Real Or Fake?

[Plays In The Dirt]

Here is a photo of a cougar killed 5 miles west of Hermosa, SD. The guy who shot it is 6 foot tall and weighs about 220 lbs.
He was in a deer stand and saw the cat pass him downwind. He then saw it pass him upwind. When the cat passed him again (closer this time)
downwind, he knew that it was hunting him. So, boom. After viewing this do you feel safe in the woods?



So what are your thoughts? Ya think this story and Photo are true, or do you think that the cat was put in the guys arms by Photo manipulation and the story built around it?

[raptor7]

Real or fake doesn't matter, what matters is the terrible loss of this most beautiful asset to the natural world.

I had one scream at me from about 100 yards or so last year at dusk, what a tremendous experience

Michael

[reptilist]

Of course I feel safe in the woods, and the desert....Not in the ocean though....
I like knowing there are large predators in the wild...that's what keeps the wild...well, wild!
I hope this picture scares people enough to stay in the city and not go fishing or hunting or four wheeling!
Cool idea!

[Plays In The Dirt]

How did you see through to my motives Terry?

[reptilist]

I once listened to a gal from NYC ...She was terrified of Mtn. Lions and had the notion that it should be against the law to raise kids in rural Arizona because the lions are so dangerous! HAHAHAHA!
You GO girl! Go home! Go now!!!!

[Plays In The Dirt]

So what is going on with all these encounters with Mountain Lions? I guess as more and more people encroach on their habitat there's bound to be meetings such as those in the stories below. People have been hunting out in the country forever, but it seems as if recently the Lions have become more bold. I've tramped around in the mountains here in Eureka shooting Photos but have never seen a Lion. People tell me that they're out there though. I sure hate to see these beautiful animals be killed, but whatta ya going ta do when it's either you or him/her?

These stories were sent to me by a friend, both occurred in Montana:

"Duane Cole said he felt he was on the menu when a mountain lion confronted him while he was hunting in the Elkhorn Mountains near Boulder on Oct. 26."

http://www.billingsgazette.com/news/sta ... 002e0.html


BUTTE - It was the big cat's eyes that haunted Eric Boyd. The 14-year-old from Anaconda was hoping to bag his first elk on opening day Sunday. Instead, he found himself face to face with a large mountain lion.

http://www.billingsgazette.com/news/sta ... 002e0.html

[reptilist]

Cool hunting stories!
What would hunting be without the thrill, the potential of being the prey?
I have always believed that if you are willing to take a life while hunting, you should be prepared to accept it if the tables turn...And not hold a grudge. Want the primal hunting experience? That works both ways imo.

[Goldseeker]

So what is going on with all these encounters with Mountain Lions? I guess as more and more people encroach on their habitat there's bound to be meetings such as those in the stories below. People have been hunting out in the country forever, but it seems as if recently the Lions have become more bold. I've tramped around in the mountains here in Eureka shooting Photos but have never seen a Lion. People tell me that they're out there though. I sure hate to see these beautiful animals be killed, but whatta ya going ta do when it's either you or him/her?

These stories were sent to me by a friend, both occurred in Montana:

"Duane Cole said he felt he was on the menu when a mountain lion confronted him while he was hunting in the Elkhorn Mountains near Boulder on Oct. 26."

http://www.billingsgazette.com/news/sta ... 002e0.html


BUTTE - It was the big cat's eyes that haunted Eric Boyd. The 14-year-old from Anaconda was hoping to bag his first elk on opening day Sunday. Instead, he found himself face to face with a large mountain lion.

http://www.billingsgazette.com/news/sta ... 002e0.html

AS I have posted on here before, my biggest fear when out in the desert is mountain lions. Other posters have challenged that belief. My suggestion to them:
YOU go out there unarmed
I will go armed

In fact I had a talk about this very subject with my policeman friend from Long Beach (PITD knows who) over the weekend at the car swap and told him I would bring a 9 with a large capacity clip with me, and he said a 9 is not enough, he suggested a .44, he said even with multiple hits a 9 would not stop it fast enough, it would take time for the rounds to stop it, you need immediate knockdown power. I have a chance to buy a .44 from a friend at a good price, so thats the answer. A .44 Casill (not sure of spelling) revolver from Freedom Arms would be ideal, but wow, are they pricey. But they have 2/3 more knockdown power than a regular .44 and the rounds are so big, (its a revolver) that the cylinder only holds 5 shells. Grizzly hunters in Alaska use it as a backup, it will take down a grizzly. That would be ideal, but they are very costly. Those lions are fast when they attack, so you need immediate stopping power.

[Plays In The Dirt]

AS I have posted on here before, my biggest fear when out in the desert is mountain lions. Other posters have challenged that belief. My suggestion to them:
YOU go out there unarmed
I will go armed

In fact I had a talk about this very subject with my policeman friend from Long Beach (PITD knows who) over the weekend at the car swap and told him I would bring a 9 with a large capacity clip with me, and he said a 9 is not enough, he suggested a .44, he said even with multiple hits a 9 would not stop it fast enough, it would take time for the rounds to stop it, you need immediate knockdown power. I have a chance to buy a .44 from a friend at a good price, so thats the answer. A .44 Casill (not sure of spelling) revolver from Freedom Arms would be ideal, but wow, are they pricey. But they have 2/3 more knockdown power than a regular .44 and the rounds are so big, (its a revolver) that the cylinder only holds 5 shells. Grizzly hunters in Alaska use it as a backup, it will take down a grizzly. That would be ideal, but they are very costly. Those lions are fast when they attack, so you need immediate stopping power.

From what I have read and understand about Mountain Lions is that if you were ever stalked and attacked, by the time you realized what was going on it would be too late - it'd be over for you. The bottom line is that you would never get a chance to use a gun to defend yourself. The two incidents in the stories above were unusual and were the result of the lion being a young one. This is not to say that carrying a weapon with you is a bad idea - I do.

[reptilist]

Your choice of calibers is overkill.
From what I learned back in my hunting days, they are not that hard to kill.
.357 Mag. on the hip is sufficient.
Pistol gripped shotgun on a sling would be better...Easier to hit a moving target with a 12 gauge.
These days I just carry a can of bear spray.