I didn't really "hunt" last Saturday, but stopped into one of my favorite farms outside of Culpeper while on my way to visit some old friends in Madison. No pictures taken this day, because after all the rain I would have to have hip boots to retrieve the critters in both locations. First I checked a fence line on the east side of the farm. There are always holes there, but it's been two years since I've actually seen a groundhog there to shoot at! This time there was one present hiding on the edge of the alfalfa under 150 yards. The 204 did the job on that one, the corpse plainly visible....#51.
Then I drove to the west side of the farm. There is a complex of holes right at 401 yards from the gate where I always stop. This year they planted beans in what used to be alfalfa. Ten to fifteen yards past the holes out in the beans were several young piggies in a group that appeared to be three feet, or less, across. Two piggies kept standing up in the middle of the group, so I took aim on the right one, held what appeared to be 8-9 inches over it's head, and about a body width to the right to allow for the wind, and touched the trigger on the swift
On regaining my sight picture after recoil, I see the tail salute from the intended target, and others scurrying towards the holes......... BUT WAIT( as they say on the tv commercials) I see a second piggie flopping around on the ground in the general direction of the holes! But, he gave out and expired half way to the hole!
Both bodies clearly visible! #'s 52 & 53 with one shot at 400+!! That is a first for me! I've killed two with one shot before, but they have always been under 100 yds.
I didn't make it out at all during this week, but BRB met me at 2:30 this afternoon and we headed East. The first farm we pulled into had five out at one time, but not a single safe shot! There's a subdivision that borders that beanfield. One made the mistake of letting me drive to about 50 yards of it, so I reached for the pellet rifle, stepped out of the truck, got a rest on the hood and WHAP! The piggie did a complete sommersault!DRT in the hole! First one in the back of the truck for the day! We couldn't get any others to cooperate and stay in place for us to get close enough for another shot with the pellet rifle so we continued to other farms adding a couple here and one there, and the back of the truck started filling up with pasture poodles! At just after 7:00 we had 12 in the back of the truck, and only one miss! I'm calling it a miss because we couldn't find the body....it may have been poor marking on our part, but I felt good about the shot...solid rest, and under 150 yds with the 204.....oh, well, it happens!
Last stop was a place that so far this year has been underproductive. I've only killed two, and BRB one, there before today, but they have all been longer shots pushing or besting 400.....it's a big field!
It was my shot, and I was down seven to five! I spied one little one at just over 400, set up the bags, the wind had died completely out, and turned the swift loose! My spotter didn't see a thing! No dirt, dust, mist or anything else, but he said the groundhog was still there! The pig I was shooting at was definitely GONE! We argued about it for a minute until we realized we were looking at two different pigs! Since I was already set up, I took a poke at the other one! No confirmation of hit on that one, either! So we walked out to where the piggies had been. First hole we came to was the second target, and one dead piggie missing most of it's head
Then I said "I'm going to look for the first one!" I don't think my partner believed there were two different poodles, but forty yards from the first, was another much smaller piggie with a goodly portion of it's noggin' missing!
BRB was shocked and in disbelief, so I made him carry my rifle the 400 yards back to the truck, while I carried the piggies back for the "group picture"
Yours truly and the back of my bloody truck!
The little one on the left in the picture was the first one shot with the pellet rifle. The two closest to my right hip were the last two I shot. This brings me to an even 60 for this year to date.
Sorry for the long post........
F1