Hog hunts are great adventures and lots of fun. Normally, there’s no shortage, so seeing game is rarely an issue. In target-rich environments, changing tactics, gear, or strategies makes the hunt more challenging and often results in greater memories and even better campfire stories.

Chris Berg, editor of Petersen’s Bowhunting magazine, took this route, employing three different archery techniques on a single hunt. Here’s how it worked out.

Illinois Deer 08 082They say variety is the spice of life, and that’s certainly true in bowhunting. Whether it’s varying the species we pursue, the tactics we employ or the equipment we carry afield, change helps keep the sport fresh, broadens our perspective and provides a constant source of new challenges to embrace.

So, when presented with the opportunity to join some friends last spring in the hog-infested swamps of Central Florida for a three-day hunt with Osceola Outfitters, I  added an interesting twist to the adventure by attempting to take one pig each with crossbow, compound bow and recurve bow — a feat I not so cleverly dubbed “the ham slam.”

When it comes to sheer bowhunting fun, wild hogs are hard to beat. I’ve taken well over a dozen with various compound bows, so the genesis of my ham slam quest was a desire to expand my bowhunting horizons for personal and professional reasons.