Born to Hunt

[harbison]

BORN TO HUNT
December 8, 1941, the United States declares war on Japan, and Bob is Born. Bob is born to hunt. Now, as I celebrate BIG # 80, I am still hunting. To say that hunting is in this Florida natives  blood would be an understatement. It's been a ride that most can't even dream of. Come along as together we share the ride. The ride began many years ago hunting rabbits with very well trained Beagle hounds. Beagles were...Until you have heard that mighty Beagle roar you would never believe a sound like that could come from such a little dog. This very friendly little dog with a huge personality will always have a special place in my heart.Next came hog hunting at the Avon Park Wildlife Management Area. The hogs were plentiful, big, and always ready for a fight. They were way too much for Beagles. Started looking for a bigger hound with a Beagle-type personality. Enter the, born to hunt, beautiful beyond belief,  Redbone Hound:We were a team. Just like our Beagles had been, our Redbone Hounds were family. Our 'family' taught the BIG, ready for a fight, Avon Park hogs a lesson. Many ended up as the number one guest at the dinner table. Speaking of family, I now had a wife and three daughters. We decided to try a private hunt club. We could see River Ranch Hunting Club from Avon Park. Differently from Avon Park, we had a very nice well equipped camp. Often we would celebrate Christmas in the tall pines of River Ranch. It was the best of times:Our three daughters always came first. The Redbones had to go. Now, without dogs, we decided to see what the Aucilla WMA was all about:The squirrel hunting was fantastic, and the hog hunting was also very good. We hunted Aucilla for ten years. Time to try something different. Hunting deer in the high, extremely cold, mountains of northern Maine, and elk in New Mexico was unimaginably different. For this Florida Cracker who had never seen snow being caught in a blizzard was as different as different could possibly be. And the hunting was fantastic:Problem was the 1,000+ miles distance was way too far to travel on a regular basis, and there were no hogs. Enter Madison Florida's Buck & Boar Hunting Club. This club looked absolutely fantastic. Our camp offered electricity, running water, showers, and a walk-in cooler. Camp life was outstanding:And that was just the beginning. The entire 16,000 acres was absolutely overrun with hogs. Time for a new, Florida Hog Hunting, gun. The tradition of the time tested, hard hitting, .45-70 proved to be an excellent choice. This popular round was born during the days of the Old West and is still going strong today:Gone are the days of the black powder .45-70. Enter the LEVERevolution times and the Marlin Stainless Guide Gun:This gun plays no games. We were members of Buck And Boar Hunting Club for twenty years:A loving, hog hunting, wife and three wonderful daughters. This is just about as good as it gets. Thelma and I celebrated wedding anniversary # 39 at Madison's Oneal's Country Buffet:Nothing fancy; just good old-fashion Country eats:Little did we know that # 39 would be our last.After spending three months at camp we returned home eager to do it all over again. Shortly after we returned  cancer decided it was her time. Loosing this woman of my dreams devastated me. I did not care to live, more less hunt. After a few years I once again felt the urge to pull that trigger. But how? Now alone, and with advancing age, I could no longer do the things I once did. Decided to try high-fence hog hunting. After doing it on my own for decades would the excitement still be there. It did not take long to find out.ABSOLUTELY! Someone else does all the work; we have all the fun:And the fun is on-going. Move over Oneal's:Decided to try Bear Bridge Ranch. Bear Bridge's 100+ acres proved to be a photographer's dream come true:Celebrating birthday # 76 at Bear Bridge was an experience never to be forgotten:Decided to try something different for birthday # 80. After all, I have never been 80 before. Enter Trophy Hammock Outfitters:Situated in the middle of an active 40,000 acre cattle ranch, Trophy Hammock is very similar to Buck & Boar. In addition, this ranch is just past the world famous River Ranch Resort:Talk about bringing back wonderful memories of times long-gone: Trophy Hammock is already a winner. Talk about a winner, a huge boar hog just ran across the road. The excitement is building. Looks like this place is for real. Impressive!Riding from camp to our stand is an on-going adventure:And the adventure is just beginning:December 8, 2021, the adventure continues with a very special birthday # 80 hunt. Mr. Jimmy Hurst, the man himself, tells us exactly what to expect on this very special occasion:

We watch in amazement the wonders of...As our electric corn feeder goes off Momma and the kids are not alone: Watch, four minutes into the video, as thatever-so-powerful .45-70 does its thing:https://youtu.be/zdtIct6QPoYBirthday wild boar hog down; down and out:A very proud Mr. Jimmy Hurst:A very proud, year older, Bob:What has become a traditional ending to a very successful hunt; a visit to...No better way to celebrate than with a very special hot 1/2 pound Arby's roast beef sandwich with all the trimmings:Pure goodness with a cheddar cheese topping. It just does not get any better than this. We will be back!' Bob is born to hunt. Now, as I celebrate BIG # 80, I am still hunting!'