TEXAS HOG
TALE
June 3, 2011
I learned of Stretch A String from a bowfishing buddy
who lives in Texas. I decided to call James Foster and
see if I could join a hunt already scheduled for June 3
& 4, 2011. Within a few minutes of conversation, I felt
James and I had been friends for years. I was pleased
to learn he is also a traditional archer and that we had
shot many of the same tournaments in the 90’s.
Since I had never hunted with Foster, I chose to arrive
early to familiarize myself with the ranch. I took my
Bob Lee recurve, my HawgLite bow light, and a hang-on
stand. When I arrived, I quickly confirmed that James
Foster was quite a character. We got acquainted and I
was happy to learn he is three years my elder (and
that’s really old). James showed me some game camera
pictures of a real large boar which was among several
other sizeable pigs that had been coming to “Dead Cow”
feeder. We took his Jeep to the feeder and I quickly
decided I didn’t want to sit in the existing ground
blind with temps over 100 degrees each day. We hung my
stand near the feeder and generally contaminated the
area with human scent. I hunted it that night despite
the odors we left. I chose to hunt without a light on
my bow, planning to use the ambient illumination from a
solar light beneath the feeder. Three large coons kept
me entertained from about 9:30 PM till early in the
morning. No pigs came in. My back was hurting badly so
I gave up at about 3:00 AM.
Early the next day, James and I put up another tree
stand that we thought would be easier on my back. I got
on the stand at 7:30 PM and three hours later the fat
coons showed up again. At about 11:00 PM the coons
suddenly stopped feeding and faced north, which was in
my direction. They quickly ran southbound and I knew
something was in the woods behind me. Within seconds all
hell broke loose in the dense forest behind my stand.
There was an alarming amount of rustling, grunting and
growling. Honestly, it sounded like a lion was beneath
me fighting with other animals! I’m not ashamed to say
that I was real happy to be above the fray. Soon the
noise reduced to just rustling, and a pig well over 150
pounds came out from beneath me and started munching on
corn along the outer edge of the feed circle. Then,
three more similar sized hogs came out. As the four
nervously ate corn about 15 yards from the feeder, a
huge boar charged them and chased them away. Mr. Big
quickly ran back under my stand and into the woods.
This scenario repeated three times, and finally the
large boar allowed his subordinates to munch a few
kernels closer to the feeder. Boss Swine finally
positioned himself about ten yards in front of me.
However, he stayed in an area that was real dark. All I
could discern was his large silhouette. I could not see
his eyes, tusks or color, but I believed he was the big
boar pictured on the game camera. I waited for a
broadside shot, but he kept changing positions every few
seconds. I drew partially and let down several times.
Finally, he remained broadside long enough for me to
send a stuffed 2115 aluminum shaft toward the sweet
spot. In an instant, he spun and ran northwest closely
followed by the others. The sounds of the group running
quickly stopped and I heard four loud mournful groans
north of my stand. Then I heard the group run westbound
and all soon became silent.
It was at that point that I started to wonder if the
boar had spun before or after my arrow’s impact. I had
heard no sound of the arrow breaking ribs. It was as
though the sharp two bladed broadhead had been shot into
warm butter! I began to second guess my shot placement
and assumed he spun before impact… and that I had hit
him behind the rib cage.
I stayed in the stand for thirty minutes and silently
went southbound to my truck. At camp, I awakened Robbie
(James Foster’s assistant) and asked if he’d help track
the hog. We quickly found a slight blood trail and
followed it in a semi-circular route for about 50
yards. The blood ended abruptly and we started circling
to find more blood or the pig. After about two hours we
had not found additional blood, my arrow or the hog. We
decided to head to the ranch house to rest a couple
hours and try searching again in the morning light.
After sleeping a few hours three of us resumed the
search. I started to strongly believe my shot was
behind the rib cage and that the arrow was lodged in the
opposing ham. I feared I had gut shot the pig and felt
he might have headed toward water. The other guys
thought he might have gone up hill toward another
ranch. After 2-3 hours we gave up the search. I was
sick over the loss of a fine boar and lots of meat.
From the photos James had shown, I believed the pig
weighed about 350 pounds.
I hunted the next night and no animals came to “Dead
Cow”. After a few hours sleep, goodbyes were exchanged
and I headed back to northeast Arkansas.
On June 6, James called me and told me he found my hog
in a thicket “about seventy yards” northeast of my
stand! I thought he was kidding. I couldn’t believe
that several hours of searching by experienced
hunters/trackers had failed to locate the large animal.
James agreed to recover the head and my arrow, which was
still inside the carcass. From the location of my
arrow, James believed I had in fact made a good shot.
I visited James on June 24 and took possession of the
hog head. I thanked James for the nasty job of
retrieving the head and my arrow. He and I did a little
bowfishing on the Trinity River before I returned home.
I later spent a few hours cleaning and bleaching the
skull and it is now a fine addition to my game room.
In summary, let me say I would recommend Stretch A
String Outfitter to anyone who wants to have a great
hunt and meet some fine people. My disappointment over
losing the hog will slowly wane, but the fun and
excitement of the hunt will provide fond memories for
years to come. James runs a fine hunt, and is one of
the most interesting people I have ever met.
Give Stretch A String Outfitters a try, you won’t be
disappointed.
Jim Finn
