Austin, Texas Hog Hunt Advice

[DmacD]

Wow, thanks for all the input everyone, much appreciated. Some more background info;
We chose the last week of September because that is when my co-worker retires. 30 years in the Fire Service, and I am lucky enough to be his Captain and have him on my crew. I really want to give him a good experience, as it will be the first time he has traveled anywhere to hunt anything other than out native whitetails and turkeys.
We were focused on Austin, because I have been there before, which makes me the "expert". I loved The Salt Lick barbecue place, wanted them to experience that, and Austin was fun to party in afterwards. Unfortunately, the place I went to is no longer offering hunting.
I was also in San Antonio about 5 years ago, had a great time, but the outfitter there has really put his prices up due to all of the exotics he has on offer there. I wanted to keep the prices at a "reasonable" rate, as the other 2 guys in the group are casual hunters at best, and would not want to make a large investment in the hunting portion. We are coming from Canada and our dollar sucks right now.
As for the mechanics of it, .308's and 7x57's are what we will be bringing. I will look into the flashlights though.
So, there you have it: 4 guys, coming from out of town, want to eat barbecue, shoot some pigs, have some laughs, and are borderline cheapskates. I will look into your suggestions, but always willing to hear some more.
Thanks

 

[mikecatt13]

Wow, thanks for all the input everyone, much appreciated. Some more background info;
We chose the last week of September because that is when my co-worker retires. 30 years in the Fire Service, and I am lucky enough to be his Captain and have him on my crew. I really want to give him a good experience, as it will be the first time he has traveled anywhere to hunt anything other than out native whitetails and turkeys.
We were focused on Austin, because I have been there before, which makes me the "expert". I loved The Salt Lick barbecue place, wanted them to experience that, and Austin was fun to party in afterwards. Unfortunately, the place I went to is no longer offering hunting.
I was also in San Antonio about 5 years ago, had a great time, but the outfitter there has really put his prices up due to all of the exotics he has on offer there. I wanted to keep the prices at a "reasonable" rate, as the other 2 guys in the group are casual hunters at best, and would not want to make a large investment in the hunting portion. We are coming from Canada and our dollar sucks right now.
As for the mechanics of it, .308's and 7x57's are what we will be bringing. I will look into the flashlights though.
So, there you have it: 4 guys, coming from out of town, want to eat barbecue, shoot some pigs, have some laughs, and are borderline cheapskates. I will look into your suggestions, but always willing to hear some more.
Thanks

If you're already traveling that far the location doesnt much matter. High Plains Hunts I recommended is near Turkey, TX too. Check with them on pricing, for those fees your group is going to kill 20-50+ hogs in a night, you wont ever forget it. If you want to vary your hunt types, maybe do a night or two with them and do some blind style hunting with Gizmo since hes in the same area.

Hotel Turkey is a very cool vintage type hotel and the restaurant has great food, im sure there is BBQ close by. That's what i would do. I havent hunted with Gizmo but lots of folks on here have had a positive experience, so that way you would have two different hunt style experiences, hunt with two reputable outfitters, and I assure you that you will never forget what it's like to open up on a big group of hogs with suppressed rifles topped with a thermal scope

 

[wesheltonj]

Sir, there are more places in and near Austin to eat BBQ besides The Salt Lick. In Austin, Franklin’s, Micklethwait and LA BBQ. Near Austin, Snows in Lexington (best in State according to Texas Monthly), Louie Mueller in Taylor, John Mueller Black Box in Pflugerville.

In San Antonio 2M.

I would suggest that you get the Texas Monthly BBQ app and you can find BBQ anywhere in Texas.

 

[Red Leg]

Sir, there are more places in and near Austin to eat BBQ besides The Salt Lick. In Austin, Franklin’s, Micklethwait and LA BBQ. Near Austin, Snows in Lexington (best in State according to Texas Monthly), Louie Mueller in Taylor, John Mueller Black Box in Pflugerville.

In San Antonio 2M.

I would suggest that you get the Texas Monthly BBQ app and you can find BBQ anywhere in Texas.

Salt lick is where Yankees and - I don't know - maybe Canadians go. weheltonj has given you a great list. Snows is superb. Mueller in Taylor is authentic as they come for lunch.

