I think I may have done this story before but I could not locate it so ill post bit again.
BILLIES, BOARS and BROLGAS in the BUSH.
Things happen and times change so when a property that I frequently hunt on went on the market for sale I was disappointed to say the least, devastated that it was now sold and waiting on a settlement date. With work and family commitments eating away at my time I only had a few weekends on which to get out for a hunt and say goodbye to the manager and his wife as they would not be staying on.
But when one door closes another opens, so upon learning that the new owner was a neighbour of sorts and with good words put in on my behalf from the previous owner and manager along with a personal visit when I was in the area for work I was able to still gain access plus the possibility of an additional 300,000 acres to poke around on. A marvellous outcome, it sure does pay to do the right thing at all times.
So with a date fixed to visit I set about to find a hunting partner to accompany me on the hunt. I have a few regular hunting partners but Ben Vanwyk the usual was working and could not make it, so I asked Luke aka Lvkmi to tag along and he too had his brother’s wedding. I have also had the pleasure of meeting Magilla and we talk often so I invited him as well but he too had family commitments, so was down the Allen “bowie” bowman and he too could not make the trek up from down south. Looks like this was to be a solo mission for four days of chasing boars and billies.
I was to be using my old 70# Hoyt carbon element on this trip as I would be using a G5 optix 2 sight that I wanted to trial. So after paper tuning and setting it up I did some bare shaft tuning which led to a minor adjustment of the yoke and I had my Easton axis 300’s flying beautiful and very accurate out to 60 meters. So I set about sharpening an arsenal of arrows for the trip, as I do not like to waste time on the hunt sharpening or repairing arrows when time could be better spent on the ground hunting.
The morning came for departure and as per usual the alarm was not required as I lay awake in anticipation of such times so thought why not I may as well get up and leave now. I was already fuelled and packed up so with a quick stop in at the servo for a bacon and egg roll plus a coffee I hit the road.
We had had some recent rains these past few months and the country side was looking brilliant but we could always use more as long as it did not come along while I was out I would be happy, fingers crossed. With the sun rising to meet me I stopped for a few minutes to capture the essence of its arrival as it toppled out above a floodplain I was traveling.
Being a solo hunt I was quite prepared for most disasters that could occur, I carry enough gear in my back pack consisting of food and water for the day along with some first aid equipment and some emergency devices such as an epirb and since I was not in a hunting pair as usual with a radio which I still carried I also opted to carry my satellite phone as well as an added bonus. Below is a breakdown of what I carry on a hunt from clothes to archery gear, it may seem like to much but as said I was by myself and miles from anyone, better to have it and not need it then want it and not have it.
Gear in photo below listed in no particular order.
Garmin 450T GPS, camera, sat phone, 10x42 binos, epirb, radio, first aid kit (assortment of bandages, band aids, steriliser, pain killers, fier blanket, tweezers, pins, plastic bags etc), spare battery’s for electronics, toilet paper, matches, lighter, colour map, powder bottle for wind, game callers/whistles, leatherman knife, skinning knife, large knife for jaw/horn removal, folding saw, rope, measuring tape, electrical tape, tape for blisters, cable ties, 2 x tripods, 3L water bladder, led lensor P7 and head lamp, spare “D” loop etc, release aid, range finder, bow and arrows, spoon and snacks etc, knife sharpener, broad heads for pig jaws. I also sometimes carry extra arrows if I think I will encounter more game and some electrolytes as well.
All this gear fits in my back pack with more room to carry extra clothing if required; I also have a bow sling that I keep between the mesh support of the back pack which can be reached without having to remove the back pack.
As most avid hunters and travellers my eyes were scouring the country side taking in the scenery and the sounds of the Australian bush and happened to pick up this young spotted harrier sitting on a post doing the same as me, looking for critters to hunt.
After the recent rains it was pretty evident that a lot of surface water was around so the game would be pretty spread out, this along with the goats fetching a price of $1.80 a kilo would make finding a respectable billy or a goat at all pretty hard.
Getting to the quarters mid-morning I set about setting up my bed and getting my kitchen ready as I would not be back until after dark as I was heading out to check some likely spots close to the main dam.
I headed out towards some water that I had seen on my travels in the hope of finding a pig nosing around or maybe a goat or two. But I found neither except for the odd masked lapwing better known to me as a plover that was screeching and swooping about.
With plenty of water about it certainly was going to be hard to locate some critters.
I was scouting long a large flat and looked up ahead to see two brolgas walking along about 100 meters in front, these brolgas are normally pretty vocal and flee at the first site of danger from a few hundred meters out but they just ambled along knowing full well that I was near. This got me to thinking that they may have had some young chicks or a nest close bye so I started to scan left and right and sure enough I spotted two chicks trying to sneak off.
I quickly followed them up and seen them duck down in some taller foliage and snuck in for some pictures and some video, a true high light of my trip and a very rare moment when out in the bush doing what we love.
https://youtu.be/BfQieauIyp0
I returned to the huts for a quick nibble as not much sign was seen other than some bird life and some livestock. Jumping in the colorado I headed out to do a little recon trip to a part of the property I had not been to. The area looked promising with a good feeding flat and a spot that could hold some water as well as I found plenty as picture below.
Arriving at my starting point to hunt I geared up and checked the wind and set off with it blowing in my face. The area screamed pig so I cautiously walked scanning left and right as I went. Breaking out into a clearing I glassed the area and soon found a few swine nosing around on the far side. With a clump of trees in the middle of the clearing which was close to some gilgai’s that should have water I guessed correctly in that the pigs would make their way there.
I was just getting into the shade provided from the trees when the first of the pigs arrived, these being a heavily pregnant sow and her slips from last season consisting of a few small boars and sows. With one of the boars being the target I ever so slowly edged closer until I was within range and waited. The big sow looked up a few times and moved away slowly checking for danger, staying dead still with full camo on and a good wind it was not long before one of the boars turned broadside offering a shot.
The Easton axis 300 was poised and ready and was soon in anchor at around 30 meters from the little ginger boar, holding for a split second when the pin hovered around the mark the shot was cut with the arrow passing through completely. The small boar let out a soft grunt and ran off a short distance in some cover before the ill effects of a hair popping razor sharp broad head took its effect and he succumb to the well placed arrow.
https://youtu.be/DyeKUmwGcZA
Getting some quick photos I continued the hunt and ventured off to a large feeding flat that usually held some pigs late in the afternoon. Nearing the area and hearing and then seeing the amount of bird life suggested to me that some water was present and present it was. This area is in a really good catchment and it caught every drop these last few months with the usual ankle deep water after a good rain now at a draw dropping thigh deep level.
I continued walking along and around some edges with the wind right for hunting getting wet here and there but knew this flat went for several kilometres so had to cross it sooner or later as it got too dark to hunt.
It soon came too dark to hunt so I ever so slowly crossed the great expanse of water, a few more mossies and I could have flown over the water instead. It surely will continue on being a great place to hunt in the future and so deserved an effort by me to come back a couple of days later in some better daylight to capture some pictures and some video and maybe find a pig to hunt to boot.
Glassing the area looking for some swine.
https://youtu.be/OSl_GUo8m5U
Getting back to camp that night I was as hungry as a hostage so set about cooking up a feed of scotch fillet steaks with some onion on the side washed down with a cold can of coke and being that a pig had hit the deck today I had the “pig hunter” stubby cooler and not the “bow hunter”.
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