I was delighted to read that two people saw a puma on their rideout last weekend ~ I also saw a sighting 6 years ago at a very close range as I nearly ran it over as it jumped infront of my truck. I was near Princetown at the time, to be precise it was at the 3rd cattlegrid from Tavistock.
Wanted to start this topic to hear about more sightings and maybe a bit more from last weekends sightings for everybody else to see. I've always felt a bit silly sharing my experience with other people ~ they always look at me with a blank, puzzled face!
Look forward to hearing some more and maybe we can get some good evidence for those sceptical people out there!
I saw one about 15 years ago at Chipley near Bickington, as did my neighbour, my mates girlfriend and another friend on separate occasions.
Coming out of a friends house I saw ahead of me in the road a black cat. I thought initially this was my friends cat but when I put my car headlights on they did not reach it. High beam revealed the cat to be 100 yards away and several times larger than I first thought. It turned to look at me with diamond white eyes, then turned away and jumped a five bar gate, lazily. I motored up to the gate and was about to jump out of the car and look over the gate when I thought; "What if it is still there?" and stayed in the car.
My neighbour walking her dogs above South Knighton rounded a corner to find herself following what she took to be an old black labrador by it's stiff gait. She spoke to it saying "where's your owner then?" Then it stopped and a cat's face looked over the shoulder at her from less than 20 yards. Her jack russell and airedale terriers were jostling for position behind her as it jumped about 12 feet vertically into the field up alongside the lane. She was frightened by how little fear it showed of her and two dogs.
Next week a friend on his Honda 250 had to do an emergency stop as it ran in front of him between Chipley and South Knighton. He stopped with the bars crossed up and the headlight pointing at the beast laying prone about 20 yards away through a gateway in the adjoining field. He was very scared and it took his girlfriend about 15 minutes to calm him down enough to tell her what had happened.
A few weeks later a friend saw it run in front of her mini. So close that it's head was in front of the left headlight, while it's rear end was in front of the right. She did not have time to react before it was gone inot the dark.
A brown one nearly had me off my Serow as I ascended 191-077 one evening a decade ago and it crossed the lane so close I barely had time to wonder WTF!
About the same time a senior fireman from Chudleigh met one when out jogging one morning, much to his surprise as he professed disbelief.
A caveat: Near the end of 192-070 I saw a large ginger moggy at the other end of a field. I am sure this was just a domestic cat, but some of those with me convinced themselves they had seen something else. The cat was hairy and large but while it was unusually big for a domestic moggy I was surprised anyone could think it anything else. People sometimes see what they want to see.
I used to run the YHA at Beer a few years ago. I had a guy working for me there who swore he saw a large black cat in the field out the back of the Hostel. He went on a full-on fact finding mission and asking locally of any other sightings around the village, he found bugger all! Was a bit of an odd chap mind!!
Chris.
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It would appear that I am quite grumpy today; strangely, I didnt notice this until I came into contact withidiots.
I used to run the YHA at Beer a few years ago. I had a guy working for me there who swore he saw a large black cat in the field out the back of the Hostel. He went on a full-on fact finding mission and asking locally of any other sightings around the village, he found bugger all! Was a bit of an odd chap mind!!
Chris.
Our kitchen looks out over those fields and on a number of occasions we have seen a large black something walking across them. About fifteen years ago in the woods behind Beer Quarry Caves they found the remains of small pigs which had gone missing, half eaten and stored 20 ft up in the trees, interesting what and its not rumour as the police and ministry of agriculture got involved
And then there is the story/legend of the large black dog that walks from north down to east Devon, and most of the route it waks have names associated with dogs, Black Dog, Dog village, kennels worthy etc
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Riding with enthusiasm upon the ragged precipice of disaster
