Started off 2003 Hunting Season Right!

H

hps1

New member
Managed to get a good deer lease late in 2003 and spent over 50 days in the brush! Really enjoying retirement! :D Saw lots of really nice bucks, but most of all, enjoyed hunting with my grandson and sharing his first doe, first buck and first javelina (in that order); all taken with one shot each from a 6mm Mauser rifle I built for his dad when he was 8 years old. His dad shot his first deer and many thereafter with this rifle before graduating to a 30-06).

It doesn't get much better than that! :) Introducing youngsters to the shooting sports is really gratifying. Their enthusiasm brings back lots of fond memories of a misspent youth.

First evening out, this doe stepped out of the brush 110 yards from our stand.

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Two days later, this spike toyed with us for about 20 minutes before presenting a suitable shot.

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Now that the serious hunting was out of the way........every younster needs to take at least one javelina. That is usually enough to satisfy the itch (no pun intended, but if you have ever taken a javelina, you know they are usually covered in fleas). Again, one shot was all it took:

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Grandson and I are looking forward to hunting wild hogs and nilgai this summer and another adventure when the 2004 season opens.

Take a kid hunting! You will both have a ball!

Regards,
hm
 
Greybeard:

That's strange, all three were there last night??? This morning only the first one is there. Perhaps there is a limit to size of files accepted?

I tried to add the other two pics and am unable to do so. Anyone have an idea as to what I am doing wrong?

Regards,
hm

Edited:
Now that's really weird. After posting this reply, the first picture disappeared and the javelina pic is the only one showing. Gremlins???? :)
 
All three pictures are there for me. Thanks for sharing . . . and I know you must be proud of that grandson! :)
 
Thanks for the feedback, Ralph. I am getting the spike and the javelina pic. now. Yep, it has to be gremlins. :confused:

I was really proud of the grandson waiting out the spike until he was satisfied with the shot. It's been a long time since I have had buck fever, but have to admit a slight case on this first buck for the grandson.

Regards,
hps
 
That site randomly returns 403 errors instead of serving up the images.

It's not a cache problem or a TFL problem.
 
Proud Grandpa!

Well, grandson came down for the summer hunt and we were able to spend about 8 days in the brush hunting wild hogs and cow nilgai.

First order of business was to sight in my 30-06 for my grandson, since his dad's 6mm Rem. is a bit light for nilgai. This went extremely well; 3 shots satisfied me that he shoots exactly the same point of aim that I do; what a bonus as not many shooters will shoot the exact same zero on a given rifle. Showed him how to use shooting sticks and he picked up on that right away, so it was off to the ranch.


I figured the hogs would be fairly easy, but had my doubts as to our chances of getting a decent shot at a nilgai. The biggest obstacle is the fact that we are limited to cows on my lease and it is quite difficult to be sure of the sex since the young bulls and cows are both red in color......only difference is the cows do not have horns. Since there are black stripes inside their white ears, the horns of a young bull are most difficult to see when the animal is alert. You nearly have to see a side profile before you can be sure there are no horns.

Another "problem", if you can call it a problem, is the fact that my granson is extremely careful in making a shot, so takes quite a bit of time once I tell him to take the amimal. Nilgai don't give you a lot of time. Their eyesight is exceptional, hearing and smell are very good, also, making a stalk quite challenging.

Well, as is so often the case, things did not work out quite like I had envisioned. Saw quite a few hogs before we finally got one in the clear and within range. Had a nice young boar close, but didn't present a clear shot.


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http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid136/p4ef28f77ba0fc651ea75cbdd018a722c/f753dcf2.jpg

After the boar left, Gus apologised for not getting the shot off due to some brush in the way. I assured him that I would never complain when he passed a shot; better to err on the cautious side than to make a poor shot resulting in a crippled animal!


Finally we found a small sow crossing a sendero. The 85 yard shot proved to be a snap and Gus had his first ferral hog.

[/IMG]http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid133/p90f064c7e3e3e1354f9b6164dd071362/f7824e38.jpg

Later that same day, we found a young boar in a laguna.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid133/p4e6a3f008a7420e712738d3cc11b2f9c/f78241f4.jpg

The following Saturday, my son joined us and we set out in search of a nilgai cow. As luck would have it, we found 3 cows at a laguna and were able to put some brush between us to cover our stalk. The wind was fickle, however, and gave me a few anxious moments as we made the final stalk. Two of the cows seemed to sense trouble and began to drift off toward the brush. The third, alerted, stared in our direction, but hesitated long enough for Gus to make a perfect shoulder shot at his favorite range.......85 yards. I saw the bullet strike her shoulder perfectly before she bolted for the brush. She stumbled once before disappearing in the mesquite. I assured Gus his cow would be found within 100 yards, and so it was:

[IMG]http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid133/p12268e0314d96bcb8e1f75538c7488fa/f78259b2.jpg

A few days later, we checked out that same laguna and made another successful stalk on a pair of cows.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid136/p566bc6003f6e9f65f2c23e8b3350f4f8/f7572138.jpg

This made a total of 7 animals for 7 shots; not bad for a soon to be 13 year old!

If I sound like a proud Grandpa, guess I am. Can't describe the joy of introducing yet another generation to the rewards experienced in the great outdoors. If you get the chance to take a youngster hunting, don't let the opportunity pass you by; the enthusiasm of the youngster is contagious.

Regards,
hps
 
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