Just got home from a weekend with Ray Hammond at Hog Heaven. WOW, what a great weekend!
Drove over to SC on Thursday and met up with Ray and a few new Trad friends. The first evening was spent around a roaring fire, preparing gear and discussing the property, things to expect while hunting the property and a good bit of shot placement advice. Ray was very reassuring and made everyone feel immediately comfortable and at home.
The next morning began with biscuits, sausage gravy, eggs and coffee. With my map of the property in hand I headed out after breakfast with wonderful sense of anticipating, this being my first attempt at hogs. I hunted most of the day, stopping only about 20 minutes to grab some lunch. No hogs for me this day but I saw alot of deer, a few Armadillos, turkey and even a couple of GIANT fox squirrels. When back at camp that evening I learned I was in the minority as everyone else had seen hogs. I soon forgot about this when I walked inside and smelled the pork shoulders Ray was cooking. Let me tell you all, Ray can COOK! Filled up on Pork, veggies and a Salad. Then out to the fire for lots stories and a few jokes.
Day 2, another great breakfast and off to the woods. I hit the jackpot, ended up seeing at least 40 hogs by the end of the day. Passed on a couple of smaller pigs at 12 yards, and later singled out a VERY large hog in a group of 20 or so hogs and piglets. At 30 yards a tiny little piglet I didn't see squealed the alarm and away they all ran. Ray found a good bit of humor in my re-telling of this event and I have to admit I got several good laughs out of it as well! HUGE New York Strip steaks for dinner and a lot of awesome conversation.
Cold front moved in over night and this morning it was mighty frosty. Everything was frozen and it made stalking a bit tougher but it was still a beautiful day. No hog for me this trip but next time for sure! I spent the drive home thinking about the coming months and how I might fit in a return trip before deer season.
Great food, great people and a great area to hunt hogs. To Tom, Ken, Doug, Dan, Ray, and Jay, it was great meeting all of you and I hope to share a hunting camp with you again one day. To Ray Hammond, you are a class act and you run a great hunting camp. I will be back! Probably much sooner than the wife would like.
I kept a camera with me at all times and found some great backdrops for a few photos. Hope you enjoy them.
First day and I find the Angel. Is that a beautiful backdrop or what?!
(http://i.imgur.com/8hSnQ.jpg)
"Blue Lake"
(http://i.imgur.com/ulmCM.jpg)
You just know there is going to be a hog around every corner.
(http://i.imgur.com/vqoa4.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/a6jcR.jpg)
I see Georgia!
(http://i.imgur.com/pPqkG.jpg)
Lots of Cypress logs make great spots for mid day breaks! (notice my wind feather, wind aws really blasting out of the north this day!
(http://i.imgur.com/Y9VxQ.jpg)
WOW! (That is a 68" longbow with a full length arrow. Lots of these giants around.)
(http://i.imgur.com/Wmcbs.jpg)
Managed to find a little evidence of hunters from long ago. (Middle piece is piece of Native American clay pottery)
(http://i.imgur.com/i6YZ8.jpg)
Thanks again Ray!!!!!!!!
Ray is a class act for sure! Heading back down in April and can't wait!
Cool stuff. Ray is a good Feller for sure. You can get just as addicted to the artifacts as you do the pig hunting if your not careful.RC
:archer:
QuoteOriginally posted by RC:
Cool stuff. Ray is a good Feller for sure. You can get just as addicted to the artifacts as you do the pig hunting if your not careful.RC
Very true! I did my best to limit my artifact searches to the walk back to my truck. However the one on the left was in the dirt piled up by a digging Armadillo, what are the odds?
Most-excellent journey!
Thank you for sharin'!
Keep the wind in your face!
Shoot straight, Shinken
:archer2:
Perty dang cool!
Jason
Nice pics! Thanks for sharing
Great stuff!
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
6 more weeks.....6 more weeks
A great place and a great gentleman. Can't wait to get back.
Thanks for sharing the Journey. I'm lookin forward to hunting and meeting you next year on our HillGang Hog Hunt.
Darren
:bigsmyl: :archer:
Thanks for taking us along!
