Each night, around 10 o'clock, I step out onto the front porch. It's a habit that I picked up from my Dad many, many years ago. Being that we made our living working outside and from agriculture, he would step out onto the front porch to see what the weather was like before he went to bed and maybe get an idea of what it would be like in the morning. It's something that I still do to this day.
Last night, as I stood at the end of the porch and looked up at the stars, something happened that has NEVER happened before. Something snarled at me....and I don't mean the kind of snarl that comes from a small, cuddly, furry night creature that just happened to be around the porch and was startled. It was a very deep, very low, very powerful snarl. I don't mind telling you that it scared the holy crap out of me! I estimated that it was 40ft away....I didn't actually see it well in the dark, but I could see movement of something big. I remember instantly thinking that it sounded like a big cat...like a lion or tiger...would sound when they snarl. About that time my feet caught up to my brain and I made a fast retreat back into the house. It really did rattle me. Now, we don't have lions or tigers around here.......but cougars or mountain lions, have been being spotted on a fairly regular basis and one was killed about 3 miles from here last year. I'm not the skittish type....but I think the combination of it being dark, not actually seeing what was snarling, it being so close and having it come so completely unexpected while standing in what I would consider a "safe" zone on ones own front porch, is what scared me so much. I think if I'd actually seen it and could confirm what it was, I would feel better. Not seeing it and trying to make an educated guess on what it was, by the sound only, is what bothers me about now. I regularly have deer in my yard at night and I'm guessing that if it actually was a cougar.....which I still believe it was....it was moving behind and stalking deer. I went out and took a look around this morning, but could find no sign or track from it.....so the mystery sort of continues. I can guarantee you, that I will be pretty alert from now on, when I step outside on my porch in the dark of night!
Last night, as I stood at the end of the porch and looked up at the stars, something happened that has NEVER happened before. Something snarled at me....and I don't mean the kind of snarl that comes from a small, cuddly, furry night creature that just happened to be around the porch and was startled. It was a very deep, very low, very powerful snarl. I don't mind telling you that it scared the holy crap out of me! I estimated that it was 40ft away....I didn't actually see it well in the dark, but I could see movement of something big. I remember instantly thinking that it sounded like a big cat...like a lion or tiger...would sound when they snarl. About that time my feet caught up to my brain and I made a fast retreat back into the house. It really did rattle me. Now, we don't have lions or tigers around here.......but cougars or mountain lions, have been being spotted on a fairly regular basis and one was killed about 3 miles from here last year. I'm not the skittish type....but I think the combination of it being dark, not actually seeing what was snarling, it being so close and having it come so completely unexpected while standing in what I would consider a "safe" zone on ones own front porch, is what scared me so much. I think if I'd actually seen it and could confirm what it was, I would feel better. Not seeing it and trying to make an educated guess on what it was, by the sound only, is what bothers me about now. I regularly have deer in my yard at night and I'm guessing that if it actually was a cougar.....which I still believe it was....it was moving behind and stalking deer. I went out and took a look around this morning, but could find no sign or track from it.....so the mystery sort of continues. I can guarantee you, that I will be pretty alert from now on, when I step outside on my porch in the dark of night!