Hunting Washington Forum
Big Game Hunting => Other Big Game => Topic started by: highside74 on December 19, 2020, 06:36:23 PM
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This happened
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Oh ya :tup:
waiting for the rest
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Must be one heck of a tail!!
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Saved a bunch of deer and elk!! :tup:
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Friend of a friend lives on the east side and he likes keeping track of the elk during the winter (weather and roads permitting) for shed hunting season. During his adventures he was noticing a lot of cat sign in a fairly concentrated area. Maybe a kill or something or maybe it was just her winter area. I am no cat expert so I have no clue. He called my friend and told him about the area but my buddy and his son couldn't get away so they called me.
I've been on a YouTube kick for a while and one of the things I notice is the more you are will to go anytime, anywhere even if you don't know an area. The more chances you have at being successful. I am really not a drop everything and go kinda guy but I had some sick days to use up so I said what the heck I'm going now. Turned toward home grabbed my stuff and took the day off.
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So on my way over I read all 23 pages of the calling cougars thread. :yike: just kidding...
or am I?
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All by myself (because the boys are not doing their part in keeping up on school and they needed to learn a lesson) I headed toward Blewett pass with no drop pin from On X becuase he doesn't use it. (Who doesn't use On X?) No co-pilot nothing. Just a FS rd and a topo picture of the ridge I was supposed to hunt. Becuase I didn't save an offline map! Oops.
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Okay maybe that's a little dramatic. I had some better directions than that but it felt like that's all I was going with.
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Following!
Awesome
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Trying to drag it out because the good part is over quick.
I've heard that before somewhere before hmmm Can't quite think of it. :chuckle:
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Tag. Sounds like good fun!
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With my chain box and winter safety supplies in the back of the 4runner I head up the FS road in search of the secret parking place on the ridgeline that I was to hike. This ridgeline cuts between 2 drainages and it doesn't go all the way to the top of canyon. Kinda hard to explain but the canyon kinda makes a horseshoe around the top of this ridge.
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:yike:
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I wanted to take my bow but was told that would be making something that is going to be hard even harder. I was also told that open sights in the possible thick stuff and most likely close quarters action would be the best option so I took the 30-30 lever action. Cowboy style ish know what I'm sayin?
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I hiked for about 20 minutes and did my first setup. Not sure what page this is on in the cougar calling thread but I read that if it doesn't happen in 30 minutes or less you should probably move. So I gave it 15 or so lol what can I say. A little bit a light fawn distress and quiet a bot more and quiet. No cats what the heck? Just kidding I knew I was in for a long day of tree staring.
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I was about 2 or so hours in of moving, sitting, calling repeat when I caught movement just above and slightly to my right while looking through my 10x42s. I've never had 8x42 but can understand why guys like them in the woods. Brought my glass down to get my rifle and couldn't find the cat where I was looking. Turned out it was further out than I thought becuase of the binos. Grabbed the binos and looking some more. This time I pick a land mark and use my eyes. 80 or 90 out and cautiously moving through the trees down straight for me. At about 60 or so the cat turns heading to the left and stops behind some trees and brush with no shot. I think it was trying to figure out its next move and it seemed like forever. I'm trying so hard to hold still no big movements. It came out and still no good shot but I think it is now trying to get the wind and pinpoint where its next meal is. Quartering to slightly and still moving to my left at about 40 or 50 yards I tell myself much further and it might go south so I take the slight quarter shot and put it through the front edge of its front shoulder and out behind it's off shoulder. A twirl and the cat was curled up in less than 10 yards and dead in no time. What the crap just happened?
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Nice!
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I cautiously walk over after a few minutes and give it a poke. Holy crap I just shot a nice cat I tell myself out loud. What an amazing animal. Teeth, Claws, fir. Big and heathly. I flipped it over and start to look at it some more and I'm like where it its junk? I'm feeling and looking and I'm like holy crap this is a huge female, I just saved a lot of deer and elk! I grab my phone to get some pics but the area isn't the greatest so I drag it down the ridge where I see a nice rock and a place I think I can stage my phone for timed hero shots. After the picture session, that actually was an adventure all on it's own because trying to hit the timer pick up this cat and have it look good after a few times this boy was tired and it took more than a few to get it right. Lol. I put as small of a cut as I could to gut her because I didn't want to hurt anything for the taxidermist. I was a little overly cautious at that point. I then started my drag down the ridge. Some snow some dirt some holy crap hold on a second and finally a belt around her front paws for a bit of control away from my feet, we made it back to my rig. I couldn't wait to get to cell service and make phone calls to my boys and wife and brother and friends. You get the drift lots of calls and texts. I made a call to Black River and he was very kind but declined to take my work because he was full til next fall and he didn't want to put me 2 years out and create a backlog for himself for next years work. What a nice guy. He said Cedar River was an option so I called them and they were 2 years out and way out of my budget so I called Peter's. Fred has done work for me in the past and I knew he was trying to slow down but I hoped he would have room for me. He loves cats and was excited to hear about my success. I told him I shot a giant female and what I thought it weighed and at first he wanted to quiz me about the anatomy of the cat. I said I was sure it was a female and that I would bring it by soon. I drove to my buddies house to show him and his dad and they were blown away. Then home to show the family. Man was this awesome. I owe my buddies friend a huge steak dinner the next time he is on our side of the mountains.
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Enough teasing already... :brew:
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And now the payoff. Thanks for coming along with me. I had fun reliving my adventure.
For reference I'm 6'4 245 ish well maybe 255 but whose counting be quiet.
Fred said it is the biggest female he has ever had in his shop.
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Great story. Very nice cat!!
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Great looking cat! :tup:
Congratulations!