Johnny/JAG
Thank you for the update. Our St. Jude hunt is coming up quick, and I'm looking forward to getting down there.
Two more weeks......two more weeks!
BowHunterGA, where abouts did you run into the hogs on day 2? I've been there three times and might be able to picture where you were hunting.
The whole place is great with sign in the pines, the palmetto flats, down in the swamps, and even right around camp. And you are right, Ray is a great host and cook!
QuoteOriginally posted by Red Beastmaster:
Two more weeks......two more weeks!
BowHunterGA, where abouts did you run into the hogs on day 2? I've been there three times and might be able to picture where you were hunting.
The whole place is great with sign in the pines, the palmetto flats, down in the swamps, and even right around camp. And you are right, Ray is a great host and cook!
North and northwest of blue lake and the angel. Shoot me a PM if you want to discuss further. I will say though, everyone saw hogs over the weekend.
Thanks for sharing
Ray's place is top notch all around!
Thanks for sharing and love the pics
very cool! Ray is good people for sure
Good stories...yes, I am familiar with that enchanting beauty:
(http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa102/Redriderxx/angel.jpg)
Sounds like a blast Steve. You'll get em next time.
That angel is cool. Is it on an old home place or and old cemetery or just out in the woods. She's really neat.
Hey Steve ,
It was great meeting you and the rest of the guys. I hope Danny will post his hog adventures!
Nice photos bud!!!!
D
The property owner also owns a former Franciscan monastery
He brought the statue from there to a picturesque spot on Blue Lake, where his family would picnic
Best regards
Ray
Nice pics, what an awesome place that is even though that angel gives me the creeps! :scared:
One of the most peaceful places you'll ever find. Not a better place to go relax and let your mind wonder only to be snapped back into reality by a grunt from a hog.
Not to mention the host is one heck of a cook and good guy.
Just stay out of the creeks. They are slick!!
(http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e322/rayhammond123/DannyNewbern2012.jpg)
In spite of high winds and a drop of 30-40 degrees in temps, the guys had a good hunt with lots of sighting... Danny Newbern was able to put it all together Sunday morning with this good lookin' rooter
Congratulations Danny, nice one.
Thanks for sharing your trip with us.
I beleive we are looking at 45 days till Ray's!!!
Great job Danny! That pig looks just like the one I was stalking when I got busted by the "Sentry piglet"! :biglaugh:
I was checking out the angel when I noticed a huge white crane down by Blue Lake. When it lifted off and banked through shafts of light filtering in through the cypress I just stood in awe. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever witnessed in the wild.
I have been in a few places where you could just talk out loud to God. This was one of them. Thanks for bringing it back to mind.
Blue Lake is a favorite area for me as well. First shot at a game animal with a Bow was near the lake!
Can't wait to get back down there in April.
David, I always found a reason to hang around that area for longer than I needed to each time I passed by. Would like to see that same area during a wet spell after a lot of rain.
Peter, would love to hear how your trip goes in April as I am trying to pick another time to make the trip, possibly this year, definately hoping for a couple trips in 2013!
Steve, I'll try to do a better job with the hunt report this time around.
Pete
I will be there last weekend of April for Turkey and Hogs.Have never hunted turkey in my life so looking forward to it.Kip
Had to be a great time! Thanks for your post. Hope to hookup w/you & a few tg'ers as well some day before long!
I always wondered what a bear rug type mount would look like with a nicely colored hog like Dan's!
Would probably look cool....might smell like a pig though. :biglaugh:
Sounds like a great time!
Sorry I couldn't be there to hunt with you guys , but Ray had me grounded ! Kip you just come on I will hunt with you , I love Thunder Chickens !
Mike, hated you couldn't make it as well. Would have liked to have met you, always next time I guess.
Mike sounds great but understand you will have a very green greenhorn.Talked to Ray and will bring some Crawfish and rice to make an Etouffee for one meal.Kip
Looks like a great time!
