So I'm new to trad bow hunting! I started Sep 2024. I had an unsuccessful deer season, missed a few squirrels along the way, added a couple more bunny misses, and finally I've been battling with a groundhog for a couple of weeks. I'm going to keep hunting groundhogs and anything else I can hunt to get better, so any advice is welcome!
Well, I finally stalked him down and put a broadhead in him today! I saw him out basking and I crawled up a hill to get about 15 yards away. His burrow was in a stump and it's overgrown with poke, I could see him looking for me the wrong direction and I could see his whole body so I took the shot. I heard the meat slap and then it was a mess of bushes, grass, and my fletching. I was getting my next arrow nocked and I saw it fighting the shaft of the arrow, a snap, and then everything was gone!
I can see some blood in the hole, and I'm certain he was skewered. Should I try to dig out the burrow and get him tomorrow? Or chalk it up and be glad he's doubtfully going to be munching my garden this summer? Any hunting tips for finding and hunting more in the future?
Better get a backhoe if you want to dig him out.... :help: CONGRATULATIONS!!!! :clapper:
Growing up in PA loved hunting whistle pigs all summer.
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :campfire:
:biglaugh: Well I don't have a backhoe, so I reckon I'll just say goodbye to that arrow! I figured I might find a half in there not so deep, but I stuck a stick down the hole and boy it goes deep and steep. I still can't believe the arrow didn't pass through, it wasn't a razor blade but I would've expected it to pass through a groundhog? I guess they're tough buggers.
To get a pass through on a woodchuck, you pretty much have to be shooting on your belly!!
Arrow goes "through" them, but hits the ground and prevents it from flying out the other side.
Ahhh, I see. I was shooting uphill but I bet the broadhead hit the stump behind him and that stopped it. Think it's better to use field points? I heard blunts won't be fatal unless it's a head hit. I'm cheap and I hate losing a nice doug fir shaft AND a broadhead!
Ace Hex Heads work pretty good, actually cut a hole. Or just get some cheap broadheads?
With me, everything gets a broadhead. I use Zwickey Deltas or Eskimos :thumbsup:
Okay I have some ace hex heads. I shot a no mercy into that one. Is there a reason you like the deltas and eskimos over the no mercy? I'll try to find some really cheap broadheads for my summer escapades "saving my wife's garden."
Not really? I shot Eskimos for about 20yrs. 125gr, mounted horizontal, flies exactly like my field points.
I switched to Deltas a few years ago. Mounted horizontal, they fly exactly like the 135gr Judo point that always rides in my bow quiver.
Both heads are practically indistructable!! :thumbsup:
Congrats on the groundhog!
I grew up hunting them here in PA and I still get after them in the fields behind my house. They are tough as nails and you will likely lose or break most arrows you get through one because they always try to get into their holes when hit. They are also very intelligent in my opinion and wise up real quick once they are shot at. My best luck on stalking up for a shot comes right after the fields are freshly cut but once they see you a few times they will head for their holes a lot sooner when they spot you. A lot of times they will stop at the edge of their hole right before they dive in and this gives a shot opportunity but again, you will likely lose or break your arrow if you score a hit. I routinely take shots at well over 50 yards, especially after they wise up and won't let you get close. You can always try to sit in ambush at a hole and wait on them to come out. This is also tough hunting because they usually just peak out a little to make sure they are safe before they commit to coming all the way out. They are pretty smart critters.
Have fun and don't be afraid to lose or break arrows. Ground hog hunting is a lot of fun and will make you a better big game hunter in my opinion.
Here is a picture of a little hog I walked right up on behind the house a couple years ago. It was in the March I believe and it was a cold day. This little fella had no fear of me and I could've probably picked it up but I also know how nasty a groundhog can be so I just took a few pics and we parted ways.
Well, I guess I'm gonna order a pack of Eskimo's then! The no mercy blades certainly fly different than my field points, they are heavier than my field points so I've been putting them on heavier spines shafts to tune them. I might even try some Amazon special heads and throw em on my Kimery special shafts just for small game.
Supernaut,
Thank you for the congratulations, after so many misses I was beginning to wonder if I did in fact know how to shoot a bow and arrow!
It seems a lot of folks that hunt groundhogs come from PA. I had tried to sit by a tree in some bushes before to catch this one, but didn't seem the best strategy. I believe the hay will be cut in the very near future here, so I look forward to trying all I can on em then. Hopefully I can recover one! I was thinking about maybe only going for the head with blunts? Maybe that would keep them above ground?
Growing up in PA farmland, ground hog hunting is definitely a tradition. Plus, the farmers really appreciate it.
Be ready for a lot of action when that hay is cut. I've always just used a broadhead and shot for their vitals with a bow. You'll have a better chance at recovering one the further away you can shoot them from their hole.
