rinehart0050
AH legend
Just got back home from a very successful thanksgiving holiday hunting in Nebraska and Texas. Successfully hunted bison, mule deer, and wild pigs with Erik @gizmo of Rockin G Ranch. I highly recommend hunting with Erik- he runs a great operation, has some awesome animals on his property- both free range and high fence, and a very comfortable lodge. You wont go wrong hunting at the Rockin G Ranch in Turkey, Texas.
Outfitter: Rockin G Ranch
Guide: Erik Grimland (owner, operator)
Location: Turkey, TX
Species Hunted: Bison, mule deer, wild pigs, racoons, jack rabbits
Species seen: whitetail, coyote, red deer, axis deer, mouflon, black buck, Eurasian boar, aoudad, wild goat, sika deer, turkey, and probably more I can't remember
Accommodations: comfortable hunting lodge
Meals: Catered from the Turkey Hotel, Turkey, TX
Background:
A while back, Erik posted an offer for bison meat hunts at a great price (https://www.africahunting.com/threads/discounted-meat-bison-hunt.53265/). I already had plans to hunt for whitetail in Nebraska with my father in law and adding a trip down to Texas on seemed like a great opportunity. Erik was able to make the dates work, so the plan was for me to drive out to Nebraska, hunt with my father in law, then the two of us drive down to Texas, pick my wife up at the airport, and the three of us hunt with Erik.
Hunt:
Whitetail hunting in Nebraska went well. After paying my dues the last couple years with minimal success and rough weather, this year hunter's luck was with me. I found a great tree on a hillside, overlooking the edge of a soy field and the forest that bordered it.
I had deer moving all over the place, great weather, etc. I got a young buck on the first morning after about an hour of sitting and we got another young buck on the fourth day. Lots of delicious meat for the freezer and always lots of fun hunting with my father in law.
Texas:
My father in law and I made the drive down to Texas with only minor slow-downs due to a snow storm in Kansas. We picked my wife up from the Amarillo Airport and finished the drive to Erik's ranch. Hunting started the next morning with a search for mule deer does. On the low-fence portion of his ranch, Erik has tons of mule deer and some whitetails. The lodge is located on the high ground, which allowed us to glass from the porch over much of the property. We spotted deer all over the place.
After driving around, we found a group of three does in a field and my wife made a stalk on them. She skirted a tree line and disappeared from sight. After a while, we saw the deer move off casually and then spotted my wife coming back. With the suppressor on her Blaser R8, we never even heard the shot and it took us a second to understand she'd got her first mule deer. Her shot turned out to be a perfect heart shot that dropped the mule deer where it stood. We're very happy with the Blaser so far - this trip was the first test for the rifle in the field. Its chambered in 300 win mag and has killed everything with 1 shot so far - and super accurate.
A great start to our hunt with Erik.
That afternoon, we went looking for bison. We found the herd in a clearing. There were over a dozen bison, with a massive herd bull Erik named "Geronimo." He was massive, easily twice the size of any other bison in the herd.
For this hunt, I was borrowing Erik's 45-70 lever action rifle. It performed exceptionally and the recoil was minimal. We made a short stalk in on the herd and started looking for an appropriate meat bull. As I was the first of the clients that took advantage of Erik's deal, we had the pick of the lot. Erik identified a 2.5 year old bull and I took a shot at about 70 yards. The shot looked good and the herd thundered off with my bull already lagging behind. We lost sight of them and began tracking, following the herd.
As we walked, we almost missed my bull, as he had circled back around, leaving the herd to run off in a different direction. We spotted him back, close to where I took my first shot. He was on the opposite side of a canyon from us. Cautiously, we moved into the canyon and waited for him to appear from behind some low trees. Erik recommended that I aim for a spine shot to bring him down. We didn't want him running (or rolling) down into the canyon where recovery would be very difficult. The bull emerged from behind the trees and I took the shot, dropping him on the spot. We went up and took two more shots for safety.
My bison was down! He was massive, despite being "only" a meat bull, sporting some great horns and an awesome, thick coat of fur.
