2nd flinter groundhog !

[silent sniper]

here is the story of my 2nd groundhog killed with my 50 t/c flinter. i was sneeking over a hill and i looked over the top and saw a groundhog on the edge of the field. i hurried and ducked down. i snuck to the top of the hill so i could sit down and get a better rested shot. i got to the top and sat down. the hog was still sitting at the edge of the field. i cocked the hammer back to full cock,aimed,pulled the trigger,click. the flint didnt spark. i felt the flint and it was dull. i worked on the fint for a couple min and i finally got it chipped and sharp. i looked up to see the hog go into the weeds to its hole. dang i thought in disgust as my perfect stalk was ruined by a dull flint.(after this incident i quickly ordered a couple dozen new flints from rich so this wont happen again lol) i stode up and started walking home. out of the corner of my eye i saw movement. there was a hog running to the edge of the field. i hadnt seen it the whole time i was trying to shoot the first hog. quickly i whistled just as the hog reached the edge of the field. it stopped and looked around. i cocked the hammer,threw the gun up,aimed at the hogs head,and took the offhand shot.when the smoke cleared i saw a tail wiggling around in the grass that showed the sign of the kill.i ran over and picked up the hog. it was a nice fat young female hog. the bullet hole was right in the temple. the shot was 60 yards away.my load was 50 grains FF,and a .490 PRB.i butchered the hog and it will make a nice tender meal.

entrence hole

exit hole

enjoy SS

 

[GreyWhiskers]

I'm really startin to like this kid! :thumbsup:

Sniper,

Good hunting, great shot! Thanks for sharing. GW

 

[jtmattison]

Way to go!

Great story and great shot!

:thumbsup:

HD

 

[StevePrice2]

Good Shooting, SS! :thumbsup:

Are you really going to...or should I rephrase that and ask did it taste good? :shocked2:

I've shot a mess of land beavers back in NC but didn't put any on the dinner table. Do they taste like chicken? beef? or pork?

Steve

 

[chance]

Great shooting.

 

[paulvallandigham]

YOu have to drain the blood to get rid of the stronger taste, but "Ground Hog" or " wood chuck" gets the name because the meat tastes very much like Pork. I know people here who have made sausage out of the meat, and its very tasty. If someone didn't tell you the sausage was made from Ground Hog, you would never guess it, and simply think it is some of the best pork sausage you have ever eaten.

Beaver should taste like Beef. I had BBQed beaver years ago at a local rendezvous, and it was excellent. The man who served it trapped the Beaver and 4 others the last day of the Trapping season. He boned out the meat, put it in a pressure cooker to tenderize it, and then mixed in his favorite BBQ sauce to cook. He brought a 20 lb. Dutch Oven full of it to camp, and enough hamburger buns for all of us to eat several sandwiches. He didn't take any of the beaver home with him, and the buns were all gone, too.

Now, if the game is NOT handled properly in the field, considering the typical air temperatures you get this part of the year, spoilage can set in rather quickly, and ruin the taste. Field dress the animal quickly, and get ice INSIDE the body cavity, and around it to cool down the meat. That fur is a fantastic insulator, and it will actually hold heat in to the meat, and help the meat spoil. Remove the hide ASAP.

I soak wild game in water with salt in it, to pull the blood out. The water turns a deep RED. I drain the sink and refill it with Fresh water every hour or so, as needed until the meat begins to look about as " pink" as the meat I buy in the store. Then, I soak the meat in clean fresh water, for the same amount of time to draw out the salt!

Cut off any fat, gristle, and bone. These hold enzymes that will continue to work on the meat, even in your freezer, and turn it tough & bitter. The presence of these enzymes is one of the main differences between Domestic meat, and wild game. Basically, I bone out the meat, and then cut off anything that is " White", ie. connecting tissues, like ligaments and tendons, and the thin membrane that surrounds muscles. Yes, it takes time, but it improves the Table quality of the meat well enough to make it worth the effort.


