Let’s talk.

[Hollowpoint]

Lawdawg, he said they got 6” of rain in that last storm they had, they’re grateful for it, but it’s not near enough to get them out of the years of drought. Our temps got back into the 90’s, it’s like summer is flipping us a double bird saying, he ain’t going out that easy.
I took the dogs out the other morning for a couple hours to a new place to get familiar with it, it started warming up, so I loaded these trashy terriers up and headed home. Saw a big fat rattlesnake dead on the road coming home, so I went and bought a pair of snake boots since I’m usually running solo in areas with poor cell service.

[lawdawgharris]

We made run the other day and caught a sow and shoat. I was glad to catch them. Those hogs are educated and Olympic caliber runners. The dogs forced the sow to hold up in a pond. It had started to warm up pretty good and they kept the pressure on her fat butt, not allowing her to get too far ahead and rest. Lots of briar thickets with years of growth so they are really dense because of the leaves and tree limbs that more or less make igloo type cover. It’s hard for a dog to locate because the scent can’t get out very good. There’s a lot of cactus, Especially that jumping/Christmas cactus. Their ole faces and shoulders were full of cactus thorns.


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[Hollowpoint]

I saw the pics on ETHD that t dog posted up, that sow was thick. I hunted a handful of times with Mike down in Houston, there were some briars and thorns so big I didn’t know what they were. They’d rip you to shreds, unbelievable. I’m just getting to know this public ground around me for now, I’m just north of the state line in Oklahoma

[lawdawgharris]

Hollowpoint, I am tdog. There are several types of thorny trees and brush. I don’t know what Mike has the most of down around Houston but I would bet black locust or weesatch. Those locusts are brutal. I remember a hunt when I was about 18. Me and a buddy were hunting one night with his uncle and another guy. I had gone back to the truck to get my flash light that I had left. On the way to catch up with everyone else the dogs bayed. I was double timing it across this pasture and my light starts to die. I stop to see if I could fix it and I hear this blowing. I knew the second I heard it that it was a hog. I shined my very weak light towards the sound and could make out that it was a decent hog. Well here it comes to me. I take off for the silhouette of a tree out in this open pasture. The race to the tree was close and as I got to saw that my only option was to grab a low limb and swing my legs up high around the trunk. I didn’t know until it was toooo late that it was a black locust tree. I couldn’t have fallen from that tree without trying to. I was stuck to it like Velcro. The hog stood under me looking up snorting and blowing for what seemed like 10 minutes but was likely 10 seconds before trotting off. My hand and legs were full of holes and thorns. They were swollen and sore as all get out the next day.


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[Beebout-it]

sounds like a very fun night! I remember when I was young and I was the rabbit dog for my uncles, they’d say go stomp through that brush and if you see a rabbit start barking I grew up in Ohio and we had these multiflora rose bushes that were huge and very thick, they had the nastiest thorns on them and the harder you fought the harder it was to get away. I would wear so many layers to try and not get torn up but it never helped. I remember one time I was so stuck my feet weren’t touching the ground and all I could do is wiggle and every time I did it hurt more and more….but I wasn’t getting left home so into the roses I went!!

[lawdawgharris]

Lol, that doesn’t sound fun. That sounds a lot like what we call rose hedge down here. If so, I know exactly what you were experiencing.


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[Hollowpoint]

Lawdawg, I also hit some vines around Crockett area near the Neches River, I don’t know what they were but I called them Jesus thorns. Someone I know in Tyler told me what they were, but I forgot, and I hope I never have to deal with them again. But I most likely will.

[lawdawgharris]

We hunted several times over towards Crocket in Grapeland, Tx. Use to be an old man that farmed watermelons over there. He was one of the largest in the state, I think his name was Wade Pennington. We caught a bad dude over there one hunt. It’s been probably 23-24 years ago since that hunt and it’s still as fresh on my mind as the day it happened. It left an impression to say the least. I don’t know if I was ever prouder of two dogs.


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[Rowdy Fitz]

What’s happenin gentlemen!
Finally got the dogs out this week, it went really good! Set up camp on Tuesday afternoon, then it rained most of the night. Hunted Wed, Thurs. came home Friday morning. Started roading the dogs just outside of camp got on a tom first draw we went up! He was either bedded mid slope or stalking a herd of deer that were just up the hill. He immediately went over the main ridge and bailed a mile down a canyon. In that mile he descended 1700’ in elevation.
I guess he felt like he had shook the dogs because he made 3 scratches in a 200 yard stretch as he turned right at a Y in the canyon and went up that way where he bedded down again. It took the dogs a couple hours to line the track out but they finally did and were headed up after him as we were driving up. We had to drive 30 miles to get around lol.

The runnin bastard jumped 4 trees, 3 bays and covered around 6.5 miles after he was jumped. But we decided to follow them up the canyon, trying to catch up. We climbed right about 1,500’ in elevation to get up on the ridge only to find out he dropped off, 3/4 mile and 1000’ down into another canyon. We opted to hike back to the truck and drive around which took another 2 hours. As we were driving around a squall came through right at dark, dropping about 1/8” of rain. I’m assuming that’s when he jumped tree and finally lost the dogs. I had to run 1/4 mile up the canyon to get within hollering range of 2 the dogs, as they started back tracking, heading back up the ridge.

Over all the dogs worked their tails off! That sucker was a tree jumping, back trailing, loop running, trick playing son of a gun! I’m sure proud of my hounds for doing such a great job!

A short video of the country.

https://youtu.be/kSIfX6t2xxA

[lawdawgharris]

Man I was tired and breathing hard reading that and then the video didn’t make it any better,lol. That’s awesome though. Sounds like your dogs really put in the work.


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[Rowdy Fitz]

Thank you law and yes sir, I was very happy with how hard they worked! They impressed me with how they figured out the losses and kept driving the track even when they fell behind.

[lawdawgharris]

It’s for sure not always about catching or treeing the quarry, at least not to those of us that are in for the dogs. It’s hardly ever about the hogs I catch. It’s way more about how the dogs get it done. You feed’em so if you were proud, then that’s really all that matters.


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[Rowdy Fitz]

Yes sir, I agree 100%! It’s about the dogs, their education and performance!

[Beebout-it]

Sounds like a great day in the mountains!!! Beats going to work for sure!

[Hollowpoint]

Rowdy, I’m not in California anymore, reading your post makes me glad I don’t have to climb those mountains every year. I know what you’re talking about when you say a certain amount of elevation in a short distance.

My jagd’s didn’t get treed or bayed that often, but they darn sure took me on some foot races I’d prefer to never have to repeat again. You’re dogs did good, they’ll really be fired up for the next thing.