|
As a kid my experience with bobcats were fleeting glimpses of them along the highway at night mostly. I seem to see a bobcat just about every year deer hunting these days. They are really smart! Really cool to see in the wild.
Bobcat stories: A couple of years back, I was in a tree stand deer hunting about 18 feet off the ground. It was a simple but permanent stand in a very large oak tree along a wide wooded fence row with a abandoned railroad bed behind. I got there before daylight and layed my stuff on the ground and tied a rope to it to lift up to the stand. Anway, later on in the morning a see a large bobcat approaching my stand. It didn't see or smell me until it got immediately below me where I layed my junk to hoist up to the stand. It freezes, then immediately looks directly up into my eyes. Frozen we stare at each other until it decides to move off slowly. Beautiful animal.
I saw them frequently in the woods of SE Kentucky in the mountains. Very remote areas and I spent a lot of time in the woods; sometimes every day for weeks on end in all seasons. Anyway, I was driving one of the dirt roads up to where I was going to park and walk and I see a small cat.... I think, what's a house cat doing way up here? I stop, get out.... there was a bobcat kitten hunkered down along the edge of the woods. I thought... wonder if they would make a cool pet? So I get a feed bag and think I'll toss it over the kitten, catch it, and decide later about whether or not to keep it. That little kitty let out the most frightening growl/snarl and took off very fast. Boy are they wild critters even so small. This one was probably about 10" long. I'm glad I didn't catch it. I believe there is a law forbidding keeping wild animals as pets.
I take binoculars with me and if I see an interesting animal. I stop and watch them until they disappear from sight. Bobcats are right up there in my interest area.
|