 

[DmacD]

Sir, there are more places in and near Austin to eat BBQ besides The Salt Lick. In Austin, Franklin’s, Micklethwait and LA BBQ. Near Austin, Snows in Lexington (best in State according to Texas Monthly), Louie Mueller in Taylor, John Mueller Black Box in Pflugerville.

In San Antonio 2M.

I would suggest that you get the Texas Monthly BBQ app and you can find BBQ anywhere in Texas.

Thanks for the heads up on the app, I will pursue it. I was hoping to rent a car for our stay, and now you have given me more destinations to look into.

 

[DmacD]

Salt lick is where Yankees and - I don't know - maybe Canadians go. weheltonj has given you a great list. Snows is superb. Mueller in Taylor is authentic as they come for lunch.

The Salt Lick blew us away the last time we ate there, however, I concede that most Canadians do not know "sheep shit from squashed dates" as my old man would say, when it comes to barbecue. Myself included. I only went by a recommendation while we were there, I am sure there are other spots. It's funny, the more you travel, the more you learn what is considered to be the best by the locals, and what is marketed towards tourists. I know that there are not many Australians around who drink Fosters either.
Anyways, I suppose I could expand my list of possible destinations. Dallas? Houston? San Antonio?

 

[Art Lambart II]

I have only hunted hogs in Texas twice so I'm no expert but I would really avoid the three hogs for $300 deals you find on the internet. I would focus my efforts on "all inclusive" outfitters like the "Rockin G Ranch". I haven't hunted with @gizmo yet but I have spoken with him several times about a Father/Son hunt and when I hunt Texas again I plan on hunting with him.

 

[jeanes]

If you're in the area, about 50 miles from Austin, is Brents Barbeque in Rockdale. Voted No. 2 in the state behind Snows by "Texas Monthly".

 

[gizmo]

I have only hunted hogs in Texas twice so I'm no expert but I would really avoid the three hogs for $300 deals you find on the internet. I would focus my efforts on "all inclusive" outfitters like the "Rockin G Ranch". I haven't hunted with @gizmo yet but I have spoken with him several times about a Father/Son hunt and when I hunt Texas again I plan on hunting with him.

Thank you and I definitely agree. You get what you pay for and 99% of the time the bargain basement hunts end up costing a whole lot more than advertised by the time you add up all the hotels and meals etc... plus you get a bargain basement experience.

 

[Mr. Zorg]

.308 Winchester and 7X57mm Mauser are definitely appropriate choices for feral hog hunting in Texas. Some ranches / outfitters require. 270 Winchester as minimum bore size and cartridge I suppose due to too many clients wounding and not retrieving hogs that are hit and complaining about such experiences at that venue. Many also ban Modern Sporting Rifles outright or require preapproval for clients to use them for hunting their venue, I suppose due to similar experiences with clients at that venue.

Carefully chosen shot placement as always supercedes all else and bullet design choice can help improve odds of game recovery. If y'all aren't bringing your own ammo, be aware 7X57mm Mauser factory ammo isn't commonly stocked on retail shelves here and some Internet scouting in advance for a source would be prudent. Factory ammo in .308 Winchester is easily found on retail shelves here.

End of September weather may well be better for feral hog hunting than early September. We didn't previously know what part of September y'all have your trip scheduled. Labor Day Weekend is still a popular travel occasion in Texas, especially along the Gulf Coast for beach activities. You shouldn't experience any extra tourism related holiday traffic or crowding in late September.

 

[sgt_zim]

Hunting in September, even late September, make sure your outfitter will take care of cleaning the hogs. We routinely hit the upper 80s and low 90s well into October. Also, bring rain gear and good boots. September is the start of the rainy season here. The "average" is a bit north of an inch per week. But we all know about "averages."

Many places charge processing fees - $50 even for shoats and sucklings under 50#, and $1/lb for everything over 50#. It's worth the money, especially when it's still hot. It's cool and all to shoot a feral hog, but if a sounder of 30-40 pigs are trotting by, it's a terrible shame to only shoot 1 pig. You'll get the fever, and need to account for that. Can't tell you how many times I've emptied by 1895 GBL (6+1). Best I've ever done was 3/7.

