Big Tom in a Cave!

It’s always a good time when you get to go hunt with friends.  The MuleyBull bunch hooked back up with the guys from Six Shooter Molly’s Guide Service to help out with John Youngker’s lion hunt.  Once again, a big tom had been caught by the bunch the day before John showed up.  A handful of pictures were taken of the big tom before he was let go.  Back in the area the next day, the tracks of the big tom were finally located and the hounds were turned out.

Now up to this point, the hounds had been on lions day after day for the past couple months.  To say they were tuned up would be an understatement!  As soon as the dogs hit the ground they were out of sight and started to get way ahead of the hunters.  The dogs caught up with the cat long before the hunters could get on scene.  P.T. being one of the stronger hikers, was the first to catch up to the dogs.  They had the big tom bayed up far in the back of a deep cave in some rim rock.

P.T. got the dogs tied up and crawled inside with his video camera to have a look.  Sure enough!  The big tom from the day before was once again bayed up by the hounds, and he was not in a friendly mood.  P.T. caught some video of the action while the rest of the hunters caught up.

Going into a cave after a lion is something most folks won’t even consider!  76 year old John didn’t bat an eye!  He got his pistol ready and said “If I end up leaving this world going after that lion in a cave, then that’s a heck of a lot better than other ways I can think of!”

Pistol in hand John got on his belly and began to inch his way in.  It took a few minutes for his eyes to adjust to the darker environment of the cave, but when they did he readied his pistol for a shot.  Now you would have thought he was shooting a 50 caliber when that pistol went off inside the confines of that cave, but John didn’t flinch.  He slowly backed out and readjusted his eyes to the outside world.  His one shot did the lion in!

Now it was our turn.  If John was willing to go into the cave to shoot the lion, then we were willing to go back in and pull the lion out.  As P.T. pulled the lion out of the cave entrance, the size of the animal became apparent!  He looked big yesterday when they caught him and took pictures, and he somehow looked twice as big now.

Congrats John on a monster tom!