A little farther downstate, down along the coast, the wildlife management areas south of Georgetown, offer several special hog hunts. Jim Westerhold, who manages these DNR properties, said that there are two new areas open for post-deer-season hog hunting in 2006.

First, the waterfowl impoundments associated with the Samworth WMA will be open for hog hunting with shotgun and slugs or muzzleloaders March 2-4 and March 23-25. Hunting is restricted to the impoundments themselves, which are old rice fields, and is limited to hunting from elevated stands only. The impoundments must be accessed by boat. There is no limit on the number of hogs that may be taken during these hunts, but no live hogs may be taken from the property. These wild pigs are what are locally known as "marsh hogs." The only difference between them and other wild hogs is that they tend to be a bit smaller than most wild hogs found in the hardwood bottoms and swamps of the more interior parts of the state, but can make for pretty exciting hunting, nevertheless.

The second newly opened area is Santee Delta WMA, which can be accessed by vehicle directly off Highway 17. The dates for the Santee Delta hunts are a little different, but the rules and regulations are the same as those for the Samworth hunts. The Santee Delta special hog hunts are scheduled for March 9-11 and March 16-18. Westerhold said that the odds of connecting with a marsh hog are relatively good on either one of these special hunts. "If I had to rate the success ratio," Westerhold said, "I would say that on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 6 or 7."

LITTLE PEE DEE HUNTS
Moving up the coast toward the Little Pee Dee region, several special wild hog hunts are scheduled this spring for seven Heritage Trust tracts, which all go under the collective heading Little Pee Dee River Complex. Jamie Dozier is a DNR wildlife biologist in that area. Dozier said that while any of the seven Heritage Trust tracts may have hogs passing through from time to time, the best opportunity to run up on a wild hog is at the Pee Dee Islands tract (a.k.a., the Ward tract). The Pee Dee Islands tract and adjacent DNR properties consist of 1,600 acres, more than enough room to roam around in search of wild hogs without running into other hunters.

According to Dozier, this tract has a variety of habitats, from hardwood bottoms to sand ridges. "The hogs are variable from year to year," Dozier said, "but typically you're going to find moderate numbers of hogs there, especially when the river floods. Then the hogs will come up on the high ground."

The property, located near Gallivant's Ferry, can be accessed by a county road which bisects the Heritage Trust tract, but you will still need to do some walking behind the closed gates to the areas where the hogs hang out. Count on about a 20-minute walk.

The Pee Dee Island hunt and those scheduled for the other six Heritage Trust tracts in the Little Pee Dee River Complex will be held this year March 1-18. These are hog-only hunts, and no dogs or buckshot are allowed. There is no limit on the number of hogs that may be taken during these special spring hog hunts.

Several other special hog hunts are scheduled for various wildlife management areas around the state in spring, but hog populations on some of these tracts tend to vary widely from year to year.