1 HELL OF A DAY!!!
Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2011 5:54 am
Yesterday started off pretty average. Up at 4 to do chores and in the pick up to check traps by 6:15. It started to go bad around 7:30 when I reied to get into a good little spot and my truck fell thrpugh a 3 foot frozen up snowdrift. I was in the process of digging it out when my buddy that I am helping get started trapping calls me and says " we have 2 lions stuck in 2 traps." I aked him how old they were and he tells me pretty young. He had a lion guy coming out that way yesterday. Thats how he found the tracks that lead into our sets. I never got to see it because they had them turned loose before I could make the 2 hour trip after I got dug out.
After they released the 2 yearlings in the traps, Marshal turned his dogs loose up around the corner on a set of adult lion tracks. The dog's had the lion tree'd in less than 600 yards. The hunter that Marshal brought with him took way to long to decide if he wanted to take the lion or not and the lion made up his mind for him and jumped the tree. Now is where it starts the sketchy part of the deal. Marshal turned his dogs loos again on that same lion after the damn hunter decided that he would take that one. That was a mistake. The lion took off up a steep rocky slope and went about 1/2 a mile before she would tree. By the time they got there the lion was acting like she was going to bail and run again. The hunter pulled out his T/C Contender in 30-30 and shot and wounded the damn thing at less than 20 yds!!!! The lion jumps the tree and takes off. Now Marshal has to turn his dogs loose again because this guy can't get his shit together. After a short chase the wounded cat goes into a hole in the rocks and the dogs follow. They were able to get 3 dogs out but 1 stayed in there with the cat and got stuck. We couldn't shoot into the hole because the dog was in there and it was hard to force yourself to go into a hole with a wounded cat. After a couple hours we found where we could crawl down in a crack in the rocks and dig a few little rocks out and get to the dog. We finally got the dog out and we couldn't hear the labored breathing of the cat. We were all pretty well spent after that ordeal. They are going back in there today to see if they can't get the cat out of the rocks. Good luck guys!!!