Up at my hunting camp still.
I’ve seen a few hogs, but haven’t had a shot. That’s ok, as it’s just relaxing being out here. I don’t know what it is, but sitting in a tree stand in the woods is getting to be one of my favorite places to be.
We usually hog hunt in the early morning
and in the evening. In the morning, we try to get in the tree stand about an hour before sunrise. Naturally, you try to walk in as quietly as possible. When you are over 60 yrs old, with a gimpy food and a bit of arthritis in your knees walking in quietly over dry brush isn’t all that easy. But you try. Makes you feel like an ‘Indian scout”, even though anything within 100yds can probably hear you. Anyway, once you get in the tree stand, you just sit and wait. I’m bow hunting, so you can’t do anything until there is enough light to see. Usually, that’s about 20-30 minutes before sunrise.
Sometimes you can hear critters below you in the dark,
munching on the corn from the feeder. You can’t see them, but often you can tell what they are by the sound they make eating. More importantly, you can tell what they are not by the sounds they don’t make. Hogs snort as they eat. You can hear the crunching of the corn, but if you don’t hear them shorting while they eat, it’s probably deer, raccoons or possums. It’s kind of fun trying to figure out what animal is below you in the dark. I’ve had bears come in. Usually, you can see a big dark spot moving in the dark if there is some moonlight. We had a lot of bears on the property a few years ago, but there was a lot of logging about 18 months ago and I think it caused many to move on. I’m ok with that.
One of my favorite things
about sitting in the morning is listening to the forest come alive. First, you hear one bird, then another and eventually it’s a whole chorus as the sun comes up. It really is beautiful and just relaxing to hear the song of the woods
In the evening,
you walk in in the daylight and watch the world slowly go quiet. We are hunting under feeders, so you want to get in at least an hour before the feeder goes off. Hogs are smart and they will get conditioned to what time it is set for. Often they will arrive just before it goes off or they will be waiting nearby, listening for the sound of the corn raining down and move in as soon as it does. That’s why you have to get in early. I’ve spooked hogs more than once when walking in. If the hogs come a little early and you walk in a little late, it doesn’t make for good hunting. That’s why I like to get in early. If the hogs come in early I’m ready, if not, I’m just relaxing until they do