Bizarre Sighting in Woods - Dan and Ian Freaked Out!

[SaginawIan]

Yes sir - saw it. No april fools joke. The timing is coincidence. I'm thinking if it was a large cat the tail could have been tucked between it's legs. The way it was creeping and sleek makes me think cat now. Creepy - I didn't think to look in the trees to see if it went up a tree! I'm glad you did, Dan. Do those bobcats dig holes in the ground? It had to have jumped in a hole or something.

 

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[Michiganne]

Great story guys....I believe you saw something out there. The more time you spent outdooors the more strange things you see. Based on your description I'd lean towards a Bobcat.

I haven't checked what the DNR's current statement is about cougars in MI, but a few years ago we hiked at the Empire Bluffs Trail near Sleeping Bear Dunes. Near the trail head the DNR had posted signs about cougars being spotted in the area and what to do if you see one. So we have them in MI, it is just a question of whether or not they are a breeding population.

Did you find anything good at your site?

Keep digging!

 

[Planet1mars]

LOL.. Dan where we hunt I'm surprised we never ran into a bear... I'm glad i wasn't with you, if you would of had to run i be in deep sh!!t. its not who runs , its who runs faster. And the cat can use expensive titanium rod for a tooth pick after it has my back strap for lunch... I'm going to start bringing a camera with us when i go, I guess you never know what could happen in the middle of no where.

 

[godisnum1]

An Alpine Lynx?

http://timberlinecats8.homestead.com/AlpineLynx.html

Bran <><

 

[Montana Jim]

mange ridden bear

 

[Wallhangers]

Most likely a cougar. I 'm a full-taxidermist and have 3 of them in the shop right now. They measure 32" to the top of the hip on an average adult. If the hair appeared short then it rules out the bear as their hair is long from being in hybernation. Was it sunny when you seen the cat? The sun can reflect off of their tan-colored hide to give it that glossy white look. Other than that, can't think of any other mammals fitting that description and size. You didn't happen to look "up" in the trees to see if it climbed up one did you? There are more cougars in Michigan than the DNR would want you to know. They admitted that there were 7 adults in the northern lower Michigan a couple years ago. There have been dozens of confirmed sightings in the lower 1/3 of the state as well. I wouldn't worry about it when you are detecting. There have been very few attacks ever in this country from cougars. They prefer to not being around humans if they can help it.

 

[Jim 2.0]

The site looks suspiciously like the spring hunt site alluded to in that thread. I don't own any weapons other than my digger! Perhaps a freshly sharpened edge is in order... nah, I'll just hook up with someone packin' heat...ya, thats the ticket! (hey just having some fun) interesting story!

Jim

 

[Montana Jim]

Most likely a cougar. I 'm a full-taxidermist and have 3 of them in the shop right now. They measure 32" to the top of the hip on an average adult. If the hair appeared short then it rules out the bear as their hair is long from being in hybernation. Was it sunny when you seen the cat? The sun can reflect off of their tan-colored hide to give it that glossy white look. Other than that, can't think of any other mammals fitting that description and size. You didn't happen to look "up" in the trees to see if it climbed up one did you? There are more cougars in Michigan than the DNR would want you to know. They admitted that there were 7 adults in the northern lower Michigan a couple years ago. There have been dozens of confirmed sightings in the lower 1/3 of the state as well. I wouldn't worry about it when you are detecting. There have been very few attacks ever in this country from cougars. They prefer to not being around humans if they can help it.

Good reply... are the cats THAT brazen to actually get that close to folks? Normally they are very ellusive.. .no? Sounds like you are the guy to ask...

 

[SaginawIan]

It could have been the sun shining off the fur making it appear white, that's a good point. If that was a cougar that's just amazing. I've never gone into the woods watching my back - the most scared I ever got is when I almost stepped on a turkey nest and had an angry momma chasing me! Well, now the idea of big cats comes into the realm of possibility - dang that's wild. I didn't even think to look for tracks but Dan and I talked this afternoon and we both remember swinging our coils over several piles of weird looking animal poo if you know what I mean. I think Dan let the DNR know so maybe they will go check it out.


Ian

 

[mcmich]

There have been multiple cougar sightings in Michigan though the DNR has not officially acknowledged there is a significant population. I have been out mountain biking in the thumb area and came across fresh tracks that did not look "right". Big, flat pawprints that seemed out of place (and not dog like), ie, no human prints around that would suggest someone walking their dog. You never know what you might come across. Another time I had a real mangy looking red fox walk right up to me in the middle of the day when I stopped for a break while mountain biking. Thought it had rabies. Got my bike between it and me. It just looked at me for about 15 seconds and walked away (walked sideways I might add). This thing was rough looking. Missing half its hair, and had all these bumps all over it...looked like a big hairless, chihauhua with leprosy, That was kodak moment!

 

[Bazooka]

No way is it a bobcat. Way too large, and you just don't drive through a woods and sneak up on one. From the descriptions my guess would be an albino deer or a piebald deer. For those who don't know a piebald is a mixed color deer, mostly white, and they are rare. We shot one off our hunting land this year, first one ever seen there in 30 years. These deer are usually small because they are a genetic defect. The one shot on our land would have stood 3 feet tall at the back, and a deer often times has its tail tucked.