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Awesome, what en exciting day!
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Oh and who knew a female cougar is called a queen? You don't have to answer but I had no idea. Had to look it up on The Google.
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Right on sweet cat :tup: great write up.
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Great cat, every time I see the hug shot I think back to the "my deer came back alive and attacked me" thread....
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Great looking cat and great story! Thank you for sharing!
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Way too cool! Congrats. Definitely helped the elk and deer in that area :tup:
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Heck of a cat!!!! Congrats!!!! :IBCOOL:
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Stud cat!!
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Congrats on a great cat!! She is a beauty, what did the boys think? Did the lesson work? Lol! Thanks for taking us along.
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Congrats on a great cat!! She is a beauty, what did the boys think? Did the lesson work? Lol! Thanks for taking us along.
The oldest is iffy on hunting but thought the car was awesome and can't wait to eat it. He didn't mind not being there.
The youngest is a different story. He also thought the cat is awesome and took all sorts of pics to show his friends. But he was kinda ticked that he didn't get to go.
The wife didn't even want to come outside and she said she isn't cooking a kitty. Lol
I'm not allowed to call it a cat.
She did end up look at it and even stopped by with a couple ladies from work who wanted to see it before it went to the taxidermist. I had it in the back of my pickup on ice and she showed me pics of the gals climbing in there and checking it out.
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Nice cat, good story, and good pic with the self-timer...congratulations! :tup:
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You can see your excitement in the smile, and hear it in the story. Big Congrats :tup:
Still hoping to get that same feeling, "Surge of adrenaline" SWEET !!
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What a great write up!
Congratulations on an awesome animal!!!
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great job
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Awesome cat! Thanks for the entertaining story too.
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Congrats on the cat and thanks for taking us on the hunt great write up.
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Thats awesome, thanks for sharing. Nothing like the excitement of killing your first cougar....especially when solo, its unreal.
When I killed mine, I actually waited an hour for my wife to get there before walking the 100 yards to where it layed. Really wanted to share the experience and get good pics.
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Awesome!
Just the motivation I needed to get my arse out there calling! :chuckle:
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Great job
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Good cat. Fantastic Hunt, you went, you made it happen! Enjoy the other white meat. And excellent lesson for the boys, you got to pay the bills first!
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Awesome.
We own property near lauterdale and liberty and have had more than a few cats coming through on the cameras. I have had no luck calling one in yet though. Glad you did and hopefully it wasn’t too far from me so I see the benefits of the increased Fawn/calf survival on our properties and the surrounding FS
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Awesome!
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Congrats! Really like the way you took us along!
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Great job and thanks for the write up. Fred does a great job too!
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Way to go!
Did you get a weight on that cat?
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Way to go!
Did you get a weight on that cat?
No I didn't. Somewhere near 450-500!
Or 130-150 it's one of those
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Ha ha! Same size as bears then.
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Exactly lol so probably a solid 120 plus at least. All I know is I didn't want to pick it up to many more times for pictures.
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Like I said on post #2 "Must be one heck of a tail!!" great writeup and cat. Hope the wife lets you cook some up for her.
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congratulations! beautiful animal
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:tup: :tup: :tup: :tup:
:hello: :hello: :hello:
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Congrats that’s a dream come true for a lot of us very cool
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I think of it like a lottery, you can go out and do your thing and do it well many many times and not get it done, making you question if you're even doing it right, if all that internet advice you got was worth even reading or looking at.
Then someone goes out and makes it look easy, then you really begin to question your skills. There's a reason hunting guides aren't calling in cougar for clients.
Fact is it just has to all come together, the right cat, the right time, right place, the right setup..
I'm convenced if those things are right, its not all that difficult to call one in.
As with the lottery, the more you play the higher your odds. Calling in a cougar dense area really increases your odds.
Moral of the story? Get out and call, even if it's a sick day! :chuckle: :tup:
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:tup: :tup: :tup:
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Great write up and cougar highside! Hand call or ecall?
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Mouth call. The plastic kind with the rubberband inside. Bought it years ago at the sportsmans show. From the guy that used to show the video of the does running to come save the fawn. Never worked for me. I think they don't tell you those does on the video are Sitka Blacktail. I've had it in a miscellaneous box for so many years I can't remember and now I can't find it. Cleaned my rig and washed my clothes and it's gone. I'm wondering if I dropped it in the woods. The hole thing feels like an out of body experience.
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That's awesome, I have the same call, use it as a coaxer. About the time you get over the "out of body experience" you'll get her back from the taxidermist and it starts all over, everyday you'll look at the mount and say" did that really happen"? Congrats again, it's an awesome experience for sure.
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Like I said on post #2 "Must be one heck of a tail!!" great writeup and cat. Hope the wife lets you cook some up for her.
ehhhh cougar eating cougar !!!!!!
Great job and write up ! This is my goal this year is getting a long tail
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Very nice job Highside. Way to get rid of that deer and elk killer. And an awesome new addition to the trophy room. 8)
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That’s a awesome story and cat. Did the taxidermist take it before you had it sealed?
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Yes that was a whole ordeal. Couldn't get anyone to call me back. My Wildlife officers were evidently on a special project. Finally I emailed and got a call back. They made arrangements with the taxidermist to allow me to drop it off and they had an officer go there to seal it. No one in Olympia would contact me or my regional biologist either. It was frustrating. I hadn't skinned it because I wanted the taxi to do it so I kept in on ice for a couple days. The taxi was concerned about the hide and the officer was concerned about the meat so he called the taxidermist and gave him the okay to take it in. It might have helped that the officer knew me from helping them get a local poached bull elk processed last year.
