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Hog hunting advice

Jayjaw

Junior Member
6
0
Hey everyone, I know that hog hunting is nearly impossible around Ohio and that many of you maybe want to closely guard your knowledge but I figured I'd ask anyway.

If a fella from North East Ohio wanted to give himself the best possible chance of bringing a hog home for the freezer what steps would he have to take.

I know traveling south would be the first step, what public hunting grounds have the highest numbers of pigs? I see zaleski and Wayne national come up a lot. Are there more productive options somewhere else I haven't heard about?

What is the best method for taking pigs? Ambush hunting or still hunting? Also these hunts would take place after turkey season through the spring and summer. Do pigs have any seasonal patterns that anyone knows of?

I appreciate any advice anyone can give me. I also appreciate this community I have learned a lot reading everyones contributions. Thanks very much.
 

brock ratcliff

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
24,834
247
The very few people I know that successfully kill hogs are doing it right now. They track them via snow.
 
It's been over 17 years, since I've been in southern Ohio for hogs. What few times I hunted, it was this time of the year, through March, due to foliage and having a ground cover snow.

I hunted Mead Paper Company properties, which now belong to the ODNR, in northern Vinton and southern Hocking counties. The locals were very happy to see someone willing to come in a kill hogs. I offered them a hog, if I killed more than a couple and they offered to help drag them out with their 4 wheelers. As it turned out, there were 4 of us making the trip with a variety of large caliber rifles. We seen 3 hogs that day (no snow) but the sightings were quick...here and gone. Hogs are extremely fast! Nobody so much as pulled the trigger on a single hog, due to tight brush and lack of trigger time.

Local residents can be your greatest resource. However, you may spend an entire day or two to find the info you need to hunt hogs.

Bottom line... It would be easier, if the travel time wasn't such a huge part of the day. That and not being able to spend enough time in the area and not having the knowledge of the area.

Can you say, "huge waste of time"? I don't mean to be a downer, but rather realistic.

Bowhunter57
 

Jayjaw

Junior Member
6
0
It's been over 17 years, since I've been in southern Ohio for hogs. What few times I hunted, it was this time of the year, through March, due to foliage and having a ground cover snow.

I hunted Mead Paper Company properties, which now belong to the ODNR, in northern Vinton and southern Hocking counties. The locals were very happy to see someone willing to come in a kill hogs. I offered them a hog, if I killed more than a couple and they offered to help drag them out with their 4 wheelers. As it turned out, there were 4 of us making the trip with a variety of large caliber rifles. We seen 3 hogs that day (no snow) but the sightings were quick...here and gone. Hogs are extremely fast! Nobody so much as pulled the trigger on a single hog, due to tight brush and lack of trigger time.

Local residents can be your greatest resource. However, you may spend an entire day or two to find the info you need to hunt hogs.

Bottom line... It would be easier, if the travel time wasn't such a huge part of the day. That and not being able to spend enough time in the area and not having the knowledge of the area.

Can you say, "huge waste of time"? I don't mean to be a downer, but rather realistic.

Bowhunter57

I totally understand what you're saying and appreciate the info. I agree the travel is such a deal breaker. My plan would likely to make a trip out of it. Take a long weekend and maybe camp or get a hotel. That's why I want to gather recon as much as I can to give myself the greatest chance of success I could. Thanks.
 

Jayjaw

Junior Member
6
0
HUH??? We killed and ate hogs all the time in Florida and Georgia.. in the heat

Yea I agree heat doesn't have much to do with it. Whether you kill one in winter or not you should assume it has trichinosis and cook well done. And like anything field dress with rubber gloves on. Any warm weather hunting I do I bring a cooler to quarter and put on ice. Them boys in South Texas don't have the "luxury" of our beautiful winter weather (sarcasm if you can't tell) and they get it done.
 

