Daver
PMA Member
After missing one of these cats a few years back, I was very happy to center punch this one last night. Although it only went about 50 yards after the shot, we had to work to find him this AM. They really blend in well, we had searched past him within 15 feet at least two times. He was wedged in between a fork in a downed log. I am not sure if he made one last attempt to hide before expiring or if that was just a fluke, but you had to be about 8 feet from him to see him.
I had fair deer movement in front of me last evening, but nothing that I wanted to shoot, and when this guy loped up out of the ditch I went into autopilot and squared him up at about 5 yards as he trotted underneath me. He let out a nasty snarl and tore off like he was lit on fire...scaring deer all around me and sounding like a herd of elephants blowing through the very dry brush/leaves.
Also, we picked up a couple of bonus points too...#1. My son found a nice, 145"ish, dead head from days gone by while searching for this cat. It had been drug up under some roots in a dry creek bed and was mostly buried...and we did not recognize the deer, so we are not sure how long he has been in hiding. #2. We checked a nearby trail cam to where I shot this cat and found that he was nice enough to trot by it and get his picture taken just before he came up the hill to where we crossed paths.
He was a good sized tom, but not particularly pretty, so I am going to have the hide tanned and save my money for a prettier one to have mounted some day. Nevertheless, I was pretty tickled to get him. We have gotten pics lately too of two cats that I am sure is not this one. So maybe my son can snipe one of the others yet...
I had fair deer movement in front of me last evening, but nothing that I wanted to shoot, and when this guy loped up out of the ditch I went into autopilot and squared him up at about 5 yards as he trotted underneath me. He let out a nasty snarl and tore off like he was lit on fire...scaring deer all around me and sounding like a herd of elephants blowing through the very dry brush/leaves.
Also, we picked up a couple of bonus points too...#1. My son found a nice, 145"ish, dead head from days gone by while searching for this cat. It had been drug up under some roots in a dry creek bed and was mostly buried...and we did not recognize the deer, so we are not sure how long he has been in hiding. #2. We checked a nearby trail cam to where I shot this cat and found that he was nice enough to trot by it and get his picture taken just before he came up the hill to where we crossed paths.
He was a good sized tom, but not particularly pretty, so I am going to have the hide tanned and save my money for a prettier one to have mounted some day. Nevertheless, I was pretty tickled to get him. We have gotten pics lately too of two cats that I am sure is not this one. So maybe my son can snipe one of the others yet...