BigGameHoundsmen.com

Hello Folks!

Last night, Friday, July 18th, had to be one of the BEST nights of Bobcat Hunting in Arkansas Houndsman History.

We had a front come through Thursday night, it brought a little rain, but much COOLER temps! Tuesday night when I liked to have DIED it was 84 at 11:30 PM when I put up the Hounds, this morning @ 3:30 AM it was 59 degrees. WOW what a difference!

Dad and I loaded the Hounds and left early as it was only 83 at 7:30 PM. We had the Hounds smell a cold Cat when they were emptying out. But it was too cold all they could do was flag to let you know a Cat had been there! We then Rigged another Cold one about 30 min later, and again the Cat had been gone too long. Our Garmin showed a feeding period of early afternoon and that must have been when these Cat were traveling, however the Garmin showed the best time for Game movement was coming up with a peak @ around 9:00 PM.

We had made it around a Big Clearcut to the Old Tram Rd which bisects this Club, when Choc and Cherokee told us that a Bobcat had exposed himself right here at this exact spot. They could not have struck harder, Rivers and Chic joined in. I put them down and up the Rd they went barking every breath. They went about 200 yds and turned into the Clearcut. I put out the rest of the Pack. As they arrived, out of the Clearcut the Cat came, and down the road he went.

We have been after him before, this was our Old Road Running Cat. When challenged he will come out and hit a dry dusty raod and 8 times out of 10 that is the end of your Race. Well this time the Ole Shortailed Smarty Pants got a surprise. We had had enough rain the night before that the Hounds could smell him on the road as good as in the Brush! The Pack pushed the Cat out of the road the first time after about a half mile. Into the Clearcut, then back out in another road and down it 3/4 of a mile or so. Then up a logging road, up the side of a mountan, across a Plantation to another road. If you did not know your Hounds you could sure have thought the Cat had Morphed into a Coyote. But he hadn't.

We were able to get around ahead of the Pack and see the Cat cross in front of us. Time elapsed was an hour and 5 min from the jump till we thought the Cat was up. The Pack had brought the Race right to us and as they approached the road they hushed. The Garmin showed the Hounds circling trying to find the Cat, then the Hounds started coming to the Truck. Dad said to load them, and I had all but Rivers and Sandy in the truck when Sandy opened with Rivers not far behind. The Cat has squatted in some BAD briars beside the road, how 9 Hounds could go all around him and not step on him is beyond me, but he stayed still and until he moved the Hounds could not smell him. After these two opened, I tailgated the rest and they burned him up for 5 more min then up a Big Pine he went.

One heckofa Good Race, but only the first of three for us, and Glen Rybard (Dad's young associate who has 18 Clay Hounds) ran two more one for an hour an 50 min another for 40 min. Later today I will get back on here and tell of those Races!

Till next we meet, Good Running to All!

C. John Clay
Dads Dogboy

All right I finished Chores and can resume the Tales of the Hunt!

We had the Hounds loaded after the 1st Race before 10:30 so we watered them good then put Rig dogs back up.

We Rigged about 45 min when Chic and Rivers opened going up a road we call the Tree Road. This Cat was farley cold but we put the Hounds down anyway. They went back down the road and out into a clearcut. They had to drift or course the track several hundred yards before opening. over the next 10 min they trailed almost back to the road ahead of us. We had been feeding in Hounds all along and the last two ran into the Cat trying to slip out! This was Brandy and Meg they screamed out their find and called the Pack to hark to them or get left behind. The clearcut was bad but the rest of the Pack caught up and the ROAR comminced!

This Race went up a drain in the clearcut towards one of our mountains. Up the mountainside they went. This Race sounded more like a Grey Fox Race as there was never a loose for 20 min. The Global Warming was too much for Ms. Whiskers as altitude was needed for relief. I treed the Cat with my light from the road (thanks to the Garmin we drove to within 100 yds of the end of the Race). Cat looked to be a Small Sow so we left her and loaded up to find another!