Jayjaw

Junior Member
6
0
I live in NE Ohio also and have been wondering the same thing, maybe ODNR would have some good info

I haven't tried yet but from what I have read about the subject they say the ODNR will not give out information to help you hunt pigs. The reason being is that they want to ERADICATE them and the only way to do that is by trapping. Hunting is not considered an effective method to stop the pig problem because it can drive them to be extremely skittish, dispersed, and nocturnal. They 100% encourage you to shoot any pigs on sight but they aren't going to help you find them in order to keep trapping success high.

I totally understand their viewpoint and can't say I disagree. Pigs are a detriment to ecosystems and become an ethical razor to walk. As much as I wish I could go anywhere to shoot them, its a very selfish want that in practice will destroy every other hunting opportunity around. We are incredibly fortunate that pigs are so rare here. That being said my smoker is hungry for some butts!
 
I live in NE Ohio also and have been wondering the same thing, maybe ODNR would have some good info

I heard some rumors about wild hogs in the Clark and Union county area (Urbana airport area too), about 3 years ago. So, I called the Game Warden for Clark county and we talked for a good 30 or 40 minutes. He was very helpful, but it was a "wild goose chase" at best. There were a few hogs in the area, but he'd already had a myriad of calls from angry landowners about the "great white hunter" types crossing property lines, etc, etc.

As it turned out, there more idiots in the area than there were hogs. Thus, the hogs became nocturnal and escaped everyone. All that was going on at that point was the GW and Sheriff Deputies were arresting people hand over fist for stupid shit and making it bad for anyone trying to be legit.

Again, if you within a reasonable driving distance and/or can establish some properties to hunt, it can be done.
How bad do you want to hunt hogs? :smiley_armscrossed:

Bowhunter57
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
I have spent a considerable amount of time hunting all over this state and various public and private properties, I have only come across one legit a hog track in that entire time. With the hundreds of hunters we have on the site spending thousands of hours in the woods per year, it is rare that someone will kill one or even see one.

I say this every year at least once. If you want to kill some hogs, here's how. Dive to Tennessee, Georgia or the Carolinas. You will be able to find a willing landowner, secure permission, locate the hogs, kill them, bring them back home to Ohio and drop them off at the butcher, get them back, and be chewing on bacon long before you ever even cross a hog track in Ohio
 

Bigcountry40

Member
4,555
127
I have spent a considerable amount of time hunting all over this state and various public and private properties, I have only come across one legit a hog track in that entire time. With the hundreds of hunters we have on the site spending thousands of hours in the woods per year, it is rare that someone will kill one or even see one.

I say this every year at least once. If you want to kill some hogs, here's how. Dive to Tennessee, Georgia or the Carolinas. You will be able to find a willing landowner, secure permission, locate the hogs, kill them, bring them back home to Ohio and drop them off at the butcher, get them back, and be chewing on bacon long before you ever even cross a hog track in Ohio
You'll never get permission in North Carolina, South Carolina, probably not even Tennessee, maybe the Southern part of Georgia. My advise, pay $200-$500 to hunt a outfitter where they provide food, bed, etc in Texas or Florida. By the time you get permission, scout, etc, etc, youll have $500 and time wrapped up in a landowner property
 

Just 1 More

Junior Member
796
0
You'll never get permission in North Carolina, South Carolina, probably not even Tennessee, maybe the Southern part of Georgia. My advise, pay $200-$500 to hunt a outfitter where they provide food, bed, etc in Texas or Florida. By the time you get permission, scout, etc, etc, youll have $500 and time wrapped up in a landowner property

Not much chance of getting permission in GA or Fl either.. Most of the land in GA are timber leases.. and them boy's are very protective. Florida has even less available land and any leases are high dollar.
I still hold my lease in southwest GA with a timber company, 500 acres,,, and i'm not about to give it up.
 

Bigslam51

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
25,778
127
Stark County
I got the hookup on hogs in Georgia, I've met some pretty cool guys since I started turning strikers 😁. Thinking about going down this September.
 

Just 1 More

Junior Member
796
0
I got the hookup on hogs in Georgia, I've met some pretty cool guys since I started turning strikers . Thinking about going down this September.

What part of GA?

I used to build 16'x16' traps out of cattle panels with one way doors. We would catch 2 or more at a time.