Howdy folks. First off I'll tell you that I didn't SEE anything. But here's what happened last night: I made a fire at sundown near the back of my yard, which butts up against the Crab Orchard National Wildlife boundry...basically, it's the woods.

I've seen weird streaks in Giant City Park at night, which is only about a 3 minute drive from my place. Was either a cougar or a big greyish/white dog running into the woods...I won't say either way.

But what happened was I started to hear Grey Herons sqwalking in the trees around my pond and the neighbor's pond over the ridgeline. Their upset calls ranged from up the ridge about 50 yards out to my left, to about 25 yards in front of me, and then the neighbor's pond at about 100 yards over the ridge.

At first I thought they were just talking to eachother...maybe all gathering for a night roost before migration, but then I started to get this really weird feeling in my gut, so I called my coonhound Joe to me and told him to sit at my side. I had my headlamp on and kept watching the edge of the woods, which was only about 15 feet in front of me. I put another log on the fire to get it bigger, as I've heard coyotes and such are shy of fire.

Then I started to hear rustling in the woods and the herons kept sqwalking, at which point I interpret them as distress calls. I kept watch of Joe for any sign of his doggie protective instincts kicking in. Sure enough he went from his head on his paws to his nose straight in the air in a constant sniff.

He did this for about 10 minutes, then took off like a bullet to my right: my blindspot beside my cabin. The only spot I wasn't searching with my headlamp. I heard something big crash through the woods, straight back up the ridge line toward Crab Orchard. Joe smelled the ground there like mad and when he came back all the hair on his back was standing up.

Something was out there, I am sure of this. But what was it? Will a bobcat do that? Will a lone coyote do that? Or will a cougar do that? Remember I had a decent sized fire going, I was talking on the phone, so I wasn't silent. And when I first heard the sounds, I was alone. Joe was not there, so whatever this was was not stalking the dog, it was stalking a human!

Help! I'm gonna try to borrow a trailcam and set it up on the back deck to see if it comes back. I just don't wanna be the mauled woman who proves the non-believers wrong! There are also little kids out here, which makes me nervous if it is a big cat.

I am a woman of the woods...I'm not scared of dang-near anything. This genuiningly freaked me out. What should I do? Should I be concerned?

That's an interesting story. The only animal I have had any experiance coming toward a fire is a coon.

That is what I would think it was. I have seen them do some pretty crazy things.

Maybe on the bobcat theory but again can't imagine it coming to a fire to stalk a full grown human.

Heck even a good sized farm cat will get that reaction out of wildlife and dogs.

Interesting.....

Your trail cam Idea is the best to I can think of to slueth out the culprit!

Hey AK -
Could you check the fire danger next time? I'm thinking it was at the high level yesterday :) Hope yours was in a pit or a ring...
Anyhow - Dogs will exhibit this with just about any creature they feel is intruding in their territory.. large or small; the woods magnifies sounds after dark, the herons will set out the alarm calls if a late flying hawk or owl is about, or something such as a deer or bob cat gets into their roosting area to drink.
As for coming into to the edge of where the fire was visable, coons will do that, yotes will do that.. bobcats not so much and I seriously doubt that a cougar would , especially since there's plenty of food around for a cougar. Coons and yotes have started to associate fires with humans which means easy picking from trash, food stuffs etc.
I can tell it unnerved you, but I really don't think anything was stalking you.
I still say it's going to be a long time before we see a human mauled by a cougar in southern IL; yes it happens in western areas but that's where development has eaten away the cougars territory and changed their food supply.
Cougars and Bobcats around here tend to be pretty secretive and avoid people for the most part. Yotes are more agressive though.
Put up a trail cam - see what you get :)

A man! Sorry HUMAN!

I'm with GS. While I have seen a mountain lion in Southern Illinois...and have seen pics of others here, I have not experienced any aggression toward humans. I believe there is much easier prey. :)

Yes, I kept the fire under control and watched it. I've got a stone ring in the back and made sure there were no leaves within 20 feet of the pit...it's all dirt.

Whatever the creature was, I don't want to deal with it again! Folks seem to think it was a coon. Mighty big one judging by the crash through the woods--stealthy, too!

I'll try to rest assured that I don't have anything to worry about.

A large cat most likely wouldn't have gone crashing through the woods either. They tend to be much quieter, even when being pursued. A deer will make a lot of now going through the woods. They're not likely to be investigating a campfire though, especially with someone around.

I know most people wouldn't even consider this but from the way the critters reacted to it might have been a real Bigfoot. :) I have talked with at least 10 local people scattered around Southern Illinois who claim to have seen one. A small animal wouldn't crash through the woods like that.

I know most people wouldn't even consider this but from the way the critters reacted to it might have been a real Bigfoot. :) I have talked with at least 10 local people scattered around Southern Illinois who claim to have seen one. A small animal wouldn't crash through the woods like that.

Haha that is what i was going to say, put some jerkey in front of the trail camera:D Hard to say what it was, i know the mind can play some pretty weird tricks on you at night, and every sound is definately magnified at night in the timber.

Makanda is only about a dozen miles away from the kaolin pits where a bear was seen a couple of years ago.

you would be suprised how dang noisy a coon is when hauling azz through the woods especially at night when it's quiet and it's been startled. I have seen young deer IE first yr faws come investigate camp fires too because they have never seen one before and they are curious just like all young critters, but once they have associated them with humans they don't tend to be drawn to them as adults.

