2012 Archery Javelina Double!!

Gonzales Family on our successful 2012 Archery Javelina Hunt!!

Husband and Wife double!!!!

Those who know me well know that one of my passions is hunting javelina. It's right up there with chasing bugling bulls in my book. Most folks think thats odd but javelina offer a great opportunity to get up and close and if you blow a stalk, oh well, you'll find more. This also gives me a chance to get the rest of the family out with me and not worry too much about how much noise the boys make. This year, my wife Michelle wanted to get back into archery hunting and what better hunt to do it. Michelle has killed several pigs with archery and rifle so she is no stranger to closing the distance and since she is just getting back into shooting her bow after a few years off, we were hoping to get in close to better her chances. We decided to hunt close to home in one of the units in Northern Arizona that has huntable populations of javelina. Fortunately, I spend alot of time in this unit and just last weekend, I was able to find several locations that held fresh sign. Michelle and I purchased left over permits at the G&F office and the hunt was on. Within a half hour of our first outing we were in the pigs. Our boys were able to stay quiet enough as Michelle and I closed the distance. We found one herd of 6 pigs that obviously had not been chased much since they showed no fear and continued to feed even after the first time we bumped them (one bonus of hunting these northern units). After closing the distance again, Michelle sent a couple warning shots (that's what we're claiming) over the pigs just to let them know we were there. I struck first at 40 yards. Since the pigs split up after I connected, we decided the best opportunity for a close shot was to call the pigs to us. After some lips squeaking, we had them headed our way. Michelle came to full draw as a mature pig step out from behind a juniper tree. Her shot was a perfect hit and we never lost site of her pig as it only went a few yards and piled up. My first shot was a bit far back and as Michelle let the boys blow of some built up energy at the truck, I tracked my pig for a ways. Since there was not much blood, I backed off and went down to get Michelle and the boys. On our way back up to her pig, we spotted my pig bedded down. One last well placed shot at 27 yards and our javelina hunt was done. Our pigs died within 50 yards of each other which gave us enough time to get them down the hill and get some photos before we lost the light. This was key as our boys are taking after their mother and love to take pictures. It tooks some time but they managed to get some good shots for us. Just to make sure, Michelle and I took turns snapping some photos and setting up the self-timer. We loaded our pigs and head for home, another successful javelina hunt to add to our scrapbook!!

Michelle, Tomas, and JP pose with mom's 4th archery javelina!

Arthur, Tomas, and JP with dad's javelina. This makes 16 consecutive successful years!!

Here is the picture that JP took.. 

And Tomas' picture...

I added this picture to showcase the bow. Thanks to Will at  Gila Outdoor for the work he has done on our archery equipment. He was very instrumental in getting my bow set up before our late archery elk hunt and his help carried right into this hunt. One of the keys to success in any hunt is to be comfortable and confident with your equipment. Since we starting using Will, we have been nothing short of amazed at his expertise. If you are in the Safford area, stop by and see will or give him a call to see how he can help you out. Huge thanks again to Will.

JP closes the distance on this javelina. What a great way to get the kids excited about hunting!!!