Dad did give me the option of going home, but my 6 yr old can't look as pityfull as Dad did when he made the offer. When I said it is only midnight lets try to find one more, it was like lighting up the Xmas Tree. We rested and watered the Hounds and started back up the Tram towards where we began the night.

At 10 min after 1 AM we got a strike from Choctaw. I put the Rig dogs down and back up the road they went (Do you Hunters who rig tend to find that the hounds strike tracks that you have driven well past?). Cherokee opened in the Plantation just off the road, but Choc and Rivers opened further back down the road, wide open running, they were barking every breath! This Cat must have fed on the road then decided to take forty winks, when he heard us or Chero open he left for the nearest "Far Away Place". And he decided to go by road, for the second time tonight a Cat found out that this normally effective Trick just was not working.

We had Ole Rip with us and running one down the road just fit him to a tee. He and Choc "Knocked the Air" out of the Cat and put him into the worst 40 acre Briar infested clearcut in the club. You just can not describe how thick and bad it is (I will try to get some Pics to Post) The Pack caught up and for 30 min the Race never left 5 acres or were further from the truck than 350 yds! Dad said his pockets were full he would have to use mine!

The Roar was continuos with hardly ever a loose until it sounded like they were going to catch the Cat on the ground, when Meg and Rivers started to Tree. I looked at Dad and said "OH S..t" He said you were the one who wanted a Treedog, now get to them. I started to pull on my Briar Proof shirt when the Cat, who must have been up on top of the Briars or in a small Plantation Pine came out. Hounds Running have never sounded so good in my Life!

The Cat decided that the Briars, as thick as they were was not the address to have for a long life so he hit a drain that fed into a small Creek that fed into a larger Creek and played Bobcat water games on the Hounds for the next 40 min. This Creek led down to a County Road with lots of Private land and Houses everywhere. Not a good place to run Hounds at 2:20 AM and stay friends with folks. Dad said to try to load them as they cross the road at the Creek. This was a smart move as we saw the Cat come swimming down the Creek and he did not have much left, course neither did the Hounds. The Road Running, Bad Briars, and Water Tricks had pretty much given them all that they wanted. When they saw the truck I did not have to beg them to load up. I did have to lift several up and put them into the Truck!

Well I got pretty longwnded so I will be brief about Glen's. He Jumped a Cat early. Ran hell out of it for 40 min then treed. Rigged another and ran him for 1 hour and 50 min. before the Cat tried to pull a Mike Tyson! Dad says Glen's Pack might be a better Pack than his, well I disagree they are the same Pack. He has littermates to every Hound we have. They are some damn fine Hounds and are worth stories of their own. We are going with him tonight so maybe I will have a good one for tomorrow!

Good Running to All!

C. John Clay
Dads Dogboy

And the stories just get better with every cat ran! Sure hope you get more cats treed as it gives a mortal cast to the tails I do appreciate your ability to share a hunt so clearly that one can hear the hounds and feel the cool night air. and the apprehension of a coming briar scratch now and again.

I don't have a good rigg dog now but I have in the past and you are right alot of times they would hit the ground and tare back down the road behind us.Somtimes quite a way's.Nice story's as always.Good luck

Pegleg and Spruce Mountain,

Thanks for the nice words. Retelling the hunts on here is just about as good as being there the 1st time, without the heat, skeetters, and briars!

Pegleg you should contact Shorty on here as it sounds like he has some "High Tan" Hounds simular to yours. He is out your way some and might be a source for a Stud. We hear good things about his Hounds and he as a Houndsman. His Grandfather in Law was the Dean of the South Texas Cathunters, Mr. Joe Rufus Lyne, who Dad says probably caught more Bobcat than any man before or since!

Glad folks enjoy the Stories! We struck out last night at Glens, well we Treed two but they were popups, 10 min. and 5 min.

Good Running to All!

C. John Clay
Dads Dogboy