After regrouping and sharing our stories, we had to laugh at our complicated plan that did us in that evening. Heath Rayfield, however, devised a simple but more effective plan for the next evening.

"Tomorrow, the plan is Pig! BOOM!" Rayfield said.

No one argued with that plan. Knowing there were a bunch of hogs in that area, it sounded like the perfect plan.

Hog hunting in South Carolina seems to be on the increase and sportsmen like Ayers, Airey and Rayfield enjoy hunting hogs for several reasons.

"First and foremost for me, hog hunting has become one of my outdoor passions," Bruce Ayers said. "There's a lot of reasons and one is that wild pigs have a very keen sense of smell and pretty good hearing. They can be a challenge to successfully hunt in their own right."

Ayers added that it's also his way of preparing for deer hunting and other hunting seasons.

"Woodsmanship is the key to just about any hunting sport and hog hunting will hone and sharpen almost anyone's skills," he said. "Plus, while hunting hogs I am always on the lookout for deer sign. During January hog hunts, I can learn a lot about the late-season deer movements that I can apply to late-season deer hunting the following December."

Rayfield said he uses hogs to hone bowhunting skills as well.

"I love bowhunting for deer and turkey, so hogs are just a natural complement to that," Rayfield said. "You've got to get close and shoot well to take a hog. It's great practice and I think that's another reason some hunters enjoy hunting hogs, especially with a bow."

Airey added that from an equipment standpoint, it enables him to ensure all of his "tools" for hunting are working properly.

"I like to hog hunt post- and pre-deer season for a variety of reasons," Airey said. "First, I can ensure my scope is sighted-in right and get some good shooting practice under a live fire situation. It's one thing to drive a nail with your rifle, so to speak, from a good bench rest. It's another to make a well-placed shot on a pig from an awkward angle while contorted in a tree stand. In that way, it's very similar to deer hunting.

"Plus, the other equipment I have gets used, too," Airey said. "I get to play with the hearing enhancers, spotting scopes, binoculars, rangefinders and other tools of the hunting trade."

The data compiled by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) backs up the concept that hog hunting is on the increase. As part of the overall survey for the annual Deer Harvest Report, they also have data on wild hog harvest.

Charles Ruth, Deer and Turkey Project Coordinator for the SCDNR, noted there was a significant increase in the hog harvest from 2005 to 2006.

"During 2006, an estimated 26,843 wild hogs were harvested by deer hunters in South Carolina," Ruth said. "That's a 15.8 percent increase from 2005 when 23,166 hogs were harvested. Evidence of the presence of hogs in 42 of 46 counties was made by hunter harvest activities versus 38 of 46 counties in 2005.