Well, it rained yesterday and was 67 degress at 2pm!!!! This morning it was still and foggy, the animals were out eating the green shoots that sprang up from the rain. We had a turkey convention below the house along the river. A large group of mothers and babies were being harassed by a group of teenage jakes. Whitetail, axis, and sika were seen, two fallow bucks were below the house. Well time to get to work on the roads!

Labels: axis deer hunting, escondido hunting ranch, south texas hunting ranch, texas whitetail deer

It was a cool, low 70s, Saturday morning on July 4th (cool by South Central Texas standards). I parked the truck about 400 yards down the road and proceeded to Betty's blind (affectionately named after Escondido's gracious hostess). The wind was favorable and blowing 5-10 mph parallel to the ground blind and the feeder. The feeder is located 85 yards away from the blind near the wooded edge of a rocky slope leading several hundred feet to a spring below. This time of the year, South Central Texas is scorched by summer heat with day time temperatures hovering over 100 degrees. But earlier in the week, the ranch got 1.5 inches of well received rain and everything was unseasonably green.

It was already close to the shooting light by the time I got into the blind. Today, I was equipped with a 10x44 scope mounted on a brand new .270 rifle and the targets were the feral hog and the illusive aoudad sheep. In the past year, I have been a frequent guest at Escondido Ranch and have shot a number of feral hogs. However, in all of my outings at the ranch, I have seen a group of young aoudad sheep only once, at over 200 yards and moving across a narrow opening. There are certainly ample aoudad on the ranch, including a number of trophy animals. A couple of the trophy size mounts are proudly displayed in the main house, but the weary animals continue to elude me.

I settled in for the morning hunt after practicing a few "air" shots with my rifle to make sure I was in a comfortable shooting position. Even before the feeder went off at 7 am, two whitetail does had made their way across the shooting lane from behind the blind towards the feeder. Both animals passed within 40 yards of me without so much as a second whiff or a cautionary pause, and then proceeded to feed on the green grass around the feeder. The does grazed effortlessly, knowing that they were not on a la carte this morning, and seemed to be oblivious to any accidental noises coming from the blind. A bit later another whitetail and a fallow doe joined the gathering, and proceeded to feed on both the green grass and the corn scattered around by the feeder. The fallow deer, a native of Europe, are also common at Escondido. The fallow bucks are crowned with a set of distinct horns resembling those of a moose, but on a smaller scale. The hides vary in color from pure white (as was this doe) to spotted reddish brown.

The fallow doe was much more alert than the whitetails. As an exotic, the fallow can be hunted year round in Texas. After 15 minutes of nervous feeding, the fallow zigzagged its way toward woods' edge and disappeared in the shadows. Meanwhile the whitetails continued to graze so carefree that one of them approached me to within meager 20 yards (a bow hunters dream).

As the sun ascended in the sky engulfing the tree tops in a brilliant light, I glanced at my watch. Remembering that I promised my wife to be back at the main house by 9am to help with the kids, who came with us for this 4th of July weekend, I decided to call it quits for the morning and started to pack up.

Once packed, with the gun unloaded, I was literally pushing open the door, when all of a sudden, a black feral hog appeared from the brush and trotted directly towards my hideaway. My heart started to pound. I eased the backpack to the floor, felt around my chest pocket for .270 round (130 grain), placed the bullet into the chamber and eased the bolt into the position. Thirty yards out, the hog stopped, lifted up its snout and sniffed the air with authority, grunting a couple of times in the process. Meanwhile, the three whitetail does stopped feeding and intently looked at the hog.

When I finally locked the bolt into place, the inevitable click of the mechanism must have sounded like a ringing bell to the nearby hog, which looked in my direction and quickly turned sideways and began to pick up speed. The rest was a blur... I raised my rifle, somehow found the hog in the scope, instinctively aimed behind the shoulder while thinking that he was too close and does not need to be lead, removed the safety and pulled the trigger.

The shot rang out and through the dissipating cloud of gun smoke, I could see the hog fall on its back and after a few leg twitches rolled over on its side and came to a rest. I jammed another round in the chamber, pushed open the door and quickly walked towards the still hog. It was dead. The bullet entered at a slight angle behind the left shoulder and exited a bit forward on the other side. The projectile slid effortlessly through the heart leaving small entry and exit wounds. The hog never suffered.

It all happened so fast that I did not even have a chance to fully enjoy that fleeting moment when anticipation meets with preparation. Only after the deed was done, did I look down at my hands and they were still shaking from the adrenaline rush. I love it! At that point my cell phone began to vibrate. It was my bow hunting partner Tony, who only two weeks prior harvested another hog with a bow after stalking up on him to within 30 yards. He was checking in about the shot he had heard. Congratulations followed.

After I loaded the hog into the back of the truck, we met up at the cleaning station in the valley below where we proceeded to wager on the weight of the hog. Tony, the country dude that he is, won the bet after estimating the weight at 100 lbs. The hog actually weighed in at 102 lbs. I am glad we did’t have money on it.

The ranch manager offered to dress the hog and I jumped on Tony's 4-wheeler and headed back to the main house which is perched on a cliff overlooking the valley and the river. On the way back up the winding dirt roads, I ran across a herd of six bull elk. All of them in velvet were displaying their wide tall crowns which will be in high demand later in the year. Elk, once native to Texas, were pushed north by hunting and the encroachment of human habitat. Now, a herd of over thirty animals thrive at Escondido Ranch. The largest bull elk's 6x6 rack was noticeably taller than the rest of the bulls. It will make a nice trophy later this year.

