Its a bobcat!

[Kain]

I left last Friday for ten days in the woods.  The trip was for elk but wanted to get up there early for some scouting and to find a good camp site.  The wife and kiddo followed me up but could only stay for the weekend.  We found a nice campsite next to a very cold creek and would have been a perfect family camping trip if not for the pouring down rain.  It rained on us all weekend but we had a great time.  The wife and kid are troopers and never complained.  The two boxers on the other hand would not leave the van and hated every minute of it.  

Tuckered out


Escaping the rain


We had went for a walk up an old road by camp in hopes of seeing some grouse.  We made it about a mile and had to make the kiddo turn around.  She just kept wanting to see what was around the next corner.  She convinced me to take her up around "just one more corner".  Mom stayed behind with the dogs and waited for us to come back.  Well around the next corner there was a really nice opening in the brush off the side of the road.  I instantly knew it would be a nice spot to call from.  We headed back to camp and as we knew would happen the kiddo got tired of walking and wanted to be carried.  It might be kind of harsh but we made her walk anyways.  We explained that that is happens when you hike to far and forget that you have to get back.  She made it just fine with only a little complaining.  Tough little three year old.


Next morning I woke up at first light letting the wife and kid to sleep in.  It had rained all night and was still going strong.  I headed back to the opening we had discovered yesterday with my calls and my shotgun loaded with 00 buck (never know if a bear might come in).   I could see about 40 yards into the surrounding brush so sat down just below the edge of the road.  Set up the e-caller down in the bottom in with all the ferns only about ten yards from me.  I had a good comfortable seat and was feeling pretty good about the whole setup.  I put on my usual sequence because its starts out with mouse squeaks and builds from there.  I let it run for about 18 minutes but restarted the sequence before the bobcat in distress starts.   In the 2 minutes of silence I took out my hand call (custom Oregon myrtle by Bearmanric) and gave about twenty seconds of some really high pitched distress.  The mouse squeaks from the e-caller start up right after and I continue scanning the area as far as I can see into the brush.  About ten minutes later I see movement about 20 yards in front of me.  Reddish fur is snaking its way through the ferns.  Its a bobcat!!!  Somehow the cat had moved into twenty yards without me noticing.  It is moving fast towards the speaker but luckily the ferns are thick and it is focused on the caller.  It doesn't notice me bring up the shotgun and take aim.  Five yards from the speaker...BANG!  The cat is hit hard and jumps about 6 feet in the air and lets out a viscous snarl sound.  Hits the ground and thrashes for about 5 seconds then lets out a second yowl and dies.   Now the flood of adrenaline hits and I cant figure out how to shut off the caller, stand up, put the gun on safety, run towards the cat and breath all at the same time.  I sort it all out and walk up to the cat and it is a tom with hardly any spots but it is beautiful.  My first bobcat and I couldn't be happier.  It is a long walk back to camp, I am soaking wet and this cat is heavy but nothing could have been cooler than showing off my trophy to my wife and kid.  

If you want to try out the sequence I used.
http://www.mscustomcalls.com/mp3/Mixes_from_hunters/Naithan_Kain/Vantuckykains_bobcat_medicine.mp3

[alecvg]

NICE!  Not too many people get those!  Great job, are you gonna mount him?

[Michelle_Nelson]

Thats a Nice cat. Congrats.

[denali]

Good job !   nice shot gun too   

[bowhunterforever]

Good looking bobcat, congrats!

[Kain]

Thanks guys.

NICE!  Not too many people get those!  Great job, are you gonna mount him?

Probably not.  Things are a little tight right now.  I am selling the shotgun if anyone is interested.  It is in the classifieds.

[Maligator]

Nice cat. Congrats.

[Birdguy]

Nice cat. Great story.

[bobcat]

Awesome!  Can you say just in general where you were? Eastside or westside even 

[Kain]

Awesome!  Can you say just in general where you were? Eastside or westside even 

Siouxon unit north of Carson.

[bobcat]

Oh, ok. So it's a westside cat! 

[robb92]

Congrats on a nice bobcat.

[runamuk]

Nice cat and great story...your dogs do not look impressed with camping

[Dustin07]

sorry to hear about the $$ but nice job on the cat! that's on my list of to-do!

[westsideoutdoorsman]

Thanks guys.

NICE!  Not too many people get those!  Great job, are you gonna mount him?

Probably not.  Things are a little tight right now.  I am selling the shotgun if anyone is interested.  It is in the classifieds.

Way to advertise