Cat story
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MT. Lion, Cougar ore Puma same big Cat.
This story is from one of the Hunters
Number 2 all-time (picture to the right) in the state of Idaho 
Hunter
Mr. Rod Bradley
Cougar 15 14/16”
rbradley@majestic-flooring.com
After 26 years of avid big game hunting, I had never seen a single mountain lion during any of my hunting trips. For that reason, the elusiveness of these big cats has always intrigued me.
Last fall, I was talking hunting with my dad and a good friend, Tim Craig, with Boulder Creek Outfitters. I asked Tim about his cougar hunts. Then dad and I sat listening as Tim told us story after story of hunting the big cats of the West. Tim asked us if we had ever been interested in hunting one. Without hesitation, we said, “Yes!” He told us to be ready and he would call us when he had an opening.
“The call” came in on the evening of December 10, 2007. Tim wanted to know if we could be at camp the next morning. After a lot of begging, my wife agreed I could go, but I’d have to be back in town three days later on Thursday night. I agreed and started gathering all of my hunting gear.
Dad and I were on the road at 6 a.m. Tuesday, headed to the Boulder Creek Outfitters camp in the rugged country of north Idaho. We met up with our guides, Chris and Lee, grabbed some lunch and set off to find a cat. We covered a lot of ground while searching for a track. Both guides were very knowledgeable and tried to educate us about the animal we would be pursuing. That afternoon and evening turned out to be fairly uneventful. We did cross one set of tracks and I was thinking “here we go.” There was a little snow on top of the track. Lee got one of the dogs out and it turned out that the track just wasn’t all that hot. With darkness approaching and a questionable track, it wasn’t a good time to let the dogs loose.
The next morning was overcast and we were greeted with four inches of new snow. Conditions were perfect for looking for fresh tracks. Dad and Chris went to cover some of the same ground we had looked at the evening before, while Lee and I headed out to check out some different country a little farther back. Our plan was to take a 30-mile loop that would return us back to the main road.
About halfway through the loop, we finally found exactly what we were looking for – a fresh cat track. After a closer look, Lee determined that the cat had a kitten with her; we’d have to pass on that one. As we finished the loop, we saw many deer and elk tracks, but no more lion tracks.
We met up with Chris and my dad back at camp to have some lunch and put together a plan for the afternoon. During the morning hunt, Chris and Dad had also crossed many deer and elk tracks and even saw a couple of wolves, but found no cats. We covered a lot of ground that afternoon inspecting every track we crossed in the snow; unfortunately, none of them were from a lion.
On Thursday morning, I was getting antsy; it was my last day to hunt. We were again greeted with snow – six inches this time. We couldn’t have asked for any better conditions. Again, the plan was to travel some of the roads looking for fresh tracks. If nothing turned up, we would move several miles downriver and use snowshoes on roads closed to motorized vehicles. We didn’t turn up any cat tracks during the morning, so we loaded up and headed down river. Chris and I grabbed a dog and took off snowshoeing up a closed road while Lee and Dad traveled downriver to do the same. After a 45-minute walk, Lee and Dad returned to the truck with news similar to earlier reports: more deer, elk, and wolf tracks, but no cat tracks.
Chris and I made our way up the road. I had never walked in snowshoes before and it certainly took a little getting used to. Half a mile up the road we found a very large cat track. My excitement immediately skyrocketed! As we were inspecting the track, the dog started baying and trying to follow it. Chris was holding the dog back, but the leash broke and the dog was off, with no tracking collar.
I, not being experienced with using hounds, was thinking, “How are we ever going to find that dog?” Chris and I walked back to the main road to meet Lee and Dad. After telling Lee what happened, he quickly unloaded two more dogs, fitted them with collars, and we headed back up the road to where the track was.
When we approached the track, the first dog was running back down the hill toward us. The guides weren’t sure what to think about that; the track shouldn’t have been too cold. They collared him and then turned all three dogs loose. They dogs took off like a rocket working their way up the hill. As we stood there listening to the dogs, the tone of the barks changed. Lee and Chris looked a little puzzled. Could the dogs be barking “treed” already? It had only been 15 minutes since they had been released. We listened to them bark for another ten minutes, with no change in their location or in the type of bark. Lee said, “I guess it’s time to go see what we’ve got.”
It took us quite some time to climb up to where the dogs were. This was in no small part because it was nearly straight up, with 18 inches of snow on the ground. Much of our climb was done on all fours.
When we arrived at the tree, what I saw was absolutely amazing and unforgettable. When a mountain lion – especially a huge male – is in a tree glaring down at you, it’s very intimidating. The guides kept saying, “Look at the size of that cat!”
The atmosphere was charged, with the dogs barking and staring into the eyes of an ultimate predator. We spent some time admiring the animal and talking about how best to get a good, clean shot. Once that decision was made, the dogs were tied up. At the report of the rifle, the majestic cat came right out of the tree, landing in the fresh powder. We were cautious on the approach, knowing this was an animal that could rip a person to shreds with one swipe. Once we determined it was safe, the celebration began.
As we continued to stare in awe of this incredible creature, we knew without question it was a giant tom. The head was so massive it nearly defied description. How massive, though, we weren’t exactly sure. All I knew was that this cat was nearly bigger than me, and I instantly had a deep and personal newfound respect for these stealthy predators.
After the 60-day drying period, Boone & Crockett official measurer Ryan Hatfield scored this great trophy at 15-14/16. After scoring it, Ryan said it was the second-largest cat ever taken in the cougar-rich state of Idaho, behind only the 16-3/16 monster taken by legendary cougar hunter Gene Alford some 19 years before. Gene’s trophy tom won the Boone and Crockett Club’s coveted Sagamore Hill Award.
My trophy is now tied for tenth on the all-time list. There was a lot of good fortune involved in the hunt, and I feel very privileged just to have been able to see, let alone take, such a great animal.
Equipment list:
Rifle: .Winchester .223 SSM
Scope: Nikon 3×9
Optics: Swarovski 10×42 SLC binoculars, Bushnell 800 rangefinder.
Camo/Clothing: Cabela’s Microtex, Under Armour cold gear, Cabela’s MT050 raingear.
Boots: Cabela’s Whitetail Extreme
Pack: Kifaru late season
Accessories: Garmin GPS.
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