Coyote calling surprise!!!!!

Catahoula said:

Hey Guys, got a calling story for you!
On Thanksgiving Day, we got done with dinner & the family stuff really early. Since I have a whitetail doe tag, I decided to go to one of the 3 units it is valid for. I parked on state property & seen 2 moose right away. Kept hiking about another mile & seen no deer sign but I had been following a pair of very fresh coyote tracks. I came to a rough little canyon where I had some visibility so I decided to try to kill those coyotes. I always have a few mouth calls in my pack no matter what I am hunting because predators are my favorite critter to hunt. I had been calling less than 10 minutes when I seen something coming. I knew immediately that it was not a coyote but thought it was a bobcat. I was sitting there wishing bobcat season was open when I seen a long tail! It was a lion. It sat down near a pine tree at about 120 yards & was just watching my direction. I had a lion tag with me. I tried all my soft coaxing sounds that usually work on coyotes but it would not move closer or turn so I would have a broadside shot. I was carrying my custom 22-250 built on a Winchester action with a 28" Shilen barrel. It is a tack driver. I reload 52 grain Hornady A-Max's in that rifle. Very accurate & also a good fur bullet. I finally decided to take the shot. I slowly got my rifle up on my shooting sticks knowing the shot would have to be very precise to drop this large predator. I centered the crosshairs of my Leupold 5HD 3x15 scope on the throat of that cat & touched the trigger. I hit exactly where I was aiming! The cat dropped in it's tracks!
I have hunted/called predators for 30 years & this is the pinnacle of my calling career. There is no female quota in the unit I was in so I knew I did'nt have to worry about that. It was a female & when I checked it into the fish & game, they said it was 4-5 years old.

Thanks, Kirk View attachment 162006 View attachment 162007 View attachment 162008

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elkaholic said:

Yes

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Bingoc said:

Dandy lion, What a story! I lived in Idaho Falls a while back. So where did you go to kill this nice critter? Was it Swan Valley?

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remingtonman said:

very cool. What state and how did the meat taste?

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Gone Ballistic said:

The throat huh? Seems like a strange place to aim for a killing shot. Hope that you know the meat on these cats is some of the best tasting wild meat you can ever eat? Only Mtn. Sheep's any better tasting and tender to me.

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Catahoula said:

Sorry if my shot placement upsets you. I wanted it down in its tracks & I am very confident with making that shot with my custom 22-250. I have had lion meat twice before & it is good. Could'nt save any on this one. I hunt alone & I had my hands full getting the cat skinned & getting to the truck before dark.

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Catahoula said:

It was in Idaho & I did'nt get to save any meat. I was 2 miles from the truck in rough country. By the time I got it skinned it was time to head for the truck. I have had lion meat twice in my life & it is absolutely delicious!

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remingtonman said:

have you ever had any problems with grizzlys when you've been that far back in the woods? Do you carry a sidearm?

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Catahoula said:

I see grizzlies now & then but have not had a problem yet. A few years ago I was walking a trail through some quakie trees & walked right up to a sow grizzly with a cub. The wind was in my favor & they were busy eating grass. I was probably 35 yards from them but was able to get out without them noticing me. I find a lot of places where they are digging in the spring when I am hunting black bears. We get a lot of grizzlies on our trail cams. I don't carry a sidearm. Sometimes I carry pepper spray.

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