- Details
- Category: Hunting
- Published: Sunday, 08 May 2016 19:54
- Written by Greg
Mountain Lion - tracking a cat
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources closely manages the mountain lion population in order to maintain a healthy cougar population, while considering several factors such as human safety, other wildlife populations, etc. Given these circumstances a limited number of mountain lion tags are issued and my son was fortunate enough to draw a tag.
Packing the dogs in the side-by-side Mid-November snow while trying to cut a track
A couple of our friends were willing to take us along to hunt a few of their favorite haunts. Our first hunt occurred in mid-November and it wasn't until April 30th that we journeyed out for our last hunt. Over the course of many trips and several months, we hiked up canyon after canyon looking for an elusive cat. On a few occasions the dogs cut tracks and we had the opportunity to spot a few stealthy cougars, but Dallas had decided that he was only going to take a mature tom if the opportunity presented itself.
Just made a good shot on a tom, look closely mid-right to Turning dogs loose after the shot see cat (mostly tail) running away
The weekend arrived; the rain and snow flurries had finally stopped so once again we headed for the hills. Surprisingly the hike up the canyon bottom wasn't too soggy, even though it had rained all week long. However, there was definitely a chill in the air evidenced by the fog that burst forward upon every spoken word. The fact that we could see our breath was a good sign since dogs have a much better chance of catching a lingering scent of a lion during periods with high humidity.
We had been hiking about an hour and a half when one of the dogs let out a howl. In unison we all looked up at the hillside from where the bark originated. Excitedly we huddled around the GPS to track the path of the dog. For quite some time we watched as the dog worked his way up and across the side of the mountain trying to determine where his path might lead. At one point the dog's position was 900 yards back down the canyon, but after fifteen minutes of tracking the dog was back to within 600 yards of us and heading up over the ridge into another valley. Luckily for us the canyon split approximately a mile ahead and veered off in the general direction of the baying dog.
Dallas just about halfway to the wedged cougar Sketchy climb but finally reached the tom
It probably took us a good 35 minutes of hustling to reach a ravine that cut up through the valley to where the dog was now located. The rest of the dogs had finally joined the melee and their distinct howls told us they had locked onto a cat. Looking at the GPS, we could see that we were only 300 yards away from the ruckus but it was all uphill through fairly thick brush. Undeterred we fought our way up the gully and through the thicket. Finally we spotted the cat, a mature tom! Dallas maneuvered into position until he had a clear shot with his bow and let an arrow fly. His arrow hit the mark and the cougar was off with the dogs hot on its trail. Seconds later the tom bounded up the first big pine tree it could find and came to rest 60 feet up and expired.
As one can imagine, we had quite a predicament on our hands...a dead mountain lion 60 feet up a tree that was riddled with dead spindly branches for the first 35 feet. Several precarious and intense minutes followed, but Dallas was finally able to successfully retrieve his quarry!