For a few years prior to Katrina, my dad and I had joined a club in MS near Wiggins. Specifically, Flint creek flowed into Red creek at our place. On the south side of Red Creek was a private land holding belonging to, as I understood it, one of the lawyers who made bank on a big lawsuit against the cigarette industry. Anyhow, he owned a menagerie of exotic animals to include a few African lions.
My dad and I brought my uncle for a weekend hunt. In all of the discussions had prior it was apparently never mentioned that one was likely to hear lions throughout the day.
We decided to put Julius, my uncle, in one of my climbers located along the creek bank. I walked him in, pre-dawn, and got him situated about 15’ up where the view was best. We decided I’d come back at 9:30 and get him. It was a cool, still morning. Those lions tuned up right as dawn broke which was normal. I could hear them loud and clear and I wax another 600 yards or more away. I went back to his stand at 9:30 as agreed and he was no where to be seen. At first. I figured he’d come down but the stand wasn’t visible. I got closer and he says “up here.” Julius had climbed another 20’ or so up that tree. He started to tell me something about hearing a lion and I played dumb. Said he heard it for sure and realized he wasn’t high up enough nor did he have enough gun. But they’d been silent since that initial dawn event. The fun and gaslighting continued at camp and a couple other members slyly joined the game. I think we about had him convinced that he was hearing things until we were on the deck eating lunch and one roared again. “I know you all heard that! That’s a lion! Right there, don’t tell me I’m crazy!”
“Julius, that’s just the neighbor’s cat.”
“Oh yeah!? Well who is your neighbor? Metro Goldwyn Mayer?!”