I was only a few clicks form the main house when a herd of cow elk appeared standing along the side of the road. Eight cows were accompanied by a gorgeous chocolate colored Sika buck (a native of Japan) with a full 8-point spread and an accompanying doe of the same color. The noise of the 4-wheeler spooked the entire group and they trotted away towards the safety of the brush. About the same time, my cell began to vibrate again and it was my wife calling.

It was time for me to get back to the house and help with the kids if I harbored any further hope of any more hunting during this 4th of July visit to Escondido Ranch.

Labels: south texas hunting ranch, texas elk hunt, texas feral boar hunts, texas feral hog hunts

It was a Saturday morning at Escondido Ranch in late June when the piercing broadhead on an Easton arrow came scorching out of my latest Christmas present. I was hunting for only the second time with my Mathews 'Reezen' bow I had received from my father-in-law. I had shot the bow hundreds of times at still and 3-D targets but this was my first live stalk and proved to be a successful one.

Labels: bow hunting, feral hog hunting, south texas hunting ranch

Exotic game hunting is not regulated by the state government since the animals considered "exotic" are not native to the state or even to the United States. Only imported animals can be considered exotic, and therefore are under the control of the owners, not of the government. The same is not true for native species such as Whitetail deer, even if they are born and raised on a confined Texas hunting ranch or game lease. Elk, originally a native species but then reintroduced, are under the same regulation.

Basically as far as the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is concerned, management with regards hunting of these exotics is based on the decision of the management of the exotic game hunting ranch. Game managers have to determine what is a reasonable number of males and females of each species to allow to be harvested each year. Incorrect management of the herds can result in low numbers for years to come or overcrowding of the grazing ranges within the given area. Most game managers are very good at what they do, ensuring that mature males and females in the right numbers are maintained to keep the herds at the appropriate levels for the hunters as well as the food supply.

What happens to wounded animals in exotic game hunting situations that don't result in a kill?

All the guides and staff at exotic game hunting ranches are conservationists and managers by job description. As such they are responsible for ensuring, whenever possible, that all wounded animals are tracked down and killed as quickly as can occur. In reality there are very few seriously wounded animals that are not located and killed since they will leave a considerable trail for an experienced tracker.

Animals that are just grazed or have a slight flesh wound are often very quick to recover on their own. Of course guides watch the condition of the animals when they come to feed and any injured animals can be harvested as required. Ensuring that all hunters on the ranch work with guides also helps to cut down on any injured animals being left behind on the hunt.

Where can I go to get the meat properly processed?

Not all exotic game hunting ranches are going to provide field dressing and quartering of your kill, but this is a service offered by the staff at Escondido Ranch. After the meat is quartered and packed, you then have the option to take it to a wild meat processor in your area for further processing. Many hunters also butcher the animal themselves, there are several guides and charts available online that are simple to follow and give you the basic cuts. Making hamburger, sausage or even jerky with the meat is a simple and delicious way to make short work of butchering as well.

Labels: exotic deer hunts, south texas hunting ranch, texas exotic hunting ranch, texas hunting season

Depending on the species you are after there may or may not be a season in which you are able to hunt. Native species such as Whitetail deer, bull Elk and Rio Grande Tom Turkeys do have seasonal hunts that are controlled by the state. All other species on the ranch are open for hunting year round.

Weather in Texas is seasonably warm all year round so even January and February hunting can be done in temperatures of 50 degrees plus. This makes a nice change for hunters from other states that are dealing with below freezing temperatures.

How can I tell if there are wild game hunting times open at Escondido Ranch?

The website offers an interactive type of calendar system that is updated to clearly show the times that are not already booked on the ranch.

If you aren't comfortable using the website to check for available wild game hunting times, contact the office by phone or email to book your hunting block.

Labels: escondido hunting ranch, guided hunts, south texas hunting ranch, texas hunting ranches

Besides the historical roots of the ranch, Escondido is a unique Texas exotic hunting ranch that has been in business since 1980. This means that the herds have been monitored and managed for optimum trophy animals as well as herd numbers and health for almost 30 years.

Labels: south texas hunting ranch, texas hillcountry deer hunting, texas hunting ranches, wild game hunting

While many Texas hunting ranch properties have hunters traveling for hours just to get to location for the hunt, Escondido offers everything all within a convenient two mile radius. Hunts are done from blinds, meaning that you won't have to worry about trekking for hours only to find nothing you want to shoot.

The blinds are placed along game trails or close to feeders, virtually ensuring you will have a shot at just what you are looking for. Professional guides will help in locating game as well as preparing game for travel. Bring an ice chest, with a success rate of over 90% at this Texas hunting ranch you will need one to bring home the trophy results of your hunt.

For early spring, late fall and winter hunts you will need to dress in layers as the temperature is often around freezing in the morning hours but then climbs into the 60's or even 70's in the afternoon. Late spring, early fall and summer hunts will have warm weather, even night temperatures will be in the 70's and 80's or even higher on most days.

Labels: exotic game hunts, south texas hunting ranch, texas hillcountry deer hunting