I also like to age the wild game meat in the refrigerator for a week. I put the meat in bowls, or pots, with lids to cover, and rotate the meat, drain off blood and fluids twice a day, and clean and dry the containers , before putting the meat back in and returning them to the refrigerator. Aging helps to break down muscle and connecting tissues within the muscle, to tenderize the meat. At the end of the week, I rinse off, inspect the meat for the 20th time for bits of fur, hair, dirt, leaves, etc., remove them, and dry the meat.

Then I package the meat for storage( freezer), or begin cooking. If you have one of those new machines that creates a vacuum around the meat, use it! That will allow you to store the meat in your freezer about 3 times as long before it has to be eaten. Otherwise, wrap the meat as tightly as you can with plastic wrap, to remove as much air around the meat as possible, and then store in a zip lock, or other kind of heavy plastic storage bag. Without air next to the meat, moisture in the meat cannot be drawn out by the cold of the freezer, a process referred to as " freezer burn". :hmm: :hatsoff:

 

[wildeagle]

:rotf: :rotf: Whats not to like, he shoots black powder, he's a great shot, and takes GREAT PICS. That means he doesn't have any time to get into trouble, which is a great thing. He will blend in to this camp real good, plus with a handle like silent sniper, he's a natural. :v

 

[shootemup]

Great story, great pics. Thanks for sharing it with us. :thumbsup:

:hatsoff:
Spot

 

[wildeagle]

By the way, 15 yrs old and eats what he shoots .... PRICELESS ..... :thumbsup:

 

[Birdman]

Me- ole eyes n old reflexses, him- young eyes n young reflexes. Me - chuck runs away laughing, him- chuck ends up in the pot fer dinner---YUP I HATE THE LITTLE BUGGER!!!Sniper you just keep on keepen on with that shooten. this is one ageing man that jealous ( I ain't old yet , just gitten there fast hee hee hee)

 

[luieb45]

You say you're gonna eat him!? I have never heard of anyone eating groundhog.

 

[dgold]

YOu have to drain the blood to get rid of the stronger taste, but "Ground Hog" or " wood chuck" gets the name because the meat tastes very much like Pork. I know people here who have made sausage out of the meat, and its very tasty. If someone didn't tell you the sausage was made from Ground Hog, you would never guess it, and simply think it is some of the best pork sausage you have ever eaten.

Beaver should taste like Beef. I had BBQed beaver years ago at a local rendezvous, and it was excellent. The man who served it trapped the Beaver and 4 others the last day of the Trapping season. He boned out the meat, put it in a pressure cooker to tenderize it, and then mixed in his favorite BBQ sauce to cook. He brought a 20 lb. Dutch Oven full of it to camp, and enough hamburger buns for all of us to eat several sandwiches. He didn't take any of the beaver home with him, and the buns were all gone, too.

Now, if the game is NOT handled properly in the field, considering the typical air temperatures you get this part of the year, spoilage can set in rather quickly, and ruin the taste. Field dress the animal quickly, and get ice INSIDE the body cavity, and around it to cool down the meat. That fur is a fantastic insulator, and it will actually hold heat in to the meat, and help the meat spoil. Remove the hide ASAP.

I soak wild game in water with salt in it, to pull the blood out. The water turns a deep RED. I drain the sink and refill it with Fresh water every hour or so, as needed until the meat begins to look about as " pink" as the meat I buy in the store. Then, I soak the meat in clean fresh water, for the same amount of time to draw out the salt!

Cut off any fat, gristle, and bone. These hold enzymes that will continue to work on the meat, even in your freezer, and turn it tough & bitter. The presence of these enzymes is one of the main differences between Domestic meat, and wild game. Basically, I bone out the meat, and then cut off anything that is " White", ie. connecting tissues, like ligaments and tendons, and the thin membrane that surrounds muscles. Yes, it takes time, but it improves the Table quality of the meat well enough to make it worth the effort.


I also like to age the wild game meat in the refrigerator for a week. I put the meat in bowls, or pots, with lids to cover, and rotate the meat, drain off blood and fluids twice a day, and clean and dry the containers , before putting the meat back in and returning them to the refrigerator. Aging helps to break down muscle and connecting tissues within the muscle, to tenderize the meat. At the end of the week, I rinse off, inspect the meat for the 20th time for bits of fur, hair, dirt, leaves, etc., remove them, and dry the meat.

