how to plan out a hog hunt

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jc89

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if im going on an unguided boar hunt, what kind of equipment should i bring along? im going to a place 3 hours away from home and was wondering what you guys usually do immediately after shooting a boar. do you bring it to the nearest butcher to get it cleaned and then take it home right away?
 
you will deff need to find out if they clean on the spot, they may , for an extra fee, usually 20 to 40 bucks. Otherwise, take an ice chest, and cut out the backstraps yourself, and leave the rest for them. they will take the rest, or whatever it is you leave , to a gut pile usually.
on a pig hunt , I usually take three rigs, a scoped rifle, a semiauto, and a varmint rifle/pistol of some kind, usually my 17hmr long bbl pistol.
I take a camel back, for water. you will lose it fast, in the heat.
I take a ruck, with any extra frozen water I want, extra ammo, a couple of flash lights, some scentless, tick repelling insect spray, some hog spray. maybe a couple of hand towels, for sweat, maybe a couple of orange vests. a camera. some light 3 d cammo PJ's. Bring 2 extremely sharp knives, in case you , or someone there , will skin or backstrap.
if they don't have a rope, to drag it out for you, bring about 10 to 20 feet of rope. I also brought a bunch of leather straps, or you could bring some 550 chord, just in case. Find out if they will have Ice chests to keep your meat cold, otherwise bring at least one big ice chest, with ice. or if you just backstrap, you don't need a big ice chest, a lunch size one will do, and just a small baggie of ice. Killing a big piggie is great for pics, not so much for eating, on anything over about 60 lbs, I would just take backstrap, and say ribs. Money allways comes up as well.
 
If you are doing this totally on your own, if you wanna butcher, it has to be done pretty fast. Whether you do the whole thing, or just want the backstraps, or tenderloin. if going by yourself, take a mirror, signal devices, a cell phone, and some sleeping gear,cold blanket, it is silver on one side, so can act as a signaler as well. a lighter as well, and some toilet paper is good for lighting up, or starting a fire as well.
 
im gonna go hunting for meat down at fort hunter liggett in california so what is a good size for a tender boar? also, about how much meat can i get from a meat boar? will the meat taste bad on a larger 100-200 lb boar?
 
The smaller the better for eating, in my opinion. 100 lbs or less. Big boars make for a good trophy picture, but that's about it.

How much is a hunt in SLO nowadays?
 
is a sidearm necessary when hunting pigs? also, since im using a very powerful cartridge (7.62x54R) what part of the body should i aim for to minimize meat damage on smaller boars?
 
look here for the "piggies" thread, the red pig is about 70 lbs max, and it took two sharp knives to skin him, and resharpen. Even at this weight, he had about 1 inch thick of grissle to cut through. Also, as the pigs get bigger than this, they grow more and more scent glands all over them; when they are under 70 lbs, they just have about 4 or 6, they look like little peanuts or raisin clusters, under the clear skin, once you start peeling off the outer skin. you DO NOT, want to accidently cut open one of these!!!
 
i took mine with the 243, shoulder shot, entry hole was okay, sheered of the tops of the heart and lungs, outside shoulder was a mess, not worth salvaging.
I would suggest to punch that round right through a shoulder, or lower neck.
 
If the hog is standing still and you have a steady rest, go for just behind the ear. No wasted meat that way and they drop right where they are.
 
thats the main problem; they are never still, and I have never seen one pose like a deer, not even for 1/2 a second. if they are standing , they are with their heads down, grazing.
 
I have helped butcher quite a few domestic hogs so my recommendations are from that perspective - if you are going to butcher it yourself;

Some type of rope or block and tackle arrangement to get the pig off of the ground with something to use as a spreader between the hind legs (can be as simple as a branch)

SHARP knives and sharpening gear; hatchet or small ax (sharp); bone saw

clean plastic - such as a painters drop cloth - to lay the meat on as you quarter the carcass and plastic wrap/butcher paper to wrap the meat; masking tape to seal the packages; Sharpie to write contents on packages

plenty of clean water; some alcohol to clean cutting tools; disinfectant to clean your hands, etc.
 
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