cat sighting

[big rifle man]

Thought everyone might be intested in this. My hunting buddy lives on the outskirts of New York City and has a nice hunting camp just North of Dover Foxcroft, Maine. Just prior to heading up for the Muzzleloader season he received a call from a friend in Dover Foxcroft who is one of about 20 permanent residents. (too damn cold for most people) It seems the local ambulance was travelling along the main highway (two lane road) past my buddys camp at about three o'clock in the afternoon when they had to stop and allow a mountain lion to cross the highway. They've had possible previous sightings in the surrounding area but nothing confirmed. Well, this kind of verifys the previous sightings. Also, one of his neighbors heard a commotion outside his front door at about 8:30PM and upon looking out had a pack of at least 15 coyotes in his front yard. The deer in this area are taking a real beating and this will give you an idea of what their up against.

 

[JD338]

We have similar issues here in MI.

JD338

 

[DrMike]

I'm a little unclear on your report. So, were the coyotes fighting a mountain lion?

 

[big rifle man]

No Doc, the coyotes were a separate sighting after dark. My buddy told his neighbor that a 12 guage with double 00 buck should be kept handy for the next coyote gathering. They're putting a hurting on the deer population which suffered through two previous bad winters.

 

[DrMike]

Got you. Predator problem in general, though cats are undoubtedly spreading.

 

[Guy Miner]

It's pretty cool to see a mountain lion in the wild. I've only seen a few over a lifetime of roaming the hills.

 

[DrMike]

Guy,

You are so right. Sightings are rare, though I have found spoor on numerous occasions and fresh kills on a couple of occasions. I've had a few sightings, but don't recall ever having a cougar hang around to see what my intentions were.

 

[FOTIS]

Plenty of mountain lion kitties in my elk camp.

 

[SJB358]

I hear of more and more sightings in Upstate NY every year. I can only imagine they are there and the DEC just keeps saying, they are just bobcats! Either way, most hunters/people will never see a cat unless there are hounds pushing him up a tree! Scotty

 

[Snowshoe Hunter]

Here in Michigan's U.P., we have too many coyotes, too many wolves, and starting to see more lion tracks. The deer don't have a chance.

 

[SJB358]

You aren't kidding! Sounds like predators are the in vogue thing to have today. Hopefully they don't start running out of deer to eat. I am pretty sure I know what is next! Scotty

 

[vodekz]

What about big cats in central Wisconsin, I saw 2 but in last 10 years. One at the time. The same county but about 10 miles distance from each other.

Vodek

 

[backcountryhunter]

Vodekz - 10 miles is a walk in the park for an adult lion, especially a "tom" - we had been seeing numerous deer kills in the area (22 miles from Eugene/Springfield) and a month ago one of the kids called in an adult female (1 shot in the "stickerhole") Now there are more deer kills - Heard she might have had 2 near full grown kits with her, maybe teaching them to kill

The last wolf packs in Oregon to be eradicated were in the Umpqua Valley .... How Long ??......

 

[Elkman]

I have been fortunate to have seen 4 so far, 3 were at comfortable distances and the 4th and last one was 18 feet away on a calf elk kill. One can really appreciate the power and size of a large cat at that close of a range. He watched me and I watched him for a few seconds and I believe that because I was uphill from him (I looked big) and because he was full, he bounded away down hill. I was armed with my go to rifle and had the safety off and "pointed" toward him. I can still remember the wind blowing the hair on his front paws!! A wonderful experience. !!!!!! :grin: :grin: :grin:

 

[Oldtrader3]

Thought everyone might be interested in this. My hunting buddy lives on the outskirts of New York City and has a nice hunting camp just North of Dover Foxcroft, Maine. Just prior to heading up for the Muzzleloader season he received a call from a friend in Dover Foxcroft who is one of about 20 permanent residents. (too damn cold for most people) It seems the local ambulance was travelling along the main highway (two lane road) past my buddy's camp at about three o'clock in the afternoon when they had to stop and allow a mountain lion to cross the highway. They've had possible previous sightings in the surrounding area but nothing confirmed. Well, this kind of verifys the previous sightings. Also, one of his neighbors heard a commotion outside his front door at about 8:30PM and upon looking out had a pack of at least 15 coyotes in his front yard. The deer in this area are taking a real beating and this will give you an idea of what their up against.

I went to high school at an academy that is about 15 miles from Dover-Foxcroft, Maine (in Charleston, ME). I used to attend the Catholic Church in Dover Foxcroft on Sunday morning for services every week during the school year. Dover Foxcroft has presently a population of about 3000 people, give or take a few and is one of the larger towns in that part of northern Maine. I am aware that most New Yorker's think that Maine is uninhabited wilderness in the winter (because it is not New York, after all) but that is not the case. Just thought that a few facts might be relevant to this discussion, despite Maine being located in the wilderness. We are not quite as quaint and backward as New Yorkers think that we are.

 

[big rifle man]

Old Trader, the area in which my buddy has his camp is a short distance North of DoverFoxcroft. If your familiar with Bowerbank Road it parallels a nice lake which is considered a northern borough of Dover. The area is basically a separate entity which houses approximately 30 permanent residents over the winter months. I also have relatives in Maine (Anson and Oakland) and have met a large number of Maine residents over the years, ( 50 years to be exact) and their great people. My buddy may live just outside the outskirts of New York, but he spends half his waking moments at his place in Maine.

 

[SJB358]

Hey, I am living right near to the Kittery Trading Post, right on the other side of the border in Portsmouth NH right now. Great folks around here and Maine. Love this area. Scotty

 

[big rifle man]

Scotty, I know the Kittery trading post extremely well, having spent large sums of money there over the years. It was a lot smaller when I first started going to Maine (1960) Their firearms display in fantastic and there's no shortage of reloading supplies. To be honest i think only Cabelas could match them in hunting gear :grin: Where we hunt is roughly 2 1/2 hours further North somewhat in central maine. Prior to the shopping mall that has sprouted up around the trading post there was one restaurant with a family of mounted black bear that greeted you as you stepped inside. Great area and great people.