2023 Pussy (pics) <-- I know you wanna see

[todbartell]

Headed out for a day of lynx calling. Weather was overcast and -5c

Tried four different spots, no luck.

Around 3pm, made the fifth stand on some fresh lynx tracks and there was scat on the road too. Lots of rabbit tracks around. Set the Foxpro about 50 yards down the road with my old Jack in the Box decoy bobbing around.

Four minutes into the reee reee reeeee of a high pitch cottontail rabbit distress, I spot something step out from the ditch 150 yards ahead. A lynx! It walked out into the middle and sat down facing us, my 8 year old son was urging me to start shootin'! - After a minute or two, it crossed into the bush and was gone. My son says to me "You ruined my dream of getting a lynx!" haha - I told him to be patient, let's see what happens





About ten minutes go by and no more cat. I switch the Foxpro to Woodpecker in distress, and my wife grabs her camera and I creep up the road to the call. I don't see anything, but the bush is thick as hell. I heard a squirrel chattering about 40 yards into the trees, I suspect the cat is somewhere in there. We slowly walk back to the Foxpro and I spot a tuft of hair coming from a cat's ear , hiding behind a pine tree just inside the trees. The lynx was watching us, then turn and look at the Foxpro/decoy, then back to us. My wife was slowly moving around trying to find a better lane for a pic. The cat would see her moving and hide it's head behind the tree, then the head would slooowly coming peeking out, then back in. Pretty funny to see. There was no better pics coming, I whispered to her that if I don't shoot this lynx, we're going to have a mighty disappointed kid. She's not a hunter. She's not afraid to get her hands dirty skinning or packing, but she doesn't like to see animals die. I told her to turn around and I took the rifle off my shoulder.

Now my son is in the truck watching all of this through the binoculars. He couldn't see the cat, but seen Mama taking pics. He said when I unslung the rifle "Ohhh they see it! Daddy's gonna WHAP IT" haha

I turned the scope down to 3x and took aim



After the shot, the door of the truck opens and my son yells "DIDYA GIT'M?!?" - The door flies open and he's charging down the road towards me full tilt looking like he was holding back tears of joy. I knelt down and he plowed into my arms and we had a big celebratory hug. He was on cloud 9

A nice 24 pound female, will get it tanned up for the memories. And enough meat off it for a couple good dinners