Day 5 Sunday October 23rd..... A day I will never forget!!
After seeing the lion the previous evening, and lots of talks with Jacques about lion, the situation with the USFW, and the potential opportunity I had sitting in front of me,well I decided to hunt lioness!!
Now prior to this and probably up until a few months ago I was one who would not hunt a lion/lioness if I could not bring it back home. I still wrestled with this in my mind while there. But reading many posts over the past year or so from those of you who have hunted lion and either already have it home, or have recently hunted and don't know if you can get it home, I came to the conclusion that if the cost was reasonable, that I would do it for the experience.
I never in my lifetime would have thought I could pursue an African lion, but with all the things that have happened and with pricing coming down more in recent years, it was now a possibility. Again, I think to myself I really want to bring a cat home if I take one, but wow, I can hunt a African lion...what an experience. So, it is decided that we will pursue the lioness.
We finish breakfast and start out to look for the tracks from last night. Jacques says most likely she will be far from where we left her especially if she hunted through the night. By 8 am we pickup the tracks and follow, and follow, and follow all on the truck. She has traveled quite a way through the night! The tracker (Albert) is riding on the front of the truck studying tracks while the rest of us are on the back looking of the sides at tracks. Eventually we come to a junction of 2 roads where a few blocks come together. Albert is now having us slow down and eventually he puts up the stop sign!!! He looks over about 20 yards in a group of tress and points and says lion!!! Gulp, a rush of emotions is now instantly on me. We are hunting lion and now we are planning how to stalk her. It almost went silent and surreal for me at that point.
Drive 30 yards or so, load the guns, ease of the truck. Its Jacques, Albert, another PH Sokkie, and me. A quick talk and plan, some encouragement, and we are off. I am excited for sure, but somehow I am keeping it in and remaining mostly calm. making sure I am focused and present in order to give this my full attention, the lioness deserves it and all of us deserve that.
We stalk slowly and methodically around and into the area where Albert saw here. Even though it was windy and we were making noise walking on dry and crunchy ground, I could hear a pin drop. We got to where she was, and we don't see her. Where is she? Is she now stalking us? I have certainly heard stories on lioness' stalking the hunters. Well, the drive Docman whistles to us that she has slipped away and he can see here running down the road. Back to the truck quickly to pursue, we follow her tracks for it had to be 1 mile or more. Albert cuts her tracks and we turn down a road and about 50 yards Albert puts up the stop sign, she is about 25 yards off the road. We back out, go around the other side of the block, get off and begin the stalk. By this point it is about 10:30 and starting to get hot. Jacques says she most likely will stand her ground now. Ok, deep breaths, make sure gun is loaded and safe.
We stalk for about 5 minutes and see her about 50 yards away in some thick stuff. She is pacing back and forth, zig zagging as well. Jacques says she is definitely getting agitated and she will stand her ground. Heart beating through my chest now! We move around a bit and there is a small opening in the brush, "Can you see her?" Yes I reply. Which I can with the naked eye, but once I pull the scope up, I cant pick her out in all that thick brush with sandy background. I again look with just my eyes, "Can you see her?" Yes I can. Shoot behind the shoulder if you can. I again get her in the scope but cant be sure, and this is not a time to make a poor shot. She moves off. We pursue...
About 100 yards away we get back to her.We see her moving from bush to bush, zig zagging again... Jacques puts up the sticks...instinct kicks in and I get the gun up, get her in the scope, safety off, breathe, focus. CAn you see her? Yes. She was behind a bunch of brush and trees, but there was one maybe 3 ft opening where her body/vitals were. Jacques says just to the left of the tree, do you see her body? Yes I answer. Shoot 3 inches to the left of that tree, this time I clearly see my target, know where on her body I am shooting, she is slightly quartering away but I can picture where the shot needs to go in order to get the vitals and the far shoulder....
SQUEEZE................................................