We used a large tractor to transport him back to the ranch for skinning and field dressing. My wife has never skinned or field dressed her own deer before. Erik took the time to give her an expert class in skinning where we both learned some new tricks, to include how best to skin an animal that will be shoulder mounted. Its always great to have a guide like Erik that is willing to teach and mentor people on his craft.
Needless to say, this bison is going to provide lots of delicious meat. Look at the size of these backstraps!!!!
Day 2 saw us find another mule deer doe for my wife. This one she actually skinned and dressed the whole thing herself, no assistance! That evening, we set up in some luxurious text-style deer stands to wait for pigs. On the way to my stand, Erik spotted a nice whitetail buck in a field. He immediately recognized this guy- he'd actually shot it with a bow a few months before, but the shot had gone high and he thought he'd lost him forever. Borrowing my rifle, Erik brought his own hunt to a belated conclusion. On further inspection, we were able to find all the scar tissue and a bit of the broadhead from where he'd hit the deer months before! A happy end to the story. Luckily, my rifle was suppressed, so we didn't scare any animals away by shooting this nice buck.
That first night of pig hunting, my wife had a big group come to the bait. She got two nice sows with two shots, one of which was at a full sprint when she shot it! I had a single boar come into my spot and shot to the head dispatched him on the spot. All the pigs we got were midsized, perfect for meat! The big fatties are not as tasty.
The final night, we went out spotlighting. We shot some racoons out of trees and spotted one coyote. Unfortunately, he was too fast and managed to elude us.
As our hunt happened the weekend before thanksgiving, I asked Erik if there was any chance we could get the meat processed in under a week, so that I could pick it up on my drive back to the east coast. He arranged it all with Keeter Meats in Tulia, TX and they delivered on their promise. One week after our hunt, I picked up the processed bison, two deer, and pigs for my drive. I filled up 4x 140L coolers with hundreds of pounds of meat! I highly recommend getting your meat processed at Keeter's if you can. They make outstanding german-style sausages stuffed with cheese and green chilis that are amazing!
Here's our freezer (empty prior to this hunt), completely stuffed to the brim with meat:
What a great hunting bonanza! Erik and crew did a great job and gave us a really memorable hunt. Rockin G Ranch is the perfect place to go do a short hunt over a long weekend. Lots and lots of animals- both free range and exotics. Erik will ensure that you're happy with every aspect of your hunt.
Also, Erik always posts his best deals and offers right here on AH.com first- so take advantage of them! I know we will!
Outfitter: Rockin G Ranch
Guide: Erik Grimland (owner, operator)
Location: Turkey, TX
Species Hunted: Bison, mule deer, wild pigs, racoons, jack rabbits
Species seen: whitetail, coyote, red deer, axis deer, mouflon, black buck, Eurasian boar, aoudad, wild goat, sika deer, turkey, and probably more I can't remember
Accommodations: comfortable hunting lodge
Meals: Catered from the Turkey Hotel, Turkey, TX
Background:
A while back, Erik posted an offer for bison meat hunts at a great price (https://www.africahunting.com/threads/discounted-meat-bison-hunt.53265/). I already had plans to hunt for whitetail in Nebraska with my father in law and adding a trip down to Texas on seemed like a great opportunity. Erik was able to make the dates work, so the plan was for me to drive out to Nebraska, hunt with my father in law, then the two of us drive down to Texas, pick my wife up at the airport, and the three of us hunt with Erik.
Hunt:
Whitetail hunting in Nebraska went well. After paying my dues the last couple years with minimal success and rough weather, this year hunter's luck was with me. I found a great tree on a hillside, overlooking the edge of a soy field and the forest that bordered it.
I had deer moving all over the place, great weather, etc. I got a young buck on the first morning after about an hour of sitting and we got another young buck on the fourth day. Lots of delicious meat for the freezer and always lots of fun hunting with my father in law.
Texas:
My father in law and I made the drive down to Texas with only minor slow-downs due to a snow storm in Kansas. We picked my wife up from the Amarillo Airport and finished the drive to Erik's ranch. Hunting started the next morning with a search for mule deer does. On the low-fence portion of his ranch, Erik has tons of mule deer and some whitetails. The lodge is located on the high ground, which allowed us to glass from the porch over much of the property. We spotted deer all over the place.