Bisch
Well, you know what they say, even a blind nut finds a hog once in a while. This weekend was my second trip to "The Heaven" and it started right where the first left off. Me in plenty of pigs and something in my eye that kept me from hitting them. Within an hour on friday morning I sent a warning shot over a nice meat hog just to let them know I was back. Clipped just enough hair to let em know I was`nt fooling around. The rest of the day was spent chasing a couple groups of pigs around that just did`nt want to come out an play. Hogs 1 Blind nut 0. Day 2 was even tougher. High winds made finding pigs in the thick stuff where they had been the day before challenging. But then came Sunday morning, cold and clear. I decided to hunt down by the river as pigs had been seen there the day before. About 9am I stumbled onto a group of a dozen pigs all about the same size except for a couple 30lb dinks. They ran ahead a hundred yards or so but then as pigs sometimes do they seemed to forget why they were running and stopped to root around some. Within a few minutes they were feeding back toward their original location. The terrain was very open and I could not get close enough for a shot as they passed between me an the river. They fed into some tall grass that grows along the bank and that gave me just enough cover to close the distance to 25yds or so. A plump red and black spotted boar gave me the chance I needed so I let fly. The woodsman passed thru and stuck in a tree on the far side. Chaos erupted as the pack run by to my left toward the swamp and I could see the spotted pig lagging well back but making it out of my sight.I marked the spot I last saw it and went to retrieve my arrow from the tree. Sign on it looked good but I knew the shot was a little back. After a little wait and prayer I went to the spot I last saw the pig. Blood sign was scarce but within a hundred more yards I found it piled up.This blind nut gets to eat. Thank you Lord! For anybody wanting to have a good time with good people you can`t beat Ray and the guys that frequent Hog Heaven. Ray is as good a person as you`ll ever meet and he cooks pretty good too.The trad guys will keep you entertained every evening as you sit around the campfire. Many thanks to Ray and the new friends I made this weekend. See ya again soon. And thanks Ray for posting the picture as I`m not sure I could have figured out how to.
Danny was a MAN ON A MISSION this weekend
Left at daylight and back at dark!
:bigsmyl:
Man that was a great weekend! Very good looking pig Danny, huge congrats on taking that one in those weather conditions!
Steve, I never would have thought of using an angel as a bow stand :smileystooges:
I'll check through my pics in the next day or two and post any good ones that turned out here. I have one with my hill leaned up against a big tree up by Hog Lake, should go with your Crocodile picture.
It was a pleasure meeting all you fellas, and thanks again Ray for everything you do!
I spent the drive home recounting and planning for April, I'll see some of you jokers soon!
Speaking of jokers: what does a 5 lb jelly bean say when he sees a guy with a 100 pound Hill and a broadhead sneaking through the brush?
Thom
Looks like y'all had a great time! I know you'll put one down next time, Steve.
QuoteOriginally posted by sticksnstones:
Speaking of jokers: what does a 5 lb jelly bean say when he sees a guy with a 100 pound Hill and a broadhead sneaking through the brush?
I'll beat Ray to the answer on this one.........the little piggie says..."look out, it's STEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEVE!!!!!!!!!!!!"
That's not gonna get old!
Here is my 70" Big Five up against a tree at Hog Lake (and yes, it is frozen over)
(http://thomjorgensen.com/bows/HillAtHogLake.jpg)
Very nice Thom, caught myself several times looking at those big Cypress trees in awe! Truly amazing. First time I saw Hog Lake.
Yea, the piglet story won't get old. Plus when I go back and Ray starts telling this story to everyone else I get to say.... "Heard it!" :laughing: :laughing:
Wow Thom, that bow looks familiar :cool:
Can't wait to get back down there in April!
Pete
Swamp should look familiar too, that's where we were sneaking up on the black pig and saw the gator eyes looking back towards us :)
I can't wait to get back!
Thom
you guys are making me long for another trip down to Ray's!
:thumbsup:
I need to get back!
Thom, it sure does look familiar. I'm looking forward to poking around down there again!
I'm headed down the last weekend in February. If we have half as much fun as your group did it will truly be a hunt to remember. Thanks for sharing.
CV
CV it will be something to remember. Take an appetite and listen to Ray! Good luck in the swamp.
