Trad Gang
Topic Archives => Memorable Hunts => Topic started by: Walt Francis on December 22, 2007, 07:19:00 PM
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Here is a teaser, I will make him post the story.
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/Slivershooter/LennysMtLion12-2007037.jpg)
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Thats a hoss of a cat!
Congrats to the man!
Cam
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Thats a good one, take me Walt!
Mike
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Congrats! That's a sweet looking lion! Thanks for sharing! Looking forward to reading the story....
Nigel :bigsmyl: :D ;)
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oh yeah,way to go lenny!
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Congrats on a fine lookin' Tom
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Very nice..now,who,what,when ,where,why? Story please.. :campfire:
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:bigsmyl:
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WOW! A beautiful beast. Congratulations! :notworthy:
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I just got a phone call from Lenny; he is headed to the hot springs to soak for a while and will post the story in the morning. I was up at 3:45 this morning and have the alarm set for 3:30 tomorrow. Night, I am hitting the sack.
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Outstanding!!!!
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Awesome Lenny! Did you get it by Walt's house? Walt, was it in the same area you got that whopper last year? Lenny, email me a pic man!
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MEOW!
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Looks like a goodun! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
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Thanks alot!More images to keep me awake at night for the next 3 weeks.Congrats.
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:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :clapper: :clapper:
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very nice :0) congrats :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
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Congrats on the cougar.
Why isn't the cat field dressed? It looks heavy the way you are carrying it.
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Yep Lennie done real good!! Whale of a cat!!
Walt and I came along after the fact and just got in on a little picture takin. Looking forward to hearing the story again.
Congrats again Lennie!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :notworthy:
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Congratulations Lenny, I was wondering what you had been up to lately! Joseph
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Way to go Lenny! I'm real happy for ya bud. Wish I could have been in on it. Lookin forward to the story...and dont be modest...tell us how awesome you are...type damn it, type. :bigsmyl:
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congrats!! great looking lion!
:bigsmyl: :clapper:
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Congrats!
Dennis
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Way to go Lenny! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :clapper:
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Great cat what a Christmas present!
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WOW what a CAT!Congrats!
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Thats a monster.congrats
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Done us proud Lenny! Great cat my friend. Now, where is the story?
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Hear kitty kitty kitty...Wow that is a great cat! Congrats!
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Is Lenny a real little guy or something? That cat looks huge! :bigsmyl: ;)
Congratulations - Looking forward to the story! :thumbsup:
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Hey Whip...yeah, that Lenny is a little guy. That cat coulda had him for an appetizer, it looks like! Congrats, and Merry Christmas Lenny....I know you've been getting after them kitties for a few years now. Way to go, bud! Now tell us the story!
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Awesome cat Lenny, congrats!!! :clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
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lloks like a great cat cant wait!!
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I taught I saw a putty cat :thumbsup:
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Thanks for the kind words. Now here's the story as I remember it.
Yeah it was another fine morning in the mountains of Southwest Montana. I met up with John the houndsman at 4 am in great tracking conditions, due to 6 inches of powder from the day before. Since we were the first on the scene that morning we elected to check out a few canyons we could drive through before returning to one of our favorite spots where we started hiking at 5:30. With flashlight in hand and longbow on back I took the lead with Johns two veteran dogs, Spike and Baxter. John was bringing up the rear with three new pups who had never been on a track or off the leash. At about 6:30 I came across a fresh lion track. The dogs didn’t react as quickly as the usually do but as I stood there examining the prints both dogs went wild. With in minutes John and the three pups had caught up and the mountains were echoing with hound music.
We got the dogs tied up so we could study the track. It was a good size track coming down out of some steep cliffs, crossing our path and heading south. As it started to get light, John let Spike and Baxter loose. The hounds generally don’t bark much on the trail, they wait until they have the cat treed or at bay before they let loose. So after letting the big dogs go we set out with the pups on lead to follow the tracks. After about twenty minutes heading south we heard the dogs choppy tree barks coming from high in the cliff to the north. After analyzing the situation we agreed that the cat must have been at bay atop the cliffs to our north so we abandoned the tracks and headed towards the music. Nearing the base of the cliffs we cut the lion track again with dogs in pursuit. At this point I had my doubts about being able to get to the action at the top of the cliffs. John assured me that the cat can’t go anywhere the dogs couldn’t follow. So the question was, “Can I go anywhere a dog can go?” . . . We’ll see! At that point we let the three pups of leash to join the chase. They took to the trail like ducks to water and ten minutes later we heard the young voices added to the choir.
Soon I found myself about halfway up and around the cliffs, on all fours, gasping for air, with legs trembling. I had to stop and take a brake with John already fifty yards ahead of me. That was the last I saw of him until I caught up to the action. Arriving on the scene I saw John and all five dogs at the base of a fir tree. Among the chorus of hound music I heard John say, “Lenny, he’s bigger than we thought! He’s a big tom with a pumpkin head!”.
Gotta run to the taxidermist but I'll give ya the rest of the story tonight.