It was something strange that had a unusual scent. The other animals would not react that way for a deer,coon,or even a large cat. It could have been a bear perhaps or something like that. Wild pigs will crash through brush and sound like a Rhino charging. I don't think it was a cat because the birds and other critters more than likely wouldn't even know a cat was around...

I hope you can get a camera set up just to try and find out for sure, no matter what it is/was. At least this would help ease your mind about it.

Most definately a sasquatch. Probably one of the first of the year on their west to east migration. This is an early report as the largest concentration of migrators peaks around the first of Dec.

:d:d:d:d:d:d:d:d:d

My guess would be a raccoon. Did you think to go back when the sun came up and check the vicinity for tracks?

I've been hearing more stories. I'll see if I can get the person to come here and post. All I can say is hunters, approach your deer kills carefully if you've had to leave it out there dead for a bit.

Makanda is only about a dozen miles away from the kaolin pits where a bear was seen a couple of years ago.

Um...scary!!! I think I saw photos of that on the net. It just creeps me out. I even had a really weird dream about it last night and woke up at 4:50 a.m. and loaded the shotgun. Really, it was just a dream, but that's how freaked out I got...and I never get freaked out.

My guess would be a raccoon. Did you think to go back when the sun came up and check the vicinity for tracks?

Yeah I looked for tracks but the dirt was clean. I also looked all around the fire pit since I had raked it, they would have shown easily and I thought maybe it would have come back to check it out once I went inside: nothin'

I swear the thing was moving through the woods back and forth because the herons were making noise all around me over a 150 yard span of ridgeline, like they were warning eachother. All of this just makes me look crazy, like I was hearing things/imagining something/letting my mind run away with itself, but I know it was something.

Why would an animal of any kind walk so slowly back and forth, then up a ridge (to get a better view?) and then sneak in BEHIND me in my blind spot without so much as a sound? If if were just some dumb coon or curious deer wouldn't it have just poked its head out and then scampered back home?

Lord only knows. I would LOVE for it to have been a coon, but I'm not convinced. I would rather it be a cougar or a bear than Sasqwatch!! Ahhhh!

Coons travel together. I have seen as much as 8 in one local. Could have been multiple......

If it was a cougar stalking anything in your vicinity, I think it would have been your dog it was after. If it was a cougar, I kinda doubt your dog would have come back after running off. I know a guy who saw one crossing a road with a dead pit bull in its mouth.

Anyway, supposedly the sheriff of Johnson Co. saw a cougar right by Old Metropolis Road in broad daylight a couple months ago, so if anybody wants to call him up and check it out, go for it. I heard he drove by it, turned around and it was still standing there.

I also know someone (she gave me permission to pass this along) whose nephew who, along with his boss, was chased off his deer kill by a cougar. His kill was too heavy to drag so he got his boss to help. When they came up on the deer, it was being eaten. The cougar followed and threatened them all the way to their truck. This happened near Simpson. I totally trust this gal who told me this.

Same lady also told me she sees them from time to time in different areas of Massac Co., including cubs.

I'm also hearing that DNR was witnessed releasing cubs out of a van over in Pope about 10 years ago, so if it's a program using public monies, then it seems to me that any skeptic can try and submit a FOI request to get to the bottom of all this, if they want. If this is true, then it chaps my hiney if they're not at least educating the public - all you need is for one child to get injured or worse and they'd have a lot to answer for.

I haven't heard anything lately, but while hiking a few nights ago (I misjudged the sunset and ended up in the dark, but that ain't so bad on a trail you've taken at least 30 times) Joe went a little crazy next to the woods...sniffing wildly, darting in and out of the edge, concerned-looking, nervous. He chases deer, coons and squirrels. Needless to say, I watched my back the entire time, started singing loudly and made sure Joe did not fall behind.

Also: Pretty soon I won't be hiking with just a dog, nor sitting in my backyard with just a dog and a fire. I'll have a new .357 with me. Now I feel better.:)

I haven't heard anything lately, but while hiking a few nights ago (I misjudged the sunset and ended up in the dark, but that ain't so bad on a trail you've taken at least 30 times) Joe went a little crazy next to the woods...sniffing wildly, darting in and out of the edge, concerned-looking, nervous. He chases deer, coons and squirrels. Needless to say, I watched my back the entire time, started singing loudly and made sure Joe did not fall behind.

Also: Pretty soon I won't be hiking with just a dog, nor sitting in my backyard with just a dog and a fire. I'll have a new .357 with me. Now I feel better.:)

We have been getting confirmed reports by the DNR and even local sheriffs dept. about Cougars in Indiana especially around the Hoosier Natl. Forest area makes you wonder what you might run into besides meth labs out in the woods...lol check out these links if you are interested
http://gcdailyworld.com/story/1633400.html
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/25142280/detail.html

It's my "guess" that cougars are pretty much just roaming southern Illinois. Friends of mine have observed them in Union County and southern Williamson County. One was seen this morning crossing Grassy Road. I saw one a couple of years ago crossing Rt 37 just north of Lake of Egypt.

You know...I'll be honest and sound like a wimp here but I already am not a huge fan of walking in the dark woods to get to, or out of a tree stand whilst deer hunting......you guys are gonna make it that much harder!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!