracking job. Thanks for sharing.

 

TJ

[2LuckyHunters]

Great job! She's hooked now for sure! Thanks for sharing your hunt.

[Gduncan]

I forgot to mention in the story that except for the things that required some extra hands and/or strength, by her choice, she field dressed and butchered it all herself! She cooked some of it up tonight for dinner and if the rest of it tastes this good we will be back out there for more next year!

 

Thanks to all from both of us for the encouragement and compliments!

 

Greg & Angel

[Gduncan]

Just finished cutting up and packaging the last of Angel's Javelina that I cooked on the smoker today over Mesquite lump charcoal! We Like!!! Nothing like the stories a lot of people have told us.

Here are the shoulders and hind quarters coated in dry rub seasoning and ready to go in the smoker. And then a finished hind quarter with a nice smoke ring on it!

 

 

 

[randyolson]

Nice Javelina!! Congrats to the Mrs.!!