The Prince of Darkness

This was definately one of the most interesting and eye opening hunts i've ever participated in. I say participate because it not only involves yourself. It takes a team to make all the aspects work and tie together. From the beginning to the end it is literally a physical and mental game of cat and mouse, only you as the hunter are the cat and the leopard is the mouse. Setting multiple baits out across the landscape along likely travel routes you wait for the leopard to make his move. Once he is active and on the bait you set the trap and hope you are lucky enough to have everything come together. After the sixth day and ten bait sets later this nice male found the bait we laid. We worked the next day building a shooting blind hoping that the cat would return to feed on his prize that very same evening. A remote bushbaby light and listening device were hidden within the tree and we retreated to the second blind as the evening began. The leopard made his first approach at 5:30 pm and after repositioning and playing with the bait suddenly dissappeared into the fading light. Soon the darkness set in and the eerie stillness of the africa night set in. No birds, no bugs not even the rustling of bushes from critters or a light breeze. Just dead silence with only the twinkle of the stars to keep you company.

At about 7:30 pm a distant alarm call could be heard from an alert kudu. The bark is hollow and repetitious, almost similar to that of a dog going hoarse from pulling against his collar. Terry my PH leans over to me and whispers "He's feeding, its time to go". I ask him to repeat himself and he quickly reiterates the same phrase. It's so hard to remain calm when hearing those words. We slowly exit the blind into the black of the night and are quickly consumed by the dark. Only memorization and a small swept path guide our barefeet to where we need to be. 100 meters ahead somewhere in the night our shooting blind waits for us with a leopard just beyond enjoying his found prize.

Once in the blind I find the buttstock of my rifle that is already tied into place and resting on a cross pole with the reticle pointed at the hanging impala bait. The bolt is already closed with a triple shok in the chamber and the safety is already off, for even a click could send the cat hurtling down the tree never to be seen again. I slide my hand up the buttstock to the trigger guard and ease the recoil pad into my shoulder. I nod to my PH, who although is only two feet from me and I can hardly see, that I am ready. The PH then remotely activates the reostat light and i quickly can see a red glow through my scope. The leopard was smart enough to move the bait but luckily the give in the gun ties allow me a bit of freedom to pan three feet to the left. I mutter to Terry that I see him and after quickly ascertaining that he is in fact a male Terry whispers "take him". My crosshairs find his shoulder as I see the leopard standing tall on the branch quartering away. At that moment I notice his head swing back in our direction probably detecting our whispers but it is too late. A slow and steady pull of my trigger shatters my sight picture and all goes black and silent.

I reach over and grab my PH's elbow and begin to squeeze, quite hard. He is holding onto my shoulder as we stare at each other and listen for any foreign noises in the direction of the cat. Nothing. We quickly unstrap the rifle and walk back to the second blind to put on our socks and shoes. The report of the rifle could be heard a couple miles away and the tracker and game scout were to us within a few minutes. We hastily set up the spot light and approached the leopard tree to find the prince laying twelve vertical feet below where I last saw him. The well placed shot and the hydrostatic shock had done its job. In true african tradition I hoisted him over my shoulders and loaded him into the Bakke. After that experience, well, lets just say I  became a leopard junkie.

Posted By: pigsticker , Fishing Buddy
Permalink: The Prince of Darkness
Posted On: 09/14/2011 01:34 AM
Photo Album: pigsticker Photos and Images