Pete you would have liked it, I shot the Big Five in camp a little bit (and quite well when my fingers weren't frozen.) It turned a few heads and got a few "dang, that is quiet!" types of comments. It's bracing 7.25" with 14 strands of D97 and two little yarn puffs near the tips. It's tossing 600 grain arrows right now. Nice combo. I think I could push the tuning on it further, but when it's this good, it's kinda hard to mess with it.
Those arrows get there OK? I hope you're enjoying your Ambush and getting plenty of practice in! Looks like my bow might not be started yet, that could mean I might be hunting the Hill again in April... I can't say that I'd mind taking some game with it if the opportunity arose!
Thom
I wouldn't worry about just getting deep into the swamp, pigs were seen all over last weekend. About as many were up in the pines by the road as down by the river. Listen to Ray, and hunt SLOW. You could bump into them anywhere!
Thom
Thom that Hill of yours is definately quiet. I need to replace the puffs on mine, I think I trimmed them down too small. Was fine when I was shooting split but when I switched to 3 under they don't seem to be enough.
Like Thom said, I would'nt worry about getting too deep. Almost all of the pigs I saw were not in the swamp areas. They were turning the leaves scarfing up water oak acorns. Swamp areas are practically bone dry right now, perhaps when you guys are there in April there will have been some rain.
Regardless, I hope any that are going have half the fun the group I was with appeared to be having. Back to scouting and stump shooting for me, somehow I don't think it will be as much fun now.
Well Steve, I'm glad it's 100 pounds too light for you then! Looking forward to our next hunt!
Thom
I will try that with the puffs Thom. The arrows I was shooting last weekend are just shy of 800 grains. I wish I had shot it a few times split so you could hear the difference. When shooting split finger it is very quite. I also have a dacron string for the croc that I may string up this weekend and try.
Sounds good! For those of you following this thread we had a little offline aside about strings, here is a recap:
For me those little wool puffs always help a little on the noise so I use them. I also spray them with scotch guard after I put them on, you don't want to forget that step if you use them hunting! I put them closer to the tips, and trim them down to golf ball size to keep performance reasonably high. If a string seems loud I'll move them towards the center before I'll make them bigger in diameter.
I hear most guys brace Hill bows between 6 and 6.5", but mine has a buzz below 7.25 so I run mine high. I'm guessing even if I bought another 70" Big Five it might act completely different than this one in this respect.
Last thought on strings, I was a big B50 proponent for a while, but Rob got me to try FF and I really like it. No stretch, and it's far more abrasion resistant when you are in the thicket. Any more I just twist dacron when I'm creating a string to use as a model for a bow. I can make several mistake strings on B50 for the cost of one FF whoops.
As for your arrow setup, I know you are running heavy up front, but you need lots of total grains to keep that heavy of a bow quiet. I hope you are 800+ given your draw.
I've shot my Hill 3 under, 3 finger split, and 2 finger split. I never noticed a difference in noise, but I know everyone says 3 under is louder. I'm guessing with how many db my bow is, I just can't tell the difference.
It'll be interesting to see what combo works for that bow and you! Have a great one,
Thom
Steve,
Congratulations on a great weekend with Ray and associates! Regarding those artifacts, you should know that Ray and Squirrel Bait are budding new flint knappers. Woody Blackwell is attempting to teach them the art. However, I know those are not Ray or SB's 'leavings', cause they look too good! (Ray, the best defense is a good offense!). If in doubt, check for fresh human blood. If it was one of Woody's, then check for fresh hog blood.
Seriously, Hog Heaven is a wonderful place and a blast even if you don't score hogs. (but we had our chances). i was there in January with Ray, Woody, Mike and some great folks from NJ. I am worse than Ray at flint knapping but the chance to get a lesson from Woody Blackwell was priceless.
Bruce, I thought about that while I was looking but the larger piece I found only had about 1/4" showing, had to dig it out of the roadbed with my knife. The other point was in a pile of dirt where an Armadillo had been digging. I almost didn't even pick it up as it was covered in dirt but I thought the shape looked a lot like a point.
I also picked up a few nice pieces of Chert to bring home with me. Maybe try my hand at knapping one of these days. Never know.