Wildcat in Wildcat

graveyardman67

graveyardman67

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I was doing a bit of exploring today and wound up on Charlotteburg rd extension along Charlotteburg Resevoir near Rt 23. Specifically the old rail bed just under Coperas ridge. Cruising along and I see what I thought was a dog. Close in size to mine 40 lbs (but she is Am Staff so heavier than normal). The animal is heading in same direction so I am able to get pretty close before it notices (probably moving at about 15 mph). When the animal turns to look at me I'm shocked, I see cat ears on a cat head with a cat face just 3 times bigger than a house cat. He turns and glides effortlessly up the side of the ridge. I chase grabbing my phone for pic but the cat simply vanishes in seconds. Awesome sight. Definitely Cat, I live right there and have foxes all the time. Seen the coyotes, even a wolf. The cat was new for me.
 
Awesomeness. If it looked like a house cat it was probably a Lynx.
 
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Cool sight....surprised it didn't notice you earlier than you noticed it. Felines are remarkable stalkers.
 
I saw one during a foggy dawn road ride. The thing that really stuck out was how smoothly it floated across the street in front of me. Pretty cool.
 
About 12-13 years ago on opening day for deer while in my stand I saw what I thought was a Mountain Lion about 200 yards away. Put my scope on 9 power but it was gone. 15 minutes later after pulling my hair on what I saw it came around my side walking within 50 yards in total clear view. I put my scope on it and its face filled my view. No mistaking it was a mountain lion. I whistled and it stopped walking and just stared at me for a minute or so then just walked away. Other hunters also saw it throughout that season. I don't normally tell people cause they look at you like your a liar but I know what I saw. Kind of scary cause they love to stalk . There also has been sightings of Bobcat out by old mine road near Walpack a few times last year.
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Willy
 
the newark employees that work at the charlottesburg dam swear they have seen them up there too. so far nothing on the security cameras. but someone would have to see one where the camera is for someone to go back in the tapes and look for it.
 
http://www.cougarnet.org/northeast.html

If they're in NY, ct, vt, etc then they're in jersey and PA. The eastern mountain lion is considered extinct but I think even the fish and game Dept's in the Adirondacks acknowledge they're still around, just in very small numbers. They've also confirmed that mountain lions found in ct had come from just east of the rockies. So they'll take the walk.
 
Fisher cats are pretty common north of here a bit too and they're known to come as far south as west Virginia I think. They're nasty fuckers too, take down full grown dogs and can hunt porcupine.
 
greeek32 said:
Fisher cats are pretty common north of here a bit too and they're known to come as far south as west Virginia I think. They're nasty fuckers too, take down full grown dogs and can hunt porcupine.
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Fisher cats aren't cats though. They are closer to weasels. Yes they are nasty!

Iv'e seen Mountain Lion twice in places where they aren't known to officially occur. Once while hiking in Acadia National Park and another just south of Lambertville. Kind of a rush seeing these creatures.
 
jShort said:
I saw one during a foggy dawn road ride. The thing that really stuck out was how smoothly it floated across the street in front of me. Pretty cool.
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Yah. Great way of describing it. When foxes, coyotes or dogs run, they have this trot like gait going on. Big cats are unmistakable as their movement is so fluid and smooth.
 
The gate on this was not like fox or dog; she glided up the hillside and gone in seconds, no smell, no sound, just gone.

I came up in it fast. Just came out of a ST and dumped onto road.
 
Are you sure it wasn't a bunny rabbit. They look really similar.

bunny2.jpg


mountain_lion85.jpg
 
There have been reports of mountain lion sightings in the princeton/montgomery area. If real, they are most likely in the sourlands. I was riding in sourland mountain preserve last summer close to dusk and there was no one around. Heard an animal noise unlike any I've ever heard before - kind of a growly shriek - probably not a ML but that was the first thing that popped into my head.

http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2013/08/possible_mountain_lion_spotted_in_princeton.html
 
rick81721 said:
There have been reports of mountain lion sightings in the princeton/montgomery area. If real, they are most likely in the sourlands. I was riding in sourland mountain preserve last summer close to dusk and there was no one around. Heard an animal noise unlike any I've ever heard before - kind of a growly shriek - probably not a ML but that was the first thing that popped into my head.

http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2013/08/possible_mountain_lion_spotted_in_princeton.html
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You'd be a really good "around the campfire" scary story teller. That started out like one of those stories..
 
sounds like you have never seen a bobcat before....lol........funny how so many people keep refering to mt lions in nj when they could never survive here nor ever been proven to be seen....lol.....but bobcats are quite pretty.....
 
gingertooth said:
sounds like you have never seen a bobcat before....lol........funny how so many people keep refering to mt lions in nj when they could never survive here nor ever been proven to be seen....lol.....but bobcats are quite pretty.....
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They used to live here until people were paid to kill them (like what happened to wolves). There's plenty of deer for mountain lions to eat. In fact, that's part of the deer problem. No predators, like cougars (mountain lions, etc) to keep them in check. But if you do a little reading on it, you'll see their range is progressing toward the east coast.
 
I have plenty of friends and co workers killing off shitloads of deer everyday practically living in the trees and not one has ever seen a mt lion. I think hunters have it all under control these days.
 
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