A lot of times ground hogs will burrow in woods or thickets that are adjacent to fields (I've even seen ground hogs climb up into trees). If you find a burrow in woods or thickets you will clearly see the trail the hog takes into the field and you can try to set up an ambush as they are heading into the field similar to sitting on a deer trail into a field.
Good luck, it's a lot of fun! Keep us posted on your hunts.
:campfire:
Groundhog.."Ground Griz" as I have always referred to them ;^)
Are tough critters...I was lucky in that we lived in farmland all my youth and young adult life and I had parents that allowed me the freedom to spend all my spare time in swamps-woodlots-streams...taking it all in like a sponge ;^) . I was blessed with perfect parents and a perfect time to grow as I did.
I cut my youthful hunting canines hunting Ground Griz...rabbits..squirrels ...Nothing sharpens your stalking/hunting skills like stalking small game . The shooting part should already be polished before hunting while Roving and with other targets ...
Speaking for myself...I wouldn't hunt Groundhogs with blunts. They are dense bodied and tough...I would use what you use or intend to use hunting deer sized animals. Taken many rabbits with blunts , and judos...squirrels also....but I prefer broadheads for those animals as well, with rabbits maybe being the exception . Squirrels ain't nothing but a......
"ball of muscle wrapped in a buffalo hide"... Tough...especially Big OL' Fox squirrels
This ol' Griz was educated via the farmers, I did a spot and spook from below, and then hustled up the hill above his den and took him when he peeked looking in the direction I last was..This was several yrs back using my 55# Mt Ash hybrid longbow 2018 shaft..and a Bear SS Razorhead . It actually pinned him to the ground from above .
Congratulations for committing to traditional equipment ,
and my best to you upon your journey ! :campfire:
That is a good idea to get them as far from the den as possible. They are hard critters to get on the ground after a hit. I grew up in central PA and Ground Hogs/Wood Chucks were a vital training experience for hunting whitetail.
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :campfire:
Yes I agree, get them in the open feeding or traversing through the woodlots etc,,,but some of them don't play that;^) That is when the spot and spook works pretty good. Good broadhead is always mandatory imho for these critters....
Best way/time is working streams-edges-and bean fields when the beans/vegetation is just high enough to fully cover the Ground Griz when on all fours....Get a nice spot and stalk with the new growth/beans helping you out. Hate it when that Happens ;)
Supernaut...yes sir. They climb trees very well. I have a couple videos of just that. Pretty long video and I don't know how to post them on here (large format) ...but it is a pretty good video of one showing just how comfy they are high-up ;^)
this is one that was traversing a deer trail early fall....Funny how some of us are so easily "distracted" while deer hunting .... :campfire:
little warm-up ;)
found one of my pics....
one more ....This is a perfect example where spot and stalk is off the list...This was a heavily used lake , mowed with a very large grass area. The property manager had major "issues" with muskrats ...Then I got a call about this little Ground Grizzer ;^) Seems he took to life as a Muskrat .He dug and burrowed a hell of a den in the bank of this lake. You couldn't get a football field away on that golf coarse of a yard ...So the old spot and spook was in order;)
Lots of ways to hunt them , and the season/terrain will likely dictate a good bit of the options. Pure spring-fall fun it be ......Best with your hunts everyone. :campfire:
They are fun to hunt, and great practice for whitetails. I've seen many in trees, and here in indiana, Mulberry are ripening, and they will climb and eat.
Setting up a stand is another good way to hunt.
Last spring, I was practicing JRB Tree climbing with a saddle, was about 15 feet up, once settled, looked to my right, about 15 yards was 'hog in an Elm tree, a little higher!
Good hunting and shooting to ya!
Man, this brings back memories. I grew up hunting groundhogs on the farm before we had any deer around. Loved to spot and stalk them. This is where I learned the value of some good binoculars to spot them at a distance and plan a stalk. One of my favorites was a stalk I made across an open field on a truck farm. Covered close to a hundred yards in the wide open and shot him at 10 yards.
I would never try to use a hex head blunt for groundhogs. They're way too tough for that.
Your memories are my inspiration! Did you have more success morning or evening on hunts? To be honest I've seen them most in the afternoon around here... but that could just be when I'm mostly out doing stuff.
I've always had my best success on ground hogs in the afternoon or evening but that is likely because that is when I've hunted them the most. When I was a kid and lived on the farm I always had chores to do in the morning and couldn't get out hunting until later in the afternoon and now it's the same with work. I will say that they tend to hole up during the hottest part of the day once the temps. get up over about 75. They'll still come out but not as often or for as long from what I've experienced.
Hopefully Ralph (Riverwolf) will chime in with his morning to afternoon success experience. I know he's killed a pile of them with his bows.
:campfire:
Not sure if you were asking me , but ..