-Lenny the Lurker
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Did you get him, did you get him? Com'on Lenny lets have the rest of the story. :)
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"Gotta run to the taxidermist but I'll give ya the rest of the story tonight."
And now you know...the REST of the story!
Great storytelling here, I am feeling the cold air in my lungs and hearing the hounds! MORE!!
Killdeer
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Nice!
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Well, well, well. Fellin a little like I got stood up for the prom. Taxidermysmermy, MY LORD Lenny!!!!!!!!!! Don't make me call your cell phone.
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It appears Lenny needs to quit lurking all the time and practice his typing with posting more often: :biglaugh: I wasn't on this hunt with Lenny and John because I had been checking for tracks in a different drainage that morning. Doug and I were delivering Christmas baskets to some of the landowners who let me hunt their property when we received the call from Lenny so we went over to his house then took some pictures. Lenny has been hunting lions seriously for three years and has turned down numerous opportunities waiting for a nice one. I think the waiting paid off.
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Walt,
The waiting absolutely paid off for him!
Lenny,
Great job on a super lion. Nothing prettier than a big cat on the limb of a fir.
Joe
(http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y195/njstykbow/IMG_0047.jpg)
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Here's the rest of the story.
After catching my breath and taking some pics I decided to shoot the cat. John secured the dogs while I strung my bow and took a practice shot with a judo point. All was good. My shot opportunity was five yards from the base of the tree, about eighteen yards up where there was a clear patch chest between the cat’s front shoulders. Concentrating on the center part of his chest I was in shock as I saw my arrow sail over the cat into thin air. I couldn’t believe I had missed! The next arrow went right next to where I was aiming, left of center half way into the cats chest with good blood. The third arrow hit the cat’s elbow and bounced out coming to rest in the tree, three feet below the cat. The cat changed his position in the tree leaving me a poor shot and only one arrow left in the quiver. A half hour later the cat was in that same spot and still bleeding. At that point we weren’t sure if the wound was fatal. I had to get another arrow into him. I positioned myself at the best angle to get an arrow into his chest and watched in disbelief as my last arrow sailed past the cat into the canyon. The arrow that I had put into the cat’s chest had now worked its way out and was laying close to the other arrow that was laying in the pine bough. I needed those arrow. After numerous attempts to free the arrows with rocks, John starts to head up the tree. I had heard his stories about climbing up trees to reposition cats for a shot but that’s something you don’t quite believe until you see it for yourself (and in my three years of lion hunting with John I had yet to witness such a thing). But there he was, three quarters of the way to the cat with stick in hand trying to knock loose one of my arrows. When suddenly the cat came alive with anger snarling at John and trying to reposition itself to get down the tree. John started to retreat as fast as he could and barely made it to the ground, when the cat fell halfway down the tree caught himself and jumped off the back side only a pounce away from both of us. Then he took off running across the open bowl. As quickly as we could we let the dogs loose. They were hot on its tail when we last saw them about a hundred yards away. By the time I grabbed the leashes, my pack and bow, John had climbed the tree to retrieved my arrows that were both still shootable. The dogs had the cat treed again within two to three hundred yards. We got there to find the cat only ten yards up with blood gushing from it’s wound. At that point we knew it was all over but to speed things up, I put one last shot into it’s chest. Ten seconds later he fell out of the tree stone dead and slid a hundred yards before coming to a stop with all five dogs noshing away.
I hope you enjoyed my story, it’s a pleasure sharing our Montana life style with brothers off the bow.
-Lenny the Lurker
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Great adventure, buddy!
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Really nice lion!!!!!!! Great story!!!!!!!!
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great story and what a great lion!!!
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very nice! congrats.
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Awesome Lenny! Congrats Bud.
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Wow, climbing into a tree with a wounded lion!!! Oh well I guess it was just a little one, lol! :notworthy: :clapper: :clapper:
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Hey Lenny, great story! You should send it to Jack at PBS. Please, email me a picture! Congratulations on one BIG cat! Your story telling is great as well!
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Lenny,
Congratulations once again , you definitely worked for this one over the past three years.
Here are a couple more pictures:
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/Slivershooter/LennysMtLion12-2007035.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/Slivershooter/LennysMtLion12-2007032.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/Slivershooter/LennysMtLion12-2007025.jpg)
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Great story and cat Lenny. Looks like the Montana life style is good for you though it is making you a little grey. :biglaugh: Good to see you here, I hope to see you in Pittsburgh.
Jack
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My goodness, that is simply awesome!
Congrats Lenny....you need to share more of your adventures bud!
Outstanding bud :clapper:
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Great cat!! :thumbsup:
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Congrats on a hell of a lion.
All the deer and elk from the area would like to congratulate you also.
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Awesome cat !!! One of these days I get to chase 'em, too.
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Congrats Len; that's a hue looking cat. Good job. :thumbsup:
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Sorry, ment to say huge!!
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Good story Lenny, Congrats on a great cat!!! :clapper: Someday I hope to also R.B.