Beat the Summer Heat: Tips for Hog Hunting at Night

Just like us, hogs prefer not to spend all day in the hot sun and will be out and about at night during hot weather, and with some specialist strategies and insights, you can leverage the cover of darkness to your advantage. 

When you go hog hunting at night, you'll need a different approach than hunting during the day. So, today, we cover some critical strategies for hunting hogs at night and essential gear and night vision options to get the edge on some hogs. 

Why Hunt Hogs At Night?

As the temperature rises and in locations with less human contact, hogs tend to come out more at night to escape the midday heat. Since hogs are primarily nocturnal during this time, there are more hunting opportunities and chances to track and harvest them in a cooler environment–in short, they're more active and out in the open. 

Hog hunting at night is often permitted due to the ecological damage this species poses to native flora and fauna and the agricultural damage caused by rooting. However, make sure you check with your state's regulations to make sure it's legal to hunt hogs at night.

While there are some added challenges of hog hunting at night, such as limited visibility, tracking, and higher chances of spooking the hogs, night hunting for hogs allows you to avoid extreme summer heat, stay comfortable, and practice a unique hunting skill that is not permitted for every species. 

What Gear Do You Need For Night Hunting?

If you want consistent success hunting hogs at night, you will need to gear up with some specialized equipment to help compensate for the lack of lighting. 

Night Vision and Thermals

Night vision hog hunting tactics and using thermal optics are popular options for night hunting.
 

• Thermal optics detect heat sources as infrared radiation related to temperature in the field utilizing a digital image–the hotter the target, the stronger the thermal.
• In contrast, night vision captures and amplifies ambient light, producing visible photos in low-light or night conditions. 

Most hunters will have a personal preference for which night hunting technology they leverage to hunt hogs and other species. Thermals are ideal for long-range detection and seeing heat signatures through a brush. However, some hunters recommend using both night vision devices to complement each other. 

However, it's crucial to make sure it's legal to use thermal optics in your state before bringing them on your hunt.

Sound Suppression

One of the issues with hog hunting is the dispersion of sound after taking a shot. This can lead to a smaller yield and more challenging hunting, as hogs will tend to scatter after hearing noises like a shot.

Suppressors can help mitigate this, maintaining the sounder grouping and allowing you to take more shots while minimizing the spooking of other hogs and other nocturnal wildlife species. 

Hog Lights

Just as noise can disrupt hogs, so can the use of some light spectrums. Consider implementing hog lights designed with specific wavelengths to minimize spooking pigs.

Whether you opt for red or green, remember that light should be restricted and only used in small bursts at a lower-intensity setting. 

The Right Clothing

Finally, your clothing should be lightweight and moisture-wicking, especially on warm nights, yet durable enough to protect you from thorny vegetation and insect bites. A set of gaiters over your boots can help protect against snake bites. 

Scouting and Setting Up 

While the pigs may be more out in the open during a night hunt, this doesn't mean it's easier to locate them. Following scouting best principles, including locating pig signs such as tracks, rooting, or wallows, is still required to determine where pigs may be at night.

We almost always find pigs around dams when night hunting — even if there's no water, they usually sleep in the cool sand of a dried-up creek bed shaded throughout the day and don't go much further than that! 

Additionally, you can look for areas with abundant food sources, such as crop fields or high vegetation areas, or set up baiting stations if permitted. 

Most hunters experience pig hunting success on friends' agricultural lands, including wheat, canola, and soy crops (or along fence lines). If you haven't got access to private land, we (of course) recommend using HuntWise to contact private landowners to seek permission and offer to remove some nuisance pigs from their land. 

Stealth Hunting and Tactics 

Feral hogs have an unbelievable sense of smell and can easily pick up a human or foreign scent. Always be conscious of what you come into contact with, the type of gear and cleaning products you're using, and most importantly, wind direction during your night hunt.

Avoid making too much noise by being mindful of where you walk, such as over large branches or leaves. One way to minimize the risk of spooking hogs both from scent and noise is by setting up a tree stand. However, before taking this approach, you'll want to be confident in hog movement and activity.

Set up some trail cams or look for fresh signs of pigs before setting up a stand. You can also scout using HuntWise to identify potential areas to set up cams and locate hog activity.

Spot and stalk hunting can also be successful, especially with the use of night vision tools. Hunting with dogs to track and bay up the pigs can also be very successful; however, this strategy is often banned or highly limited during night hunts. 

For Better Success When Hog Hunting at Night, Choose HuntWise 

Some of the best nights of your life could be chasing pigs through freshly harvested wheat on my friend's property. Hog hunting at night is an exhilarating and fun way to spend time with great friends and maintain contact with hunting when you don't feel like heading out in that hot sun.

Remember: Night hunting, like day hunting, requires planning, location scouting, and practice. Choose HuntWise for help with everything from setup to mapping insights, winding, and more. 

If you don't have the app yet, download HuntWise and explore it free for your first week!