Randy, I have the discipline to not shoot critters out of season. I am ok with that. Just today I was watching 2 squirrels calmly going through the trees in my backyard, and kept myself in the chair in my porch while having my morning coffee. I held my kness down with my hands and closed my eyes and tried to relax and forget they exist
I controlled the cold sweat running down my face after a minute or two, and even looked the other way so I couldnt' see them and get tempted
No seriously for some reason it doesn't bother me when I see critters that are out of season.
I guess knowing that that G-hogs are not protected and can be taken any time, diminishes my "discipline" greatly when it comes to them
It's the only explanation I have
You mentioned you did not see any G-hogs. If you are not looking for them you probably are not going to see any. They usually see or hear you first, and down the hole they go which is never far away. They are also very good at integrating with the terrain around their burrow. They can camouflage themselves well when not out in an open field munching on grass and weeds, and can stand completely still for a very long time. They particularly like sticking their head out the hole for several minutes and up to 1/2hr before coming out. It is very hard to distinguish that head from far away or if you are not looking for them.
In my opinion, the best way to succeed in spotting and/or shooting G-hogs is to scout the area and find the burrow entrances. Just like you do when deer hunting, etc. You scout the area for signs of tracks, find the trails they use, etc. You then come back and hide 25-30yds away from their burrow and wait for them to come out. Or 50yds (or more) away if you have a powerful PCP, 22LR, WMR or HMR. The weather has to be very nice with warm temps and a light wind or breeze. They won't come out with gray clouds overhead or if it's windy or gusty out. And you MUST shoot them in the head. Many of G-hog have made it down the hole, some almost cut in half after being shot with high-powered rifles, because they were not shot in the head! If their heart or brain is not blown up, they will muster every ounce of strength to make it to the safety of their burrow where they usually die seconds or minutes later. Once they make it down into their chambers it is almost impossible to recover.
