It was a bright morning and I had just finished getting yesterday's dust off the sights of my equipment. You see it's hot and dusty here in Cusco, or as the Inca's used to call it "Qosqo", and dust will mess things up if you don't keep things clean. I don't mind, cleaning keeps me focused and any pro will tell you there's a bond between you and your kit."
I'm here in Peru after a successfully completed mission for a UK based company. So like any freelance for hire, I'm itching for the next big score, tick, tick, tick, suddenly I remember! I spotted a lion in the hills near the main square yesterday. Damn I wish I knew the name of the place, but my guide has gone and I'm on my own. Hunting solo has more risks, you can get lost, there's no one to watch your back and with this expensive equipment hung across my shoulder I stand out! I guess the outfit doesn't help either, I'm dressed for the mountain trails, but then who'd have thought there'd be big game to hunt in town?
I check my kit one last time, fully loaded, spares in my pocket and taking only what I need I leave the room making sure not to knock the barrel on the door frame. You can always spot an amateur, they point the barrel out and it hits everything. I've learned to sling it over my shoulder barrel diagonal and down, handle upwards, that way it's more hidden until I need it, then I just swing it under the shoulder and up so the sight meets my eye. I've done it so many times now it's automatic and my trigger finger is always in the right place. Sometimes there's only a split second to get the perfect shot in and you can't be thinking about it! Any soldier will tell you the same! it's called reflex, you're just in the moment, which helps as that leaves no room for morals!
Outside the hotel the heat, noise and dust all hit me again! I drop my shades so the locals can't see the focus in my eyes. You'd think I'd head to the same area where I saw the lion yesterday? you'd be wrong! That's not how the hunt works. Lions are animals, you've got to act like an animal if you're going to hunt them. That means being sneaky, instinctive and switching off that humanity part! I turned right at this junction yesterday and a quick glance shows me it leads straight to the target zone, but my hunter's instinct tells me to go straight on. In the back of my mind I remember that yesterday's lion looked very old. Maybe that's why I don't want to go directly after it? Where's the sport? I'll leave that for a tourist with hired kit who just has to aim in the right direction and get lucky. I'm a pro, I deserve a challenge right?
Damn! Distracted by thinking I hadn't noticed I'd already wondered off the tourist path, better get my game on, looking for signs. These are big game, there's always signs! You see those Inca's knew about "Big Cats", they revered the puma, which symbolised "Strength" and was one of the three symbols they used to represent their physical and spiritual worlds. Problem is that puma signs and lion signs are similar if you don't know what you're looking for, but I do, and I want a really impressive trophy with big mane and all! Still looking for signs.
Then it catches my attention, maybe 
it was the orange colour, a bit like a lion's mane, but there's no mistaking this sign and in plain sight too! "Felix" - that means "cat" doesn't it? And a cat is what I'm after! I'm buzzing now. "Keep cool!". I adjust the shoulder strap, making sure it's not twisted, it makes it harder to swing if it's twisted.
Hiding my excitement I cautiously round the corner, I can hardly believe my luck! Another sign, and while the last one suggested big cat, this one basically 
spells out "LION"! I was prepared for failure when I left this morning but now I'm tasting success! Even here in Peru lion signs are as clear as day! But the hunt for the trophy is far from over. Still, it's puzzling why there'd be lions over here? Maybe some of that nonsense about lions natural habitat being destroyed by man for farming and stuff about them being persecuted to protect livestock forcing them to relocate is true? Who cares? If there's only one left, I want to shoot it first, and the signs are that, lions are here in Cusco!
I'm walking through this urban jungle with focus and a sense of certainty. I'm not a tourist, my actions do not help anyone other than myself, to satisfy my inner killer instinct! Still if anyone stops and asks me what I'm doing here, I'll make up some bull about supporting the local economy, you know, tourism bla bla! Throw a few Soles or US Dollars at whoever looks stupid or desperate enough to buy my crap! To me it might as well be eco-terrorism rather than eco-tourism, they're almost spelt the same! These are MY toys and this is MY playground now, it's animal reflex from here on, morals are for someone else!
Water! I'm not excited about it because I'm thirsty, but because I'm a hunter and all good hunters know that water attracts animals and animals attract lions. Water means that lions must be close.
I slip my shades on top of my head, I want to save time getting them out the way to get a clear sight sight when the opportunity comes.