Then I package the meat for storage( freezer), or begin cooking. If you have one of those new machines that creates a vacuum around the meat, use it! That will allow you to store the meat in your freezer about 3 times as long before it has to be eaten. Otherwise, wrap the meat as tightly as you can with plastic wrap, to remove as much air around the meat as possible, and then store in a zip lock, or other kind of heavy plastic storage bag. Without air next to the meat, moisture in the meat cannot be drawn out by the cold of the freezer, a process referred to as " freezer burn". :hmm: :hatsoff:

I would agree with just about everything you have said here, except how ground hog tastes. I found it tasted a lot like snowshoe hare. The meat was (on the two I ate) firm and had little fat on it. They were young groundhogs that had gotten into my shed and were tearing stuff up. It was quite good and we just fried them up like we would rabbits (after we had treated them in a manner very much like you suggest here.) Beaver is much like you have suggested. The closest thing I can compare them to is muskrat, but for many people that does not help much.

 

[paulvallandigham]

I have not eaten snowshoe hare, so I can't compare the two tastes. The Ground hog, particularly the larger adults do taste like pork- sweet, The little guys cannot be expected to have any body fat, as everything they eat is going into growing up.

About people's knowledge and tastes, you hit it on the head. The folks who screwed up their faces when we told them we were eating "beaver" and at first refused our offer of a sandwich was universal- and predictable. Then we would talk them into trying just a " bite ". When they found out how good it was, then they asked for the sandwich. Then we would ask them to stand next to us when the next " Newbie " was offered a Beaver sandwich, and watch the reaction! After awhile, the " guests" began to understand why we were standing around smiling so much. Everyone( except me, according to my friend the trapper) showed absolute disgust at even the thought of eating a beaver, and we all came around to eating those BBQ beaver sandwiches on a bun the same way that the guests did. If we had a trapper who was taking muskrats, it would be fun to try the same experience with that animal, both with club members, and with "guests".

I have been looking for someone to show me how he makes his favorite raccoon, and opossum recipes, and how he prepares the meat for cooking. I have a feeling its not much different than boning out a beaver, but I would like the instruction, none-the-less, and try someone else's idea of good "'coon, and 'possum" before I venture out on my own. :thumbsup:

Oh, the other reason to process Ground hog is to save the hides- either with the fur on, or off. The leather is very strong and makes good lacing. I have seen one possible bag made from a Ground hog hide, and it looked terrific. People were unable to identify the animal hide from the fur.

 

[dgold]

I have not eaten snowshoe hare, so I can't compare the two tastes. The Ground hog, particularly the larger adults do taste like pork- sweet, The little guys cannot be expected to have any body fat, as everything they eat is going into growing up.

About people's knowledge and tastes, you hit it on the head. The folks who screwed up their faces when we told them we were eating "beaver" and at first refused our offer of a sandwich was universal- and predictable. Then we would talk them into trying just a " bite ". When they found out how good it was, then they asked for the sandwich. Then we would ask them to stand next to us when the next " Newbie " was offered a Beaver sandwich, and watch the reaction! After awhile, the " guests" began to understand why we were standing around smiling so much. Everyone( except me, according to my friend the trapper) showed absolute disgust at even the thought of eating a beaver, and we all came around to eating those BBQ beaver sandwiches on a bun the same way that the guests did. If we had a trapper who was taking muskrats, it would be fun to try the same experience with that animal, both with club members, and with "guests".

I have been looking for someone to show me how he makes his favorite raccoon, and opossum recipes, and how he prepares the meat for cooking. I have a feeling its not much different than boning out a beaver, but I would like the instruction, none-the-less, and try someone else's idea of good "'coon, and 'possum" before I venture out on my own. :thumbsup:

Oh, the other reason to process Ground hog is to save the hides- either with the fur on, or off. The leather is very strong and makes good lacing. I have seen one possible bag made from a Ground hog hide, and it looked terrific. People were unable to identify the animal hide from the fur.

I did save the hides and was looking for a use for them, thanks for the info.

Regarding the BBQ beaver, sounds very good. :v :v