Heart still pounding, Marchibroda tracked down a ranger near Mathews Arm Campground to report what she had just witnessed. “It was great, probably one of the most exciting experiences of my life, and I feel very fortunate.” “I saw a mountain lion, and that’s just the way it is,” said Marchibroda, a dentist in her 60s living in Afton, Virginia.
Neither Marchibroda nor her canine hiking companion made a peep, and as soon as the cat caught sight of its awe-struck onlookers, it scampered back into the woods, swift and silent. For a solid four seconds, Marchibroda watched as a large, sleek cat standing about three feet tall with a long, curled tail crossed Skyline Drive near Gavel Springs Gap less than 100 feet in front of them. To read more of Steve Sorensen’s thoughts about hunting, please visit Marchibroda and her miniature schnauzer froze in their tracks when the mountain lion stepped out of the woods last May. When “The Everyday Hunter” isn’t hunting, he’s thinking about hunting, talking about hunting, dreaming about hunting, writing about hunting, or wishing he were hunting. But one thing is sure, if there be mountain lions in these hills, they’ll make spring gobbler hunting very exciting. No one has produced any evidence of a resident population, so whether or not mountain lions live in our neck of the woods remains an unsolved mystery. I don’t know the answer to those questions, but for now, I come to the same conclusion I’ve come to before. Why has no hunter shot one? Why aren’t they showing up on trail cameras? Why aren’t they being caught in traps intended for coyotes? It is the strongest evidence I’ve seen that mountain lions are in the East, but questions remain. Is the plaster cast of the track I’ve seen really from a mountain lion? I can’t say for sure. Caged lions can escape-we know that too, because a variety of animals have pulled a Houdini. A mountain lion can wander through-we know that because of the cat that died in Connecticut. However, that doesn’t mean there is a population of them. According to the pictures I’ve compared it to, it is consistent with the track of a mountain lion.ĭo I believe mountain lions roam the East? I don’t know, but I think it’s probable. The track is three and a quarter inches wide, much larger than the track of a bobcat. He says he has seen mountain lions, and he showed me a plaster casting of a track.
I have every reason to trust him after spending the weekend talking to him and his wife. It comes from southern Virginia, from a man who organized a sportsman’s dinner where I spoke recently. Recently, I finally received credible evidence of a mountain lion in the East. It may have come through New York or Pennsylvania. It left evidence along its way in the form of tracks, trail photographs and scat, indicating that it had walked some 1500 miles from its native South Dakota. A mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in Connecticut in 2011. So far no one has shown me a credible photo of a Pennsylvania or New York mountain lion. Plenty of mountain lions live in Wyoming. I did some research on it, and sure enough, the photo was from Lander. Other locations were claimed for the same photo. Lander and Busti are not far apart, so it’s easy to see how people could be confused if the picture was real. The second time it was shown to me, the location was claimed to be Lander, Pennsylvania. It clearly showed a mountain lion on the wooden deck of a residence, and the big cat was peering into the house through a sliding glass door. The other example was a photo reported to be from Busti, New York. Someone enjoyed playing some image trickery.
Further research showed evidence that the photo was “shopped,” or altered. If you’re trying to prove that mountain lions live in Pennsylvania, don’t show a picture with a mule deer in it. The deer in the photo was not a whitetail. The picture was clear, the lion was unmistakable, and the picture was said to be from Pennsylvania. One photo appeared to be from a trail camera, and clearly showed a mountain lion sneaking along behind a deer. People have sent me photos that supposedly show mountain lions in both states, but the photos have never shown what is claimed. Stories emerge from the Adirondacks, from northern Pennsylvania, and from other remote places, and so far they’ve been impossible to prove. Lots of people say mountain lions roam Pennsylvania and New York. Here is a plaster cast of a mountain lion track found in southern Virginia.
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