Advice on planning a TX hog hunt?

So, I am thinking about doing a hog hunt somewhere in Texas this winter but really don't know where to start. I'm not after big hogs, just some variety in the freezer.My big problem is figuring out how to get multiple pigs back home to Montana. Suggestions? Also, since time is limited, what areas of the state (or out of) am I more likely to run into and kill a couple hogs? Public or private? If any of you guys who have hunted hogs would be willing to point me in the right direction and give me a few tips, I would appreciate it. Thanks

I can steer you towards some quality hog hunting in California if you are interested.Check my hog thread from last February for some pics.Send me a pm if interested.We actually HUNTED hogs spot and stalk in mountainous terrain similar to muley hunting here in Montana.It was a blast and far more engaging than sitting by a feeder in Texas(done that too and won't go back,...ever)

You might check into Shiloh Ranch in Ok i think John on here has been before. Heard really good things about this place

I have a buddy in Southeast Texas that is normally overrun with them. But the drought last year put a hurtin' on the population. Of course the year I come down

Killed plenty of hogs in TX back when I used to lease. There is some public land that holds hogs but I would discourage that especially coming all the way from MT.

Hogs are quite destructive to farmer's crops and land but for the most part farmer's don't want a stranger on their land or already have the hunting rights leased.

There are dozens and dozens of hog hunt operations across TX and OK and plenty of hogs in both states. In general, this is the best way to go. Most operations have good acomadations, food and hog populations.

I have hunted and leased from Ranger Creek Ranch in Seymour, TX. They run a very nice operation, have great accomodations and a TON of hogs.
http://rangercreekranch.com/wildhog.php

I have not hunted it but I know the owners of Chain Ranch near Canton, OK. I believe Cushman has hunted this ranch. I know they kill a lot of hogs there.
http://www.chainranch.com/hog_exotic/ok_hog_exotic.html

I would also look into the TX Hill country. My buddy has a lease around Llano and they have a lot of hogs. That area is beautiful(for TX) and the culture down there is really cool.

Most operations will have stand hunting over bait as an option...if you don't like that most have spot and stalk options as well. You can hunt hogs 24hrs a day and night hunting can be a lot of fun too.

As for meat....Hogs are mostly head, hide, and guts and don't yield the same as deer or elk. I would say they yield around 25% meat to live body weight. Meat is very lean and tasty. There are wild game processors everywhere in TX that will process your meat for you and most hog operations have cold storage for you until you leave.

Hope this helps...PM me if you want more info.

The pic below is from a hunt I put together for some buddies from WA state. They had a blast! this was at Ranger Creek Ranch

I'll second thornton's Baylor Co (RangerCreek) recommend. That area is alive with the vermin. He's also spot on on the hill country hunting and ambience.

Hem, I'm sorry your experience was unsatisfactory...that's a long way to travel to be bummed.

NoHarley- Yeah i WAS bummed but probably my own fault for not doing more thorough research and making sure of good recommendations from the hunt crowd.The outfit we went to in the hill country had an impressive web page,and seemed quite well-to-do.The lodge was great,food was 5 star,but the guide was burned out after whitetail season and wasn't really that motivated.We spent three days sitting in blinds,two nights in a "texas treestand" and never laid eyes on one pig,though there was evidence of rooting in places.This ranch catered to high end whitetail hunters,not hog hunters.I expressed huge dissatisfaction to the broker ,such as why hadn't the guide pegged some hogs on the ranch to begin with,or made an effort to locate hogs on their extensive ground.I don't know, spreading corn out and waiting wasn't really my game,lesson learned.Bottom line we drove three days for this hunt which was a good roadtrip,but to not see one hog was a huge downer.Even the strip bar in Amarillo sucked Had a better hunt in California, more spot and stalk as I mentioned, and the drive was half as far.Oh well.Lesson learned.

i am hunting tx hill county outside san antonio in december. i have looked into several places. pm me if you want more info

We are headed down in January we can always use another guy. PM me and I can give you the ranch info.

Thanks for all the awesome info and help! I had to make a change of plans this winter, but will keep it all in mind and hit ya up for more info when the stars align. Hungerford let me know how things go down there this year.

Here's an informative sight that you can also book your hog hunt with.

http://www.hunting-in-texas.com/learnhogs.htm#hogmap3

Hunting hogs is just like hunting anything else. You can have a good population in an area, but if it's thick and they aren't moving you're not going to see them and sometimes you can sit a long time just twiddling your thumbs. That's not for some that don't have much patience, but that's why people in Texas try to draw deer and hogs alike out of the brush by feeding corn into an open area and the senderos that are cut so you can see them. I hunted on several leases in south Texas over the years and a couple of private properties friends owned up in the hill country. There was a good hog population in them all, but if they weren't moving in the particular area you were sitting it was the same end result the OP encountered. I'd like to try that spot/stalk method in CA that was mentioned in the thread. I've seen that on TV and it looked like a neat way in some beautiful country to do it.

Anybody got any experience with Main Lodge Ranch?

I hunter here a decade ago and it was a good hunt with really nice country. I also hunted a place near Throckmorton but the terrain was so ugly it took away from the fun a little.
http://www.rangercamp.com/theranch.htm

Hem said:

NoHarley- Yeah i WAS bummed but probably my own fault for not doing more thorough research and making sure of good recommendations from the hunt crowd.The outfit we went to in the hill country had an impressive web page,and seemed quite well-to-do.The lodge was great,food was 5 star,but the guide was burned out after whitetail season and wasn't really that motivated.We spent three days sitting in blinds,two nights in a "texas treestand" and never laid eyes on one pig,though there was evidence of rooting in places.This ranch catered to high end whitetail hunters,not hog hunters.I expressed huge dissatisfaction to the broker ,such as why hadn't the guide pegged some hogs on the ranch to begin with,or made an effort to locate hogs on their extensive ground.I don't know, spreading corn out and waiting wasn't really my game,lesson learned.Bottom line we drove three days for this hunt which was a good roadtrip,but to not see one hog was a huge downer.Even the strip bar in Amarillo sucked Had a better hunt in California, more spot and stalk as I mentioned, and the drive was half as far.Oh well.Lesson learned.

Click to expand...

Hem
Would you give up some info on hog hunting in CA???
Thanks
Doug

We carry back hog meat from Texas every spring and have never had a problem. They do not need to "age" like other game but will hang in a cooler for a few days until processing.We always quarter and bone out our hogs when [possible and then pack them in a cooler with ice and do not open it until you get home. We usually take 2 days to drive. The cooler weather during our drive always helps. This past year was a high mast year in a lot of Texas so hog hunting was tough. They were not as visible, in the hills eating nuts. 2 Mast years in a row are very rare down there so this next year should be better hunting. Look around North Texas for a hunt. The Red River drainage along the Oklahoma border has huge hogs and not too expensive to hunt.