Tree climin won't hep much with a panther on your tail.  Make a stand and fight. Dont do no screemin, just a growlin, shootn, and a kicken, and git er done 

Traditionalist

Thus the very reason I get as close to the stand as I can by vehicle AND carry a side arm.

"Hate me if you want to, Love me if you can" Git-R-Done!

Where is the place you hunt?

This is in south east Grimes county.

GO CLIMB A TREE, TIM

I would avoid any cover scents other than dirt or earthy scents. I wouldn't want to wear any deer, red fox or skunk scent on me when big cats find those animals favorable to their palate.

"It takes 32 muscles to frown, 17 to smile, but only 3 for a proper trigger pull."

I actually did not believe it, but some guys on my lease said they saw some large cat prints. I thought they were over-exaggerating a bobcat or something. Maybe I need to look into this a little more. (We are in Nacogdoches)

They could be native or escaped from somewhere. Either way I don't want one around me.

GO CLIMB A TREE, TIM

Oh baby, come on.  Have you seen Jason’s picture of him holding his big cat.  Next to a Lion, that has got to be on everyone’s dream hunt list.  What is your top five?

I would have to say 1. Lion  2. Kudu  3. Mountain Lion  4. Big Black buck and  5. Big Axis. 

Don't be a duck.

Realize this is an old post but I thought I'd put in my 2 cents. I think you can plan on sharing most of your hunting land with cats, almost anywhere in TX. I've hunted at both Aquilla and SHNF and seen cat tracks everywhere on top of my own tracks from the previous day. At Aquilla the tracks were nearly 5" wide, which seems to indicate a 150-180 lb cat, at SHNF there were tracks from both a momma and a juvenile, the juvenile was walking right down the middle of the fireroad on top of my tracks, and then up a sandy streambed on top of my tracks, while the mother paralelled off in the cover alongside the road and at the top of the streambank. This went on for 5 days straight at SHNF, I'd see their tracks on top of my old ones nearly every day. It got a little unnerving, as I hunt alone and also go fairly deep in the woods, 1.5-2 miles. By the end, whenever I was walking in before daylight (which was every day) I was carrying my 44 mag in one hand and my streamlight in the other. I was glad when rifle season started. I don't think being in a treestand makes you any safer--a cat can get 25-40 feet up into a tree, no problem. In fact, being in a treestand probably makes you more vulnerable, as you don't have anywhere to go but down. Anyway, from the stats I looked up, people tend to survive cat attacks if they're armed. The people that die tend to be unarmed joggers, walkers, etc. Even a knife helps.

Where is Aquilla, I assume that it is public hunting land?  Sounds like is it somewhere toward Mexico?

..old post, indeed, but I agree, it is best to pack heat on the side when expecting wild charging hogs or cats.. although  I have never been in a case where I had to use my pistol in the field.

Out Enjoying That Great Texas Countryside

Aquilla is between Waco and Dallas. It's public land under the corp of engineers, and it just went archery only for deer.

Who knew packing a pistol is illegal during bow season UNLESS you have a consealed carry? Be aware of the laws!

GO CLIMB A TREE, TIM

i have hunted bosque county just south of dallas for all my life actually 2 cats have been shot on our ranch. one was a tom that weighed 135  and the other tom was 163.  im the 22 seasons that i have hunted there and the 5 years i lived there all i have seen are tracks. i bowhunt constantly and havent ever given a thought about running into one of them while walking to the stand. you have to understand these cats are different than the cats in california that attack people. those cats are exposed to people and are not affraid of them. the ones around hear very rarely even see a human. thats not to say that they wouldnt i just think do as you always have just be a little more cautious. good luck

GIG EM AGGIES

GIG EM AGGIES

They will be cougars. I hunt in Angelina county and two moved into the lease year before last. Heard one get a hog one evening. Very interesting right at dark. They messed up the deer hunting with their presents that year.  Five seasons before, my wife saw a young one in the same area.  They will probably migrate on to another area by next season and not be back for a while. I wouldn't worry much about one getting you. After living and hunting 13 years in Alaska, we had the same concerns about the big bears. They all, bears and cats will know you are there before you know they are. If he is hungry enough to want you, he will be on you before you know it. The bears are fast but nothing compared to a cougar. You will smell the bears, especially when they are on fish so you know they are watching you from in the thick alder bushes. Takes a while to get used to it and you really never feel comfortable with it. Other than tracks and lack of deer, you will hopefully not ever know the cat is there. If you get a shot at one stick him. Will make a great mount and conversation. Good hunting.

Sharps made the west safe for Winchester!

