
“Did you hit him?”
“I’m not sure. I think so!”
“He’s running! Hit him again!”
“Dammit!”
“Did he go down?”
“I didn’t see.”
“Well, let’s go look for him.”
It all started with an email asking for a link exchange.
I received an email from John, over at the Hunting with Jim video blog (vlog), asking if I’d be interested in providing a link to their site. As I always do befor adding any site to my blog roll, I clicked over to see what these guys are all about. The site was funny and irreverent, and also included some very nicely done video work.
I emailed back with my compliments on the site and a promise to connect. I don’t remember the details of the next several email exchanges (and you probably don’t care anyway), but I think they asked some questions about hog hunting and I offered to take them on their first hog hunt.
In the meantime, through conversations with Holly, the NorCal Cazadora, I found out that she and her boyfriend, Hank, were members of the Golden Ram Sportsmen’s Club… the same club I belong to. We talked for a while about meeting up for a hunt if we could coordinate schedules, but it was starting to look like we’d never get it all together.
In the meantime, we all (Holly, Jim and John, and myself) continued to keep in touch on our blogs, and the topic never died. Then John dropped me a line to tell me that he and Jim would be available the first full weekend in June. It worked for me, and Holly found out that she could be there as well.
I called Golden Ram and made reservations at the Cholame property. The barley was ripe and the hogs were turning up to mow it down. We had a place to hunt, a date, and a reasonable chance to see hogs. We were set!
Then things got better. My friend (and regular participant here on the Hog Blog), Michael Riddle called to ask if I’d be interested in coming out to his place, Native Hunt, to help him out. At the ranch, he has a herd of pure European wild boar for hunts, but he has seen a couple with undesirable traits and wanted to cull them. One of them in particular was a really nice boar, and he wanted to use it for a full-body mount. If I were interested, I could come do the shooting.
I told him I was already going out with Holly and the guys from Hunting With Jim, so I didn’t know if that would work for him or not. Since they were both (Jim and Holly) new to hog hunting, it could provide an interesting experience for them… but I sure didn’t want to presume on his hospitality. “The more the merrier,” Michael said. “Bring your friends. I’m sure we’ll find something for them to shoot!”
And with that, it was on…
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