After driving around, we found a group of three does in a field and my wife made a stalk on them. She skirted a tree line and disappeared from sight. After a while, we saw the deer move off casually and then spotted my wife coming back. With the suppressor on her Blaser R8, we never even heard the shot and it took us a second to understand she'd got her first mule deer. Her shot turned out to be a perfect heart shot that dropped the mule deer where it stood. We're very happy with the Blaser so far - this trip was the first test for the rifle in the field. Its chambered in 300 win mag and has killed everything with 1 shot so far - and super accurate.
A great start to our hunt with Erik.
That afternoon, we went looking for bison. We found the herd in a clearing. There were over a dozen bison, with a massive herd bull Erik named "Geronimo." He was massive, easily twice the size of any other bison in the herd.
For this hunt, I was borrowing Erik's 45-70 lever action rifle. It performed exceptionally and the recoil was minimal. We made a short stalk in on the herd and started looking for an appropriate meat bull. As I was the first of the clients that took advantage of Erik's deal, we had the pick of the lot. Erik identified a 2.5 year old bull and I took a shot at about 70 yards. The shot looked good and the herd thundered off with my bull already lagging behind. We lost sight of them and began tracking, following the herd.
As we walked, we almost missed my bull, as he had circled back around, leaving the herd to run off in a different direction. We spotted him back, close to where I took my first shot. He was on the opposite side of a canyon from us. Cautiously, we moved into the canyon and waited for him to appear from behind some low trees. Erik recommended that I aim for a spine shot to bring him down. We didn't want him running (or rolling) down into the canyon where recovery would be very difficult. The bull emerged from behind the trees and I took the shot, dropping him on the spot. We went up and took two more shots for safety.
My bison was down! He was massive, despite being "only" a meat bull, sporting some great horns and an awesome, thick coat of fur.
We used a large tractor to transport him back to the ranch for skinning and field dressing. My wife has never skinned or field dressed her own deer before. Erik took the time to give her an expert class in skinning where we both learned some new tricks, to include how best to skin an animal that will be shoulder mounted. Its always great to have a guide like Erik that is willing to teach and mentor people on his craft.
Needless to say, this bison is going to provide lots of delicious meat. Look at the size of these backstraps!!!!
Day 2 saw us find another mule deer doe for my wife. This one she actually skinned and dressed the whole thing herself, no assistance! That evening, we set up in some luxurious text-style deer stands to wait for pigs. On the way to my stand, Erik spotted a nice whitetail buck in a field. He immediately recognized this guy- he'd actually shot it with a bow a few months before, but the shot had gone high and he thought he'd lost him forever. Borrowing my rifle, Erik brought his own hunt to a belated conclusion. On further inspection, we were able to find all the scar tissue and a bit of the broadhead from where he'd hit the deer months before! A happy end to the story. Luckily, my rifle was suppressed, so we didn't scare any animals away by shooting this nice buck.
That first night of pig hunting, my wife had a big group come to the bait. She got two nice sows with two shots, one of which was at a full sprint when she shot it! I had a single boar come into my spot and shot to the head dispatched him on the spot. All the pigs we got were midsized, perfect for meat! The big fatties are not as tasty.
The final night, we went out spotlighting. We shot some racoons out of trees and spotted one coyote. Unfortunately, he was too fast and managed to elude us.
As our hunt happened the weekend before thanksgiving, I asked Erik if there was any chance we could get the meat processed in under a week, so that I could pick it up on my drive back to the east coast. He arranged it all with Keeter Meats in Tulia, TX and they delivered on their promise. One week after our hunt, I picked up the processed bison, two deer, and pigs for my drive. I filled up 4x 140L coolers with hundreds of pounds of meat! I highly recommend getting your meat processed at Keeter's if you can. They make outstanding german-style sausages stuffed with cheese and green chilis that are amazing!
Here's our freezer (empty prior to this hunt), completely stuffed to the brim with meat:
What a great hunting bonanza! Erik and crew did a great job and gave us a really memorable hunt. Rockin G Ranch is the perfect place to go do a short hunt over a long weekend. Lots and lots of animals- both free range and exotics. Erik will ensure that you're happy with every aspect of your hunt.
Also, Erik always posts his best deals and offers right here on AH.com first- so take advantage of them! I know we will!
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