I would be a little cautious walking to my stand they have seen a big black cat at the deer lease i was hunting in coleman so im always looking around going to my stand

Bobby D

Honestly friends, you are more likey to be killed by your wife or girl friend, struck by lighting, or in a car wreck going to and from work than to be attacked by a Mountian Lion. Small mammals and an occasional deer, (perferably) young, old and does that are not armed with antlers is their desire prey. in Big Bend National Park, since 1984, there has been several thousand sightings of these large cats and only 4 negative encounters (attacks) with humans none of which were fatal. I would rather work with cougars all day every day than to work in down town Dallas. A persons risk of death would be much greater going back and forth to work as well as taking the risk of getting mugged and killed by a loser crack money.

e need more Mt. iions that just might cut down on Illegal aliens! For that matter, bring back the Jaguar, Grizzly and Grey Wolf too. It would aid in border control and make deer hunt that much more exciting for us!!!!

Let the mountain lion take the weak and sick deer to leave us more trophy bucks.

Great hunting guys!

PS- if you find a mt. lion on your back, cover your neck and your head with your arms and try very hard to stay standing. The taller you stand and the louder you are the greater the challenege you are for the Mt. lion. Shoot only the cats that threatens you. You are probably at your greatest risk in the woods while you are (leaving a crap) to relieve yourself.

May the biggist buck cross your path!!! 

I have a couple game cams set up out at my grand parents place, they only have 4 acres but i've gotten at least 5 pics of 2 different cougars...and the last one had 3 little kittens with it...is there anyway i could bait these in and hunt them?? I dotn really feel comfortable with a family of cougars moving in on my grandparents.

Jaguar:

Sounds like you know my wife...

Here several years ago my son and I were hunting south of Junction when one was roaming through our lease.  Usually there were dozens of turkey on that place but saw just a handful, and his work on the population was evident by the messes we found.  We'd drive on a dusty ranch road in the morning only to have the cat's track OVER our tire tracks when we came through that afternoon.  Never did see him, but heard him let out one whale of a growl one afternoon while we were in a river bottom, best guess about 300-400 yards away...we'll never forget it.  Curled the hairs on the nape of my neck like nothing else.

 Just to let you all know that I am from Quinlan,Texas and I have seen mountain lions, wild hogs and BLACK PANTHERS! My daughter and I were hungting this past year and were stalked by a female panter while she was protecting her baby. And yes I have 20/20 vision. I have been hunting with my husband for 30 years.

From the wildlife biologist and game warden friends I have who are assigned to the SHNF, first, it's unlikely that any of your sightings are black panthers. It is possible that they are mountian lions. However, their data suggest they are not able to confirm any sightings reported by SHNF hunters/visitors to date. They have game camera' and all kinds of survelliance most of us know little about.

What they do pick up is very large bobcats in much of the forest. Several places I have hunted, I find big bobcat tracks. Perhaps many of your sightings are bobcats or a very rare mountain lion passing through from the hill country where they have been confirmed just west of Austin. Up in Centerville where I hog hunt, they have confirmed mountain lions on occassion up there but the sightings are spread apart by many years. So it's rare. My thoughts are they are transient if in the forest and not permanent residents.

BTW, now, where me and my buddy Tim are going this year, we may uproot mountain lions and black bears in SHNF. I will keep you posted. Just don't expect me to tell you where :0)

Great post, I am interested by the TX rules for hunting mountain lions.  As I understand it, they are treated the same as Coyotes, you can shot them if you see them no specific license no season.

I grew up working summers on a ranch where we ran cattle in the national forest all summer and brought them down to feed in the winter (too much snow, 9,000+ft elev).  I was around a more mountain lions over a short time period than most, and would say, unless food is scarce, the cat population is large and human/cat interaction is regular, you probably have less chance of getting attacked than you do winning the lottery.  Still I always carry a sidearm while I am in the woods, better safe than sorry!

PS I have seen mountain lion kills of cattle and deer, I have no desire to meet the same fate, NASTY!!!

pumphouse, you can kill all mountain lions you see. They just don't want us shooting black bears if we happen upon one of those.

Actually, I have been put on my butt and I don't know for how long by lightning once, I was in a car when it was struck once, and I was knock to the ground from a strike about 40 feet away from me. I HATE lightning. I will be the first person inside before a storm. Now, if I could only win the lottery.

GO CLIMB A TREE, TIM

Panther, Cougar, Mountain Lion.  All the same animal, different names depending on where you are from.  I lived and hunted in Florida for a few years and have seen them there, have hunted far north Oklahoma (almost Kansas) and have seen them there, so I really am not surprised to see them anywhere.

I saw some vultures going crazy in the top of a tree 3 weeks ago and walked up the hill and found a deer carcass that had been pulled up a tree and was hanging over the branch.  We have been finding a lot of big tracks.  They are here.  I'm looking forward to killing a jackrabbit and hanging it from a tree and sit in a blind and watch all weekend.

ONE WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS IN 2003 I DISCOVERED THAT A LARGE COUGER AND I WERE HUNTING THE SAME DEER STAND. I WAS UNABLE TO MAKE A SHOT SO NEEDLESS TO SAY I VIOLATED OUR POLICY OF NOT DRIVING TO THE STAND FOR A WHILE.