I was hunting up in George Washington National Forest this past Saturday (season opener here in VA). At about 5:30 am, I am pulling the strap tight on my second Lone Wolf climbing stick when I hear this unbelievable sound about 40 or 50 yards in the darkness ahead.

Basically, it sounded like a long, drawn-out WWWOOOOOOOW! It lasted about 4 or 5 seconds, and it was almost as loud as I could yelp at the top of my lungs, although I could never make a sound that loud that long. It definitely sounded feline to me. I’ve never heard a bobcat or mountain lion roar/scream. I’ve seen a bobcat in this area before, and I know more than one person who claims to have seen and/or heard a panther on this specific mountain. Any ideas?

Have you ever heard a coyote howl? Otherwise go to Google and search for "Panther sounds" and "bobcat sounds" etc until you find one it sounds like.

Sasquatch

LOL

Little far south for that fella...

I have heard plenty of coyotes howl (and saw one on my stand on Monday), and this is definitely not a coyote. Something about it really seemed feline to me. Thanks for the google suggestion, though.I just may do that.

I'm from VA too. I'd say probably a bobcat if it was, in fact, a feline. On the other hand, I have heard of some mountain lions near where I live, so you can't rule that out I guess.

Air4Andy: Thanks for the googlesuggestion. I founda very cool site, IMO, with lots of animal and other sound effects. Here is the web address, in case you're interested:

http://www.partnersinrhyme.com/soundfx/animals/BigCats.shtml

I still don't know which it was, based on these sounds, but it was just so loud, it was hard for me to believe an animalas small as a bobcatsmall could make such a loud, long, extended sound like that, just because of the lung capacity I would think was necessary.

Here are the closest sounds from that web page:
http://www.sound-effect.com/sounds1/animal/BigCats/BOB-CAT.wav
(the kind of second growl/scream, but it was more extended)

or this one:
http://www.sound-effect.com/sounds1/animal/BigCats/cougar3.wav
(again, it was more extended; at least twice as long)

Coyotes over run the place around there. Wouldn't surprise me if it was a cat. Could even have been a coon. Whatever it is it'sdangerous enough to take precautions from now on. You should be already.

Beautiful forest.

Sounds like a Screetch Owl. Them things will make the hair on the back of your neck stand up.

Not a screech owl, coonor coyote. I've heard plenty of those. And this was at least 5 times louder than any screech owl I've ever heard (although they ARE creepy-sounding, too). I'd bet my tree stand it was a cat of some sort. It had that distinctive feline growling owww...to it.

Sounds like you got it covered, it's a kitten. Why ask for ideas since you" know" it was a feline?