GTA
General Discussion To Gateway To Airguns => Hunting Gate => : longislandhunter September 14, 2008, 01:48:20 PM
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I had been watching the weather all day hoping it would clear up so I could get in another duck farm hunt. It wasn't raining but the sky just looked like it was gonna rain at any moment all day. Finally around 3:30 I checked the local Doppler radar on the pc and saw that even though the skies were really cloudy and dark there wasn't any rain on the scope so I decided to grab a gun and go huntin.. I went down to my shop intending to grab the .20 48 but I wound up carrying my .22 Talon to the car.
When I got to the duck farm I decided to concentrate on the grain feeders first. The farm was nice and quiet, no workers around, so I was hoping the G-hogs would hit the feeders looking for grain. The first group of feeders I wanted to check were located at the far end of one of the large duck barns at the other end of the farm. There are half a dozen feeders located right next to this barn, all in a group, and that much feed in one place usually brings in g-hogs from a long way off.
I stayed close to the outer barn wall as I made my way to the end of the barn. When I reached the end of the barn I peeked around the corner just in time to see 2 large fat g-hogs running away from the feeders at full speed. These 2 g-hogs were huge !! I could see the rolls of fat on their bodies rippling and bouncing as they ran at full tilt. They ran pretty near 100 yards to a patch of waist high grass where I lost sight of them. I don't know how they heard me coming but they did,,, guess that's how they got that old and fat... Anyway, I just stood there looking at the feeders hoping another one might appear, but after a minute or two there was no sign of any more g-hogs so I started to walk off, heading toward the grass where the 2 old fat smart ones disappeared in.
As I walked away I suddenly saw some movement by the feeders out of the corner of my eye followed immediately by a loud banging sound. I stopped at looked at the feeders but didn't see anything. As I stared at them I suddenly saw the hinged door on the bottom of one of the feeders quickly open and then get slammed shut again by the heavy springs on the doors. The workers flip these hinged doors up and open for the ducks during the day and close them at night. All the doors on these feeders were closed but the door on this one feeder was being pushed open from the inside and then the springs would shut it again with a loud "bang". I immediately knew what was going on,,,,,, there was a g-hog in there stuffing his face with grain and as he moved around his fat butt was pushing the door partly open.
I leaned up against the barn wall and waited. Range was 15 yards. I set the AO on the scope and got ready. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the door opened again but this time a furry brown head appeared. I waited until I could see his entire head, put the crosshairs just behind his eye and pulled the trigger. The Talon fired, I heard that beautiful "POP" as the pellet hit home and the door slammed shut on the g-hogs face.
I walked over and fully opened the door then knelt down to find my g-hog. I could see him lying inside the feeder but he was so far in I couldn't reach him. I decided to go to the other side of the feeder and open the other feeding door hoping I could grab him from there. As I flipped up the other door I was face to face with another, very much alive, g-hog that had also taken refuge inside the feeder. I backed up really quick about 10 feet as the 2nd g-hog just stared me down from inside the feeder. He stood his ground just a little to long,,,,,, I already had a CHP loaded in the Talon so I quickly flipped the safety off, took aim and fired. The CHP slammed home and the g-hog slumped and rolled out of the feeder onto the ground. This one was a little bigger and a bit fatter than the 1st one I shot.
Ultimately I had to actually take the cover off the entire feeder,,,, no easy feat,,, and tip the feeder on it's side to retrieve the 1st g-hog but I got my trophy. I stayed at the farm for another hour or so and did see a couple more g-hogs, but never got any shots. I made sure I took a couple of pics for my GTA buddies before I skinned and cleaned the days harvest. On a side note I think the G-hogs are expecting an extremely cold winter this year because I simply couldn't believe the rolls of thick fat under the hide when I skinned them. They certainly have been "bulking up"... Hope ya like the pics.....
