Hunting

My First Hunt – After

/ hsoi / 18 Comments

Yesterday I went hunting for my first time. In short, it was a good time and I look forward to future hunts!

If you’d like to know more detail, read on!

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Strange dream

/ hsoi

I had the strangest dream last night. Of course I don’t remember all of it, but I remember a few things.

I was hunting, sorta. I recall being up on something, like a platform or a deck (like a wooden deck you’d have off the back of your house). I think foo.c was there. I know I had my M1A in my hands. Hogs were all around, on the ground below the deck, fair easy to get a shot off. I recall looking through the scope but not being able to see anything… it’d be blurry, or I couldn’t get a bead on a hog. But then when I would get one, I’d pull the trigger and nothing would happen. I’d rack the bolt and a round would eject, new round chamber, pull the trigger again, still nothing. Eject that round. I’d look at the ejected cartridge and the bullet would be all deformed. Like a oozing blob of copper and lead. Very strange. Then I’d try to chamber a round by hand, and I do remember being gentle in releasing the bolt so as not to cause a slam-fire. Then I was able to get a shot off, but I don’t recall if I actually hit anything.

There were certainly other bits and pieces to the dream, but it’s interesting how the brain works and how this is telling of what’s on my mind:

  • I’m thinking about the hunt. I’m excited about it.
  • I know I’m going to take my M1A.
    • I can’t see through the scope. I think this is indicative of the cheek weld. The stock provides a perfect cheek weld if you’re using iron sights, but put a scope on there and now you need to raise the comb. I’ve just ordered one of Karsten’s adjustable cheek rests and am waiting for it to be delivered.
    • The smooshed rounds I think stem back to the ammo selection issue. Thinking about how soft-points are bad. I’ve picked up some Federal Premium Vital-Shok P308H (.308 Win Barnes Triple-Shock X-Bullet) which should feed just fine but I haven’t had a chance to fire it yet so I don’t know how it will perform. I’m guessing it’ll be just fine.

Dreams are always interesting things.

Growing self-reliance

/ hsoi

My father taught me to be responsible for myself and those around me… not just my family, but also my friends, and in my community, and even the greater world around me. But in the end, being taught to take responsibility for myself, to work hard, to stand on my own two feet, and succeed. Since having my own children well over a decade ago, I’ve grown in this and work to instill it in my children. If I don’t work, there’s no food. If I don’t work, there’s no house or clothing. If I don’t work, no electricity to power the TV or the Wii. If I don’t work, how can I care for my family and provide them the things they want and need? I can’t expect anyone else to take care of them but myself. I can’t expect anyone else to take care of me but me.

Over the years, Wife and I have desired to become even more self-reliant. There’s a place in town called Pioneer Farms, and we’re looking into things with them to learn various skills. A bunch of the books I recently picked up work towards this end. It’s also one of the reasons I want to go hunting. So when I came across this article from (Uncle) Ted Nugent, a paragraph struck me:

I need my water, cars, trucks, chainsaws, knives, crowbars, blowtorches, scalding hot water, guitars and guns, thank you. Amazingly, I have mastered them all, and they are all wonderful ingredients for my American Dream of rugged individualism, declared independence, and self sufficiency. They all serve me well, and I am not giving any of them up. Ever.

His American Dream sounds pretty good to me. Individualism, independence, self-sufficiency. I think by and large this is the growing problem in America. People desire to be individuals, yet there’s so much pressure (and people give into it) to conform to the group. There’s lip-service to independence, yet when you rely upon taxes to fund, government programs, handouts, bailouts, socialized medicine, socialized anything, mantatory youth service,  you’re not free — you’re a slave. And are people self-sufficient? They want me to provide for them instead of going out and getting it themselves, so I think not.

What has come of America?

And what are you doing about it? Do you think Mr. Nugent’s dream is a good one? If so, what are you doing to make it reality. If you don’t think it’s a good dream, then tell me what your dream is and how that fits into what America is supposed to be about.

Learning about hunting hogs

/ hsoi

I have to admit… I’m excited about my first hunt.

Me being me, I’m a planner. The Boy Scout in me is alive and well, and I want to “Be Prepared” for the event. Part of that is getting some gear (I do love that I live so close to a Cabela’s), but the bigger part is the mental preparation. Not just getting myself in the right frame of mind (channel my inner Nuge), but learning all that I can.

For instance, where’s the right place to shoot a hog?

I went Googling and found a few things:

From The Hog Blog.

Texas Boars. This has some good stuff, and a perfect picture. I need to commit that to memory.

I’m sure I’ll find other things.

Oh, this changes my reading list. I put the Nemerov book on hold to read one that I think is more relevant to the matters at hand . One of the books I picked up from Amazon was Jeff Cooper’s The Art of the Rifle. It’s one of those books I’ve long felt I ought to read just because it’s touted as one of those seminal books on firearms. While originally I bought it just because I felt it was one to read, now that I’m getting myself into a rifle state of mind well… might as well read it now instead of later.

Boldly going where I’ve never gone before

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

I knew once I started shooting and owning guns that it would only be a matter of time before I’d go hunting.

It’s going to happen soon.

Why hunt? For me, I think in large part it’s a matter of trying it. I never have, I’d like to try. Who knows… after I do it once maybe I’ll hate it. Then again, I may love it, and I hope I do. Hunting is around me. My in-laws all hunt, mostly deer but certainly other things too. I know my Dad’s been hunting but he’s not an avid hunter; his brother hunts ducks, pheasant, etc.. A number of my friends hunt. I’m kinda the odd man out, so it’s time (and my Wife’s family are all saying “about damn time!”) 🙂

Furthermore, I want to have the skills and knowledge to hunt because I think that’s useful. I also do enjoy eating game meat, so harvesting my own is a good thing. I really don’t see any downside. Heck, my 2 older kids have also expressed interest in hunting. For now, it will be just me. Once I’ve got my sea-legs I’ll bring them along. I know so many people that speak fondly of their memories of hunting with Dad. I don’t have those memories, so I guess I’ll have to make my own.

My buddy foo.c just booked a small hunt for him and myself. Texas hogs. Scheduled for a few weeks from now.

More to come….