Cougar in the Blue Ridge Mountains

Cougar, Puma, or Mountain Lion, [local term-"Painter" for Panther] resident of the Great Smoky Mountains

by Ray Flowers

We often go camping on the spur of the moment. The old brown van is equipped with everything needed to be comfortable, both on a trail or in campground. It was the Full Moon of Libra in 1986, and it was a very bright evening, bright enough to drive with the headlights off. It had been a tough day and we were excited as we reached Water Rock Knob, just North of Cherokee, NC on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

From Water Rock Knob at 11:30 pm, we could see the entire mountain range, including Pisgah, and Balsam Cone . We had seen a myriad of animals that evening, including fox and skunk. We were headed to Pisgah Campgrounds for the evening, so we took our time, looking for wildlife that may offer itself to our view. Camera in hand, we slowly drove along the empty Parkway, expecting to see anything.

After passing Mount Balsam Cone, the highest point of the roadway on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we saw what we thought to be a Bobcat on the left side of the road. There was no tail visible, and we thought it odd that the head measured about 10 inches wide. No Bobcat that I had ever seen had had a head that big.

Fumbling with camera and excited to see the cat, we slowed the van to a snail pace and tried to get the whole picture in focus. The cat was sneaking low to the ground like he was stalking something, but he would not face us, actually turning his head away from the lights.

I took a mental picture of where his paws were in relationship to the roadway as my daughter began to take shots with the camera.

I have not measured the roadway at that exact location, but assume that it is at least 15-20 feet from the center line to the line on the right side of the road. The cat's right rear paw was placed on the left yellow line in the center and his left rear paw was passed the other yellow line of the center lines. His left front paw was past the greasy mark in the center of the lane with the right front paw almost on the greasy mark.

Line markers and paw prints on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Mt Balsam Cone

His head was turned away from us, until he got to the right yellow line [it might have been a white line] when he jumped towards a large rock to the right. As he jumped, he turned his head towards us and at the same time lifted his giant tail into the air. It was at least four feet long.

He was scruffy and thin looking with a brown saddle. It looked like he had tuffs on his side, maybe from fighting or molting. Then he was gone.

Later that evening we watched a giant owl fly through the canopy of trees through which we were driving. His wingspan was at lease the width of the brown van. The evening's adventure had been a good one, but as we got to Pisgah, there were many skunks that kept us alert and almost sleepless the rest off the evening.

Arriving back at the Sugarlands, we asked the rangers about the Cougar. They told us that there had been many significant deer kills that had been attributed to cats, but could not be specific about what kind of cat. There had also been a llama kill that may have been by a Cougar or large cat. He said that there was a reward for a picture of the wild Cougar, so we hurriedly got the film developed the next day, but dismay set in as we looked at black prints with cloudy marks on them. No Pictures!

I have returned to that spot again and again and have seen no other Cougar.

Thanks to The Predator Defense Institute for allowing us to use their great image of the Cougar, and for helping protect the Wildlife of our country.

If you have had an encounter with a large cat, we would love to post your story and hopefully your pictures.

NEW! Cougar at Alum Rock Park with Picture

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