09/07/2026
WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER A SUCCESSFUL HUNTING TRIP
This weekend one of of the other members and I wend down to South Georgia to do a public land pig hunt. This was a small game season hunt, so that meant only small game weapons were allowed. Rimfire or muzzleloader weapons, and archery equipment is all that's allowed to hunt with on public land during this season, because you have to use equipment legal for the season you're hunting. (check local and state laws on regulations on the area you choose)
So we load up the truck and we're off on an adventure. 8 hours of driving later and we arrive at our destination, hopes of seeing anything during the day and a half of hunting we have ahead of us are low, but the excitement of the hunt is high as we set up camp. Finally we ride up to the check station and grab a hard copy of the Gamelands map and the regulation book and head down the way to the hunting woods.
Three minuets into we have 8-10 pigs run out in front of us while we're driving to our spot. I'll admit I've actually hunted these 15,000 acres before. I used to live in the area and up until about 10 years ago I would hunt here about once a year, so I did have an IDEA as to where to start, but honestly it's nothing my fellow Mafia member didn't find on the internet. Anyway, over the next 36 hours we walked several miles, sweat buckets, and saw animals every time we went out (last count was around 40 pigs, and around the same amount of deer, OH and one black bear. Both of us had pigs in our sights several times, but never had a clean shot, so we came back with an empty cooler and a full memory bank.
So, with empty coolers and no more time, we broke camp and headed back to North Carolina. Some of you will say well that was not a very successful hunt, but my friend and I said it was one of the best hunts we've been on in a while. We found the target animal, we had a great time and we got back home safely with a ton of great memories. To me that is definitely a success. Successful hunts don't always end in full coolers, they end when you feel successful. We had less than 48 hours to scout and hunt 15,000 acres and we found the pigs. Now we're already thinking about our next trip to the same area, when we have a little more time and a LOT LESS heat and humidity.
Bottom line is this: a success and a trophy are in the mind of the individual. If you feel like you succeeded in your goal then don't let anyone else tell you otherwise. It's honestly not a competition, it's a lifestyle.
God bless, Vern
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