Well folks......... I'm a skeptic until I see something and I 100% firmly believe that those are cat tracks. Without a doubt they are cat tracks. No nail marks and the pads are that of a cat. Good job of puting down the shotgun shell. Now we know they are longer than 3". That rules out house cat and bobcat. That only leaves us with one other choice. You've proved it to me that these are cougar tracks, but you didn't prove to me where they came from. I'll take your word on the location though.