| Welcome! to Hog Heaven – a wild, majestic slice of heaven on earth. Thousands of acres of classic southern cypress and oak swamp along the Savannah River in Allendale County, SC.
We hunt from January 1 through November 15th.
Hogs, yes! Free range and fair chase! But we also have whitetails, coyotes, more turkeys than you can count, armadillos, bald eagles, bobcats, foxes, gray and fox squirrels, song and water birds you’ll not likely see other places, and much more!
We’re able to accommodate up to six hunters, two hunts per month. All your meals, lodging, and snacks are 10am Friday thru lunch on Sunday….the only expenses you have are getting to Estill, SC and a $ 40 dollar license if only hog hunting. A combination hog and turkey hunt licensing is a $40 dollar small game license and a $100 dollar big game tag. Shotguns or bows are fine for turkeys.
I don’t provide any alcohol but bring it if you like. If you have special food restrictions you just need to mention that to us prior to your arrival, please.
Adult hunt price for hogs is $575.00 and turkey hog combo hunts are $670.00. There are price breaks for kids.
We hunt the swamps and uplands surrounding the Savannah River basin. Don’t let the swamp intimidate you-it’s like going to church, not like going to Bigfoot’s house. The swamp is interspersed with plenty of well-kept roads and you are completely surrounded by the river… so you won’t get lost.
view of the swamp primordial
If you want to book but don’t have a full group, that’s not a problem. If a couple guys book a weekend it allows others who also may not have a full group to book with you- we only take TradGangers and their friends, so you’ll get to meet some folks you might have talked with but never spent time with. I have to say I’ve enjoyed every single person who’s been to our camp from TG and I think you will as well.
If you are driving in the night before, you can stay at either the Days Inn in Hampton, SC 1235 Elm Street West Hampton, SC 29924 (803)943-0411 or the Palmetto Inn in Estill, SC 29918(803)625-4322. The Palmetto Inn is located just behind the Post Office on Highway 321 which is the main North-South route through town.
Hampton has a little more to offer for eating- McD’s, BK, KFC, Taco Bell, a Chinese buffet, Pizza Hut, and couple other choices. Estill has a surprisingly good Mexican place called El Zarape, and Shari’s- a country meat- and three place, and best of all is Lester’s BBQ. Yes, it’s a little ways out of Estill toward Hampton-but anyone can help you find it!
We will meet in Estill at 10am Friday at Wiggins Hardware store right on 321 business, which is where you get your license and big game tags if you need them. Please bring your hunter safety card or bowhunter ed card if you have one .If you were born after June 30, 1979 you MUST have one.
There is no buck shooting on the property. Also off limits are bobcats and foxes. You are able to take armadillos and coyotes- as many as you can carry, as well as gray squirrels in season.
Licenses may also be purchased on line, but I recommend you do NOT do that if you are turkey hunting because you may not get your turkey tags in the mail in time before your hunt.
Hog Heaven has a practice range that includes several targets right in camp as well as plenty of space to stump shoot if you prefer. There are two showers. Bring a couple of towels, your toiletry kit and civilian clothes. You also need a pair of “camp” shoes to wear on the covered deck and inside the trailer so we don’t drag mud inside.
We have beds, but I suggest sleeping bag or sheets and covers, and a pillow if you want to use on the bunks. The trailer has heat and a/c and is quite comfortable, but it’s NOT the Taj Mahal. It is a hunting camp, not a fine lodge with private bedrooms, fireplaces, and TV’s.
We do offer beautiful stars, a big fire in the evenings if its cool enough outside, coyotes howling, and story- telling to replace TV. We think it’s a great alternative.
Additionally, don’t forget your medicine. If you have special medical conditions, like diabetes or heart issues, I need to know those before you arrive please. The nearest medical care is a little clinic and real medical help is over an hour so knowing your situation in advance is important.
Permanone-available at Wal Mart in- season is a product you need if the weather is warm. We have chiggers (no see-ums to some of you) and they bite and climb off before you ever know they did it. Their saliva dissolves your flesh in the immediate area of the bite…and boy do they itch! Not to mention the ticks. Permanone kills both as soon as they touch it.
You don’t spray it on your skin but instead on your clothes, at the belt line, cuffs, sleeves, and neck opening, then let them dry fully before you wear them. A nice thing to do would be to do this at home prior to coming and then after it dries put your clothes in scent free bags to bring down. That way you are ready to hit the ground running, so to speak!
Binoculars are a requisite for successful hunting. Even at ten yards they are useful for making certain your mostly all black targets are facing the way you THINK they are facing, and the angle is what you want, especially in low light. Do not come without binocs. I use a pair of 6×32 Leupold Green Rings that cost 88 dollars and they are as good a glass for what we do as anything. You don’t need something that costs tons of money because we aren’t looking too awfully far.
You don’t need a bunch of meat prep tools except for your knife or knives; we have all the rest here, so save the weight and aggravation. We have a 300 lb commercial ice machine so getting your processed game ready for your long ride home will be easy and free. You might think about packing your gear coming down in a nice size cooler with a duffel inside it as well. Then you have your cooler for meat on the return trip, and a bag to put your duds in as well.
If you are turkey hunting, a blind will be a real plus as well. We have so many birds it can pay big dividends to spend most of the day in one spot, calling periodically, and spending the day catching up on your favorite book.
Boots? Snakes are not that prevalent here because the hogs eat small snakes, but if it makes you hunt better, snake boots are OK. They tend to be noisy, though. Knee high rubber is also good, as is regular 10 inch or 8 inch hunting boots…your choice.
Waterproof stuff is a plus in my opinion, but not necessary if you don’t mind stepping off in some water now and then. Some guys hunt in high top sneakers and just get wet…it’s your preference. I also use ‘silent stalkers’ with effectiveness- those felt under sole thingies that strap onto your boots.
I hope you are coming with having a good time as your objective. We will control what we can- the accommodations, the food, and the camp banter. The rest-game movement, weather chief among them-is up to God. Stalking skills- if you have them- will bring great reward. When I tell you that you need to move slowly- I mean slowly. It’s a lot like walking up on a squirrel in your back yard. You move like molasses.
When Mike aka Squirrel Bait and I hunt hogs, we do it in tandem usually- 50 yards apart. We ‘hopscotch’ one another, through the cover, stopping at ten to fifteen paces and both listening and looking- then in 20 seconds or so- the other one moves beyond the previous one, stops, and we start the looking and listening all over again. It’s a lot like hunting rows of standing corn.
Our animals are free range, and do as they please. There has never been a hog released on our property. We have no fences; we hunt mostly spot and stalk, and can’t guarantee you a kill. There are hundreds of animals though. We will show you what we know and hunt with you or turn you loose, as you wish.
One of my real interests is to assist any of you that wish to learn to be a better bowhunter for having visited with us. Some of you will be experts, but I bet even you can learn something- I know I learn something from every group that comes to camp. We will help you with any kind of skill if you ask for assistance- stalking techniques, knife and broadhead sharpening, calling, skinning and processing of game, and just about anything else you can think of.
The phone service at and near camp is spotty with everyone- including Verizon but it’s the best we have found. There is a phone at camp for EMERGENCIES ONLY. There is a spot about 9 miles away we can take you to, in order to make cell calls. Some Verizon users are actually getting a signal in camp now…so that’s a good thing.
If any of you are experts at coyote hunting, call me before you make the trip in…I’d like to talk with you about an idea I have.
I’m Looking forward to hunting with you!!!
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