Don't just stand there admiring your 1st shot, as you might do with white tails. Shoot. Work the bolt. Find another target. Shoot. Work the bolt. Find another target.

 

[wesheltonj]

. . . Many places charge processing fees - $50 even for shoats and sucklings under 50#, and $1/lb for everything over 50#. It's worth the money, especially when it's still hot. . .

Processing fee! I just leave them lay were shot and the coyotes will take care of them. The ones that are captured live are sent to the dog food plants.

 

[Ragman]

I’m a fellow Canuck who headed south to Turkey, Texas to hunt the Rockin G with @gizmo. I went on a cull Corsican ram hunt which included as many feral hogs as I was able to shoot. To be honest I had more fun with the hogs than hunting the ram! He’s done a pile of work since I was there in January 2016 and I’m dying to see it again. Highly recommended!

A few of the pigs (I missed a whopper one evening). I used gizmo’s .270 and it worked perfectly.

 

[CoElkHunter]

Now you know somebody who's hunted there. I would not recommend hunting with them. The ranch is small, maybe 350 acres of high fence. Accommodations are quite rustic, food is so-so, but the ranch boss...we'll just say I don't care for him much.

You have to bring your own corn/feed, which he ends up feeding all his exotics with (he's got a bunch of Watusi cattle on the place, among other things). He'll also send you into town to buy your own ice. The hogs are all trapped some place else, then trucked in. The shooting for pigs is actually pretty good, except you REALLY have to mind your shooting lanes. There were easily 20 other people hunting there when I went. Twenty rifle hunters stuffed into 350 acres gets kind of cozy.

Wow, 350 acres? That’s half a section of land! I would think shotguns only with twenty hunters? Not for me, thank you!

 

[gizmo]

I’m a fellow Canuck who headed south to Turkey, Texas to hunt the Rockin G with @gizmo. I went on a cull Corsican ram hunt which included as many feral hogs as I was able to shoot. To be honest I had more fun with the hogs than hunting the ram! He’s done a pile of work since I was there in January 2016 and I’m dying to see it again. Highly recommended!

A few of the pigs (I missed a whopper one evening). I used gizmo’s .270 and it worked perfectly.
View attachment 329928
View attachment 329927

Tbat was a ton of fun!

 

[gizmo]

Wow, 350 acres? That’s half a section of land! I would think shotguns only with twenty hunters? Not for me, thank you!

350 acres under high fence is what gives the Texas exotics industry a bad name. That kind of thing really chaps my rear end. I’m by no means remotely close to a large outfit in the state but 350 acres????? Come on.

 

[CoElkHunter]

350 acres under high fence is what gives the Texas exotics industry a bad name. That kind of thing really chaps my rear end. I’m by no means remotely close to a large outfit in the state but 350 acres????? Come on.

Yeah, I’ve hunted pheasants in Kansas several times with 12-14 people walking in a line one-half a section at a time, and that can get scary at times! I can only imagine idiots with rifles walking all over the place thinking everything that moves (think other hunters!) is a wild hog on 350 acres!

 

[gizmo]

Yeah, I’ve hunted pheasants in Kansas several times with 12-14 people walking in a line one-half a section at a time, and that can get scary at times! I can only imagine idiots with rifles walking all over the place thinking everything that moves (think other hunters!) is a wild hog on 350 acres!

Not only that I personally don’t find that very fair chase. I have no problem with high fence hunting, hell A little over 1/3 of my ranch is high fenced. Different strokes for different folks I guess but not for me on a place that small.

 

[CoElkHunter]

Not only that I personally don’t find that very fair chase. I have no problem with high fence hunting, hell A little over 1/3 of my ranch is high fenced. Different strokes for different folks I guess but not for me on a place that small.

Yes, I personally don’t mind the fences. It’s having TWENTY hunters with rifles at the same time on 350 acres?
Three of my hunting buddies and myself are thinking of driving down to Texas from Colorado for a hog hunt. I’ll check out your website. Thanks!

 

[gizmo]

Yes, I personally don’t mind the fences. It’s having TWENTY hunters with rifles at the same time on 350 acres?
Three of my hunting buddies and myself are thinking of driving down to Texas from Colorado for a hog hunt. I’ll check out your website. Thanks!

Yessir we’d love to have you.