Jeff
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I knew I 'd be seeing some G-hogs pics from you soon Jeff! :-)
Nice harvest! Those are definitely pretty fat. They usually get close to that size near the Fall but these 2 are definitely big. The one on the left looks very much like the 16-17 pounder I took last September on my property. I 've read that G-hogs can keep eating and reach tremendous weights especially in captivity, they have been known to reach 30lbs. I was really surprised to read that and thought it was a typo but it's possible I suppose. It's not uncommon to find 20lb g-hogs at farms with plenty of feed around if they are not predated or harrassed for a while. I can usually tell how big or fat they are when they run. Like you said, you can see all the "blubber" shift around when they run for cover. It also seems to dwarf their heads and make their necks disappear under all that fat.
Do you have any pics of those feeders? I 'm trying to picture them. Are they the big ones like the ones they use to feed cows and other livestock? Those things are heavy! What kind of feed is it? Is it called "duck feed"? I wonder if I could buy some to lure a couple of g-hogs in from outside my property :-) So where these g-hogs were not trapped in there.. they could push the door and come out any time they wanted? I wonder if you walked by those feeders in the past when there were g-hogs in there and didn't know it :-) Maybe they were just keeping quiet waiting for you to distance yourself?
Good job! You certainly have dinner for the whole family now. So you retired recently? Congrats! I hope you put away all that $ you saved from not buying any meat at the Supermarket all these years :-)
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Way to go Jeff. Good details on how your captured your harvest of G-hogs for the day. I wonder if the big fat one was one of the two that ran off? Anyway great shooting and I am sure you will be munchin down your harvest soon..:)
Gene
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Thanks Gene,,,, thanks Harry..
Harry,, next time I go to the farm I'll take some pics of the feeders so you can see em. They are pretty big,,, they stand about 4 feet tall,,, about 4 feet wide and about 6 feet long. When you see the picture you'll see what I mean about the hinged door on the bottom. As for the g-hogs,,,, I've seen them go inside the feeders plenty of times. When the feeding doors are open the g-hogs simply climb in the opening and when the doors are closed I've seen them go underneath the feeders and presumably enter through holes chewed in the bottoms, but I never saw one actually open the doors to get in. After my hunt today I was thinking the same thing you mentioned,,,,,, how many times in the past did I walk past a closed feeder and never give it a second thought??? Plenty of times... From now on I'll make it a point to watch the closed feeders more closely and for longer periods of time.
AS for the exact type of feed they use,,, I'm really not sure. I'm assuming it's some kind of commercial duck feed. Whatever it is the rabbits, squirrels and g-hogs on the farm absolutely love it. I know it's designed to get the ducks as fat as possible in the shortest time period so I assume it's very nutritional....
Jeff
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Enjoyed that. Good shooting. Those two are what the HOG in groundhog is all about. Don't think I've ever seen a fatter groundhogs. But the little bunny you shot with the 48 just won't do. I need to see what that Di 48 / 20 does with one of those big boys. BTW, chrony says that the Di 48 / 20 is shooting RamJets at about 930 fps or 23 FPE, average. That should pop a g-hog noggin just fine.
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Yep those two are fatties. Hope you didn't strain a muscle carrying them back to your truck. They didn't have a chance with the Talon so close to them....almost point-blank shots. Very good hunting story, shooting and pics.
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great hunting jeff expected it to be the .20 but none the less great harvest and thanks for the account of the hunt always look forward to them especially when the title is g hog double header then you just know your in for a good story.
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Gess there still kicking about I see hehehe, fantastic hunt jeff.:0 Great shootin and pic's buddy, the rain let up after three day's here so I will get back out and see what I can kick up myself. Ed
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Now thats what I call HOGS!!!!! I dont have em round here,,:Wish I did: so I dont know much about em,, based on the ones I have seen Harry has taken,, those of yours are "Grain Fed"!! Man you & that Tallon DONT PLAY!! Yeah,, I know bout the Tallon,, I got one too,,Just not as effective with it as you!! Nice "Double Header" Jeff,, Doubt I stand a chance catching up to Ya,,,, Oh,,, Im gonna try though!!He He!! Tim.
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Thanks Tim. Yeah,, these 2 g-hogs certainly were grain fed,, should taste pretty good when I get around to cookin em :) I'm thinkin G-hog pot roast,,,, it's one of my favorites.....
