"Rip & The Bear" !
By : "Dad" Don Jones
I rarely write about my family. Having said that, I`m going to write about my youngest son affectionately called "Rip" ! Rip is the last of the good guys, a real treasure. I say that with all sincerity and much love. His word is is his bond. He says what he does, and does what he says. In today`s world that is almost unheard of. I do not say these things in idle time phrase`s. I do not say them, because he is my son. I say it because it is true. Having said these praise`s, I now move on to the real reason for today's blog. Rip is a great wild game hunter. at one time, when I was younger, he and I would travel to South Dakota to pheasant hunt, we had a great time ! Every year in early autumn, Rip travels to Colorado to hunt large game. Elk, mule dear and bear ! He has been very successful in his hunts thus far. One year he killed a huge, almost royal elk. He has traveled to a island in the pacific to hunt rare large game and killed a large mule dear. Then one year he got the "Bear Fever" he wanted to bag a bear. he bought his bear tag for a couple of years, but alas no bear ! So, one summer he went to Colorado and stayed a month and tracked bear, to learn their habitats and habits. He took still cameras and placed them in strategic areas where he would find bear signs. He really got some great pictures. He was learning the way of the bear and he did. Then this past season in Colorado, he went hunting again, without going into great detail, which he would be glad to do for you, I will just tell you he killed a monster bear ! This bear weighed in at 551 lbs. 7 ft. 1 inch. from nose to tail ! A huge Brown Bear specimen. He is having this bear mounted in a full life-size mount.To say that my son was elated would be an understatement. He called me from atop of one of those mountains to tell me. He thought this bear would go in the Boone/Crockett book of world records. It did not. His friend Mark, lives in Henry County, today an official from the (Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency) was coming to Paris Tennessee to a place called Hulmes Sporting goods, for the specific purpose of logging in official weights and measures of wild game, Mark picked up the skull and jaw bone of this bear and took it to Hulmes to be measured officially. I`m sad to report that this bear was 3/16 of an inch short of the record book. Rip, was disappointed, but not as badly as you might think, He had missed going into the record book by 3/16 of an inch. There will be other seasons and other game. He loves the hunt and the outdoors so much. He is a hunter and conservationist. As I said earlier, he is a rare and extraordinary man !
The pictures at top are (1.)Rip and the Bear (2.)Pete, Russell,"The Bear" Rip and Mark, his friend`s (3.) Cary, The Bear & Rip, Cary is referred too, as his second Dad !
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