GHOST IN THE DARKNESS

[Mike Leonard]

Not sure how man y of you saw the movie a few years back that was a true tale of building the railroads across portions of Africa. This depicted the maneating lions of Tsavo, and how they would carry their victums off and stash them in a big cave full of human bones.

Well if you have also read John Kiblers book( Lion Tales) you will recall Mr. Kibler talking about finding a cavern in Sowats Canyon on the north rim country Kaibab Plateau. He said finding it by chance trailing an old tom it was full of deer carcasses many of which were very large antelred trophy type deer. This seemed a little wild to think that a lion would select large bucks and then go to the effort of taking them to a place where they could be dropped into a cavern where he could store their bones like a graveyard treasure.

Well yesterday I had the pleasure of spending some time with a man who hunted and trapped west Texas for many years and grew up under the direction of some very famous lion hunters. He is known to be absolutley honest in his records and dealing. He had never read or even heard of John Kibler, but he told me of a partial of mountains that he had hunted and trapped for some years. He had observed many trophy type deer that would be seen and observed for several years and then just show up missing like they were snatched away by aliens. He said there was no hunting to speak of right in there and very little poaching because these private lands were patrolled on a regular basis. They couldn't figure where those big bucks would just get up to a certain size and then disappear and they never even found the antlers or bones.

Well he said one day while trailing a mountain lion with another man they got in some rugged bluffs and ledges. They felt they had the lion jumped but most of the dogs were bluffed up on top but they heard one dog get out and go below and he decided to go to him. He said it took a lot of effort to get down there and he had to use his saddle rope but finally made it. He said as he worked along below that bluff he found the dog barking into a large crack in the rocks that ran all the way up to the top ledge. He pushed his way in and found himself in a room like cavern that was littered with bones. He said he was shocked to see the skulls and antlers of no less that five very large bucks. He said several were 30" wide or more. He said one deer in particular he rememberd due to some odd non-typical type formations. He said there were several dark caverns back behind the main one and he did not have a light and with only one dog he was hesitant to go in and find the lion. He got out and got his other friend to come around and lead the dogs and they got to the cavern and built a brush fire and went in and killed a lion that was very old and weighed about 120 pounds. Maybe this was his hangout for many years. A very strange tale and although bizarre I don't doubt his story he was still amazed himself and this had been some year.

I guess it goes to show you never really can figure out what they might do.

[chilcotin hillbilly]

Thats a great story Mike, it would be interesting to go back and document this with photos.

[cat and bear]

Great story mike, I admire the conversations with the old timers and stories, a wealth of knowledge.

[treedagain69]

cool story, thanks for sharing

[BEAR HUNTER]

Great story. I love getting these old timers to talk. I just shut up and listen. Had one tell me one time about a cowboy in Utah that said he and a friend came across a lion on a calf kill. His buddy dabbed a rope on it. That lion hit the end, spun around in mid air and ate his horse and friend up. They last saw the lion heading out with the rope still on em and his friend in the dust. Don't know how true the story is but was sure fun listening to.

[Brent Sinclair]

Mike
That is interesting...I never heard of Kibler either till I saw an add in SCI for his book that he was sellin ..bought a copy.... read some of it then put it down after reading that part and his opinion on guys huntin lion in the snow...never picked it up again....
Do you honestly think a mountain lion would do that?
Like your previous quote .....we realize we don't know as much as we think we do about lions.
Those two lions from Tsavo are mounted in a museum in Chicago...

[nmplott]

theres a lot we do not know about them.

[pegleg]

possessiveness is an odd trait that shows up time to time in animals and could very well explain it. ever seen a dog that had a unlikely item it would carry around and hide or defend aggresively but act completly normal any other time? we had a dairy calf we picked up and for lack of a better place put it in a corral with my dads old mare. now that mare wasn't the friendliest horse. she developed a fixation on that calf that last forever. she would run the other horse off the feeder so that heifer could eat and herded her around with her all the time. later on when she was bred we thought there might be problems with the calf but she didn't even act like she noticed it. dad could go out and saddle up and that mare would go to work like any other day. but as soon as she came back in she was whineying for that cow and would go hunt her up. I personally hold back disbelief. i figure i haven't seen it all and probably never will. doesen't mean you have to have complete faith in everything you hear but as soon as you swear it ain't so you'll eat crow.. I like ghost in the darkness it's a good movie but wish more of the defenses and hunt footage would have been added.

[Big N' Blue]

The last time i was in Chicago, i went to the museum to see the lions. They were maneless males. A good movie, but a much better book.

[Mike Leonard]

True on the maneless lions. Most lions in Africa bush country don't have much or any mane. The brush pulls it out, but out on the open Savanahs and plains full maned lions can still be found.

Many of the huge full maned lions that are taken today have been game ranched. Yes they are srtill a lion and they are still dangerous but they have been kept in a controlled area for trophy quality.


I have seen a pregnant female lion that was really close to having kittens kill a number of deer and drag them all into an oak thicket. I presume this allows her to feed for some time wheile the kittens are very small. I generally find a spring or good water source close to these kitten areas as well. they normally can go a long time without much water but when they are giving milk they seem to need a good deal more.

[Big Mike]

Lions like to revisit their old kills kind long after their cleaned up so a few might like to keep a trophy case LOL.

I never seen it, but i have learned from all the studies and chasing long tails is individual cats show some very individual traits, like methods of killing or cache. So its not to far of a reach to have one who likes to carry his kills back to their safe zones. Makes you wonder how far they packed them back?

[anderson1394]

mike in 2000 i was deer hunting with dad and grandpa and we hiked into a bull of trees and found a spring that had bones and skulls all over most were coverd with branches and grass there was one that was fresh i never really thought more about it till i read ur post i wish i got some pics but i didnt i might have to check that area on my next hunt thanks for the cool post mike

[coastrangecathunting]

When my dad was trapping for the gov. he got a call on a cougar siting close to someones house . Of coures the call was a couple days after the siting. We went up there anyways . Turned out a couple older dogs and took a walk up on the hill. The dogs didnt get interested in anything untill we came to this brush patch that was maybe 60 ft across at the widest spot. They wiggeled there tails a little and went in that patch of brush. I went in after they never came out for a couple min. Crawlling in on my belly for the first 10 feet then it opened up to a nice pile of bones. i dont know how many deer had been eaten in there but it was alot. Never did get the cat started but that was pretty wierd and kinda creepy.

jc

[Ike]

Mike
That is interesting...I never heard of Kibler either till I saw an add in SCI for his book that he was sellin ..bought a copy.... read some of it then put it down after reading that part and his opinion on guys huntin lion in the snow...never picked it up again....
Do you honestly think a mountain lion would do that?

I find it interesting that some of the southern boys have given me so much shit over rigging lions yet they would believe a story like that? A trophy room in a cave made by an old tom lion--wow! Sorry boys but ol' Ike ain't buying any of that.

ike

[radar]

Any one thats talks about himself in the 3rd person is kinda a looney JMO...