Jeff
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Whoa Jeff!!
Those are some impressive trophies---nice shooting---how do you like the talon?? probably a lot judging by the pics---does shooting the talon put your head in an awkward/unnatural shooting position?
thanks,
Bret H.
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It always cracks me up to see your obese G-hogs..they look like they'd be pretty comfy pillows!
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Love the hunt story. Keep it coming... pretty soon you'll have a freezer full of frozen hogs... maybe even sale some in the classifieds for GTA members... for us less unfortunate ones who don't have G-Hogs. (http://../jscripts/tiny_mce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-laughing.gif) -GB
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Thanks guys,,,,
Bret,,, I absolutely love my Talon. Sighting through the scope doesn't feel awkward at all. I guess most Talon owners put the scope rail attachment on theirs but I really didn't need it. The gun is nice and light, powerful and deadly accurate. I couldn't ask for a better small game gun. The other nice thing is all the accessories you can get for the gun, not to mention the barrel changes possible if you want to change calibers or barrel size. I just recently bought the sling attachments and have a nice sling that mounts on the gun in seconds. I'm very impressed with the gun..
Jeff
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Wow!!! Those are some big ground hogs for sure. very nice shooting Jeff.. That talon is a fine shooter. I always enjoy your hunting experiences and pics.
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Wow! Nice pelts on those porkers, too. I'm itching to eat some groundhog, but I've never seen one in the wild in GA. I'm thinking about selling a lot of my extra air rifles and saving up for a Talon.
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Jeremy,
You don't have groundhogs in Georgia or any of the Southern states. G-hogs are full hybernating animals so they exist where there 's cold winters. They only live in the Northern states & Canada. Since you 're on the East Coast, I can tell you that not even VA has them. They live north of Maryland, but they do range from East to West Coast. You can even find them in WA & OR states. As long as there are freezing temps in the winter, you 'll find them there.. well in the Spring, summer and Fall you will :)
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Jeff,
Thanks for the reply regarding the fit and accuracy of your Talon---I've been looking around for my first PCP and I just can't decide--Disco with mods and full shroud from mtn. Air, Talon or something pre-owned.
Nice pics, we've got those here in IL--just haven't seen any lately--
take care, hunterman
Bret H
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Good job and nice pictures..... as always.
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Oh Harry, we definitely have groundhogs all over Tennessee and the mid south. And yes our pasture pigs hibernate here too. They emerge on the first warm spring days. They look just like yours and have all the same habits and characteristics.Out west they have the cousin they call Marmots, Rock Chucks and such. Common names here: Woodchuck, ground hog, whistle pig, pasture pig.It's the largest member of the squirrel family and yes they sometimes climb trees.
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Jeff those boys have been hanging around the Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station !! Easy shots for the Talon but you had to work for your prize...LoL...
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Yeah Tennesse is like on the same line as the mid-Atlantic.. that's the border line. I can see that but how hold does it get in the winter? I 've read that they need constant temps under 50deg. for them to hybernate. I know they have them in KY, WV, IL and MO, etc. Wasn't sure about Tennessee but that's like the borderline along with NC between "South" & "North. A friend of mine in VA told me last year "we don't have G-hogs here like you guys in the North..". He just hasn't seen them I guess.
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longislandhunter - 9/16/2008 6:29 AM
Thanks guys,,,,
Bret,,, I absolutely love my Talon. Sighting through the scope doesn't feel awkward at all. I guess most Talon owners put the scope rail attachment on theirs but I really didn't need it. The gun is nice and light, powerful and deadly accurate. I couldn't ask for a better small game gun. The other nice thing is all the accessories you can get for the gun, not to mention the barrel changes possible if you want to change calibers or barrel size. I just recently bought the sling attachments and have a nice sling that mounts on the gun in seconds. I'm very impressed with the gun..
Jeff
I 100% agree with that, my condor is the best gun ever, airrifle that is, and is deadly quiet too.
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Nice write up and pics. Those things are FAT!