 

[SaginawIan]

That's another good point - we were crashing through the woods and we did get within about 25 feet of it I imagine a wild cat would have seen or smelled us before we got anywhere in it's sight. Yet this seemed to come toward us and was getting closer. I would totally think a strange colored deer, but this thing went into a hole or den or some kind of nest right there b/c it would have been making all kinds of noise running off - and we would have seen it. Of course it's possible that it was just super amazing fast and ran off silently. Ian

 

[Planet1mars]

It was big foots kid looking for a craper.. LOL.. Never know what you will see in the woods

 

[xdanthemanx]

hers a pic ther were no claw marks, sorry bout the crap picture im going to take a real camera out there tomoorow and get some clear pictures this track is huge and you can clearly telll that its wider than it is long fornt to back, i could see the shape of the rear pad had mutiple depressions but the picture didnt come out with enough clarity will post better pictures tomorrow evening hopefully
i was contacted by the dnr today, talked with the guy for few minutes, he asked me to take some pictures if i could
dan

 

[SaginawIan]

Doh!!! Dan - that track is pretty dang scary looking - was that on the side of the hole? Did you find anything today? I was stuck home doing home things . . .

Ian

 

[Montana Jim]

Place something in the pic for size reference if you're going back to take more pics.

And you are sure THIS track is from your friend?

 

[Deerhunter24]

I'm not trying to doubt that you saw something...especially perhaps something strange or foreign in nature.

But I do have some questions about the story.

First of all, let me say that although I'm only 28 years old, I'd consider myself pretty familiar with Lapeer County and the surrounding area. This is due to the fact that I have lived in Lapeer County my whole life. Lapeer County is only a little over 20 Miles Wide (East to West). Its about 20-25 miles Long at best from North to South.

I've driven down every road in the county through my life. I do not know anywhere in the county where you could possible travel down..."15 miles of one-lane roads." You're basically saying that there is a two-track that goes through half of the county. How is this possible.

Again, not trying to doubt that you saw something "strange," I was just trying to figure out where you were?

Are you sure you were in Lapeer County? Even the state game areas are only a few miles wide.



If you were anywhere near Lum, Michigan...there are some strange breeds of deer in a few areas out there. About 15-20 years ago, there was a guy who supposedly released some fallow deer (or some kind of deer that was smaller and lighter colored than whitetails) out there that cross-bred with whitetails...I've heard this from numerous people who live in the area. They equate to a much smaller deer and are more lighter in color. Just a thought.

Also, could have possibly been a coyote with mange. They look very weird. I've shot a few with mange and you could barely see their tail because it had no hair on it. Also, it is possible that perhaps some outside factor (a small hill the creature was on, perhaps a low spot that you were in, or maybe even you were croutched down when you initially saw it) caused you to overestimate the height of the animal. Coyote tracks looks similiar to what you found. They do have clawmarks on the front two pads, but these may be harder to see in mud. Who knows? But I'd like to steer clear of that area.


Deerhunter24 (Chuck)

 

[Deerhunter24]

There is a small population of piebald deer in the area as well. There was a picture taken near I-69/Lake Pleasant Rd. a few years ago, which is just south of Attica. The picture was in the local paper and had like 3 or 4 albino/piebalds deer in the same picture. They were all standing together near the edge of the road.

Deerhunter24

 

[SaginawIan]

Chuck - When I described the 15 miles of roads I was describing the route we took to get there, not that we started in Lapeer - rather (likely) ended up over the county line by the time we found the site. I also didn't mean to infer that we were traveling down a "two track" - more like winding narrow rutted dirt roads. (poor choice of words on my part, not a lie) All I know is we were FAR out and walked even farther out. No question we saw something strange - no reason to make that up and I am open to any possibility of what it was, that's why I posted this. Wish I had a full frontal description to give out, but it happened fast and I only saw the tail end. I have a hard time believing it was a large cat - but it did look and seem like one with how stealthy it was. It could have been a deer, coyote, cat, or bigfoot for all I know. The more I think about it - for us to get THAT close to it, the animal might have been sick or something. Normally, don't these wild animals sense one coming from far away? I think when I say strange and bizarre to describe it - I think Dan would agree- it was alot to do with the fact that it litterally vanished in a split second. It was a big animal that jumped into a hole or something. That's what freaked me out most.

 

[Deerhunter24]

Animals with mange such as fox or coyotes tend to act strange. Obviously it sounds like whatever you saw was much bigger than a fox. However, I've seen coyotes with mange wander around in broad daylight at High Noon. Very possible that the animal could have been sick. Either way...its a strange story. If that had been me I'd have been freaked out as well. Makes you wanna carry the Colt .45 into the woods with ya. I've seen some pretty crazy things in the woods as well. I hunt 100 days a year so I'm in the woods a lot. Some of those things you see...just can't seem to be explained, no matter how much you rack your brain. Either way...be careful if you return to the spot. Good luck hunting. Chuck.