It comes soon. It was so subtle most people would probably have missed it! but there, over there! On the door of the Inka Museum, blending in perfectly with it's surroundings. "You see it yet"?
I've already swung my kit under my arm and have the sight against my eye! "You spotted it yet"?
Slowing my breathing to take aim. I'm no longer aware of the people, animals, cars, noise, heat, dust. All I care about is getting this first shot just right. My trigger finger tenses, CLICK!
It's over so quick I don't bother checking to see if the locals noticed, I've shouldered the strap and am nonchalantly walking towards my first trophy!
Hell I'll even admit there's a sense of pride there too. I already know this is just my first true shot of the day. This one's too small to call it a day. I should have known by the nose colour, but a lion is a lion and so I'd have shot it anyway!
My first shot is a success! I don't care what people think, I'm standing here admiring my handy work! It's a male lion, check out that mane, long tail. No one needs to know it was resting when I shot it. I'll make up some macho story later about how it came flying towards me while I held my nerve and took the shot before the door came to a dead stop in front of me. Ha ha what's a little lie anyway? I just shot the king of the jungle! OK so it was really just Simba, but a lion is a lion! I'm off for a drink in town.
Lady luck must be on my side! There, across from the bar, hiding on that coat of arms on that church, CLICK! Two of them with one shot! That's a dream come true! shot's cost you know!
I've already forgotten about that drink I was after. Three lions down with only two shots! I'm on fire! Where else are they hiding in this city? You know the Incas considered Qusqo the umbilical cord of the earth, the birth place of their empire, and right now it's the birthplace of my biggest lion shooting fantasy ha ha! I'm only interested in one thing now, and that's shooting more lions!
Those pesky Lionaid people must have been lying when they said that lions were almost extinct with over 90% of them gone in the last 50 years! While other charities focus on freeing up captive lions I'm left here in the wild to do what I want, and right now that's, CLICK!
Yeah! Shot another one! I saw you hiding in that carved block of stone. You were impressive too, with your crown. You truly WERE the king of the jungle.
Well well well, will you look at that! A whole bunch of lionesses in captivity!
This means they can breed more captive cubs to be released into the wild. You don't want to release them too soon though otherwise they may go a bit ferral and you wouldn't know where to find them to shoot them. I'm a more seasoned hunter, but some of these newby wet behind the ears hunters like to shoot a captive bred one. I guess for them the sense of killing is the same and there's less risk because these are really just tame scared kittens. Plus it saves money and time having to track down a real lion. They're just animals anyway so it doesn't matter that they're kept in cages most of their lives. When you've got their head as a trophy, it looks the same ha ha! Who cares where a lion spends its life? So long as you get to shoot it!
What a satisfying day out, I've shot four lions in an hour and I didn't even think there'd be any in Qosqo, Peru! Hey come to think of it didn't there used to be a big mighty tribe that ruled this land once called Incas or something? People talk about how great they were and some people even make statues and paintings of them. I hear they were wiped out by a couple of hundred visitors who didn't belong here, but were after their gold. Yeah gold! That's the colour of a lions mane. Still, apparently a lot of them fell due to diseases. Ha ha, it's just as well that it's a load of made-up nonsense about this Feline AIDS disease then! Some people say that most of the wild lions have it now but that's not true or else they'd be in danger like the Incas. As long as the information we hunters use is right then there is no lion population problem. I don't know where those do good scientists and ecologists make their facts up, but the scientists we pay assure us we can carry on shooting lions because it makes us happy!
It would be really cool to see a real Incan person, shame they went extinct, but I doubt there was anything anyone could have done about that?!
12-Sept-2011
About this story: I don't pretend to know every single thing about the problem but I know what I feel is right and what's wrong. I'm a professional photographer and film maker and the story above is a work of fiction based loosely on my day "shooting lions with my Camera!" I'm out here working on a film project in Qosqo, Peru and I mentioned to LionAid that I'd spotted a carved lion in town. I thought it would be fun to take the idea of a photographer and make them into a hunter and I hope you've enjoyed it. So please show your support for LionAid by hitting a donate button and getting yourself and others involved. Spread the word because having spent time here, there's a real sense of loss about the Inca's. Let's do something about the lion situation before we feel the same about them too! If you want to follow my Peru Filming Adventure then click here. And I'll be putting up pictures of my Travel Photography here. Remember - if you're going to shoot an animal, use a camera!