On the huntable hours or best time of day...Ground Griz are opposite of Badger...They sleep all night while badger generally sleep most of the day . So any daylight hours can be productive for Ground Hog . On real scorcher days , "Nothing likes that" so best Early/late on those days for sure. Exception being stream/river/lake areas if you can get permission in these type locations. They are very active even on hot days when in the thick canopy of waterways and coolness generated by the water itself .
As you can tell from my top of the line camo above (or lack thereof;^)) Many of my Ground Griz hunts where between other duties/jobs/responsibilities .As in grab the bow and arrows and run to the fields for a quick hunt/rove. That is one of the beauties of chasing Ground Griz...most states have a year round open season for the cost of a basic hunting license . Most farmers will also give you a pass to hunt them even if they don't want you to hunt other critters.
Roving and Ground Hog hunting go hand in hand and nothing polishes hunting/shooting skills more than those two activities . Roving for the shooting..ground Griz for the hunting aspect..
Best with your quest my friend ..... :campfire:
Sorry about that Jim, We must have hit (post) the same time :biglaugh:
All good my friend! I knew you'd have some excellent insight.
:campfire:
Dead woodchucks claimed many a arrow growing up in the neighborhood. Not many times I recovered an arrow from a hole. If I did it was laying at the top part ways in. What fun. Great memories.
Saw a 'hog basking in the road at my neighbors property today... was gone before I could get my bow, but at least I know some whereabouts! :archer:
I'm about to get back after one. I had one last summer that dug holes under my fence to get into my garden. I was able to block him but could never find him to get a shot. Well I've seen him twice this week nibbling on grass in my yard next to garden. I'll have to keep my bow on the ready to try a stalk.
The hardest part of the stalks around the house is I have almost no cover to move, I'm actually thinking about putting some blind material in strategic places so I can get to my garden under some cover vs on the putting green. The one I got the other day I had a huge stump that was overgrown with 4' poke. So between it and skull dragging behind some hill it was a doable stalk.
I Think...?? :dunno: Woodchucks have very good eyesight, but very poor depth perseption.
I was about 12 years old and hunting woodchucks with my Pop's uncle on his farm. He had a .22 and I had my bow and we were riding around in the truck checking fields. we spotted a Chuck in a fresh mowed hayfield.
I got out of the truck and grabbed my bow and he ducked down the hole. I crawled under the fence, and started walking towards the hole. I saw him Pop his head up and I froze.... I was not wearing any camo, just my daily work clothes, jeans and a white Tshirt. Soon, he came out of the hole, and started eating. I slowly stepped towards him and the hole as he was eating... When he stopped eating, and put his head up to look around, I would freeze, and just stand there, until he started eating again. this went on for about an hour...
Complicated by the fact that once I got about 50 yards away, my uncle would holler "SHOOT'IM!!!"
When I got to about 20 yards him, I figured I was in range for a shot... I slowly raised my bow as he was eating, and he raised his head... I waited for him to go back to eating, and I slowly drew my bow and picked a spot... Ok, The whole woodchuck. Hey, I was 12! The string slipped and the arrow was on it's way...
The broadhead hit mid body,and there was a lot of squeeling and rolling around before he headed for the hole.
I did manage to recover my arrow, blood and hair from the broadhead half way to the cresting.
I found through the years in PA that their depth perception was not the best. We used blue jeans and a dark colored shirt to get close.
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :campfire:
Well gents, went to a farmer's house today that's having issues with the chucks... bought home this ole girl! She was peekin out of that stack of wood behind me. Didn't have much to hit but I got enough. I appreciate all of you and the advice and support.
CONGRATULATIONS, Trevor!!!!!! :clapper: :archer: :clapper:
Is that the new Bear??
Thank you and yessir that's the black bear mag! Handy little stick flicker!
Congrats on the hog! :clapper:
Good looking bow as well.
Excellent way to make a life long friend and maybe get on a place for other critters as well. Farmers get a lot of damage around-under buildings and are always apprecitive of the effort to deal with what they have little time to deal with .
Good on ya & Congratulation !
:campfire:
As a kid I killed lots of woodchucks. A def favorite, next to bowfishing summertime activity. Used only a field point and I don't recall ever a pass through. My state is now mandating sharp broadheads. I stopped. Not gonna sharpen a head each time I shoot a silly groundhog.
I'd buy or use junk broadheads for this job! Seems like most any old hardware store discount broadhead would work. We don't have groundhogs/woodchucks up here (AK), but marmots look like a close relative. I had one wander onto my property a couple years ago... a very rare sight here in town. I ended up catching it in a container and after showing the wife and kids we decided to take it a fair ways off and let it go. Ya gotta kill 'em right away or not at all!
Archie;
You'd be amazed at how tough a Ground Grizzly can be, broadheads worked well to put them on the ground quickly. I used dinged up Snuffers.
:campfire: :coffee: :archer2: :campfire: