Yes, What is it? Not a relic but a monster in the woods. For real.

[smokeythecat]

So I live in God's country in Maryland, next to beaver, raccoon, fox, squirrel, bobcat, skunk, opossum, chipmunk, groundhog and nutria infested woods. Not to forget the deer. My trail camera got 3 deer in 1 frame last night.

Anyway, I got home about 9 pm, well after dark and I parked a little farther away than normal from the outside motion sensor lights, so when I got out of the vehicle it was dark, with moonlight as we're at full moon stage. I walk 10 feet toward the house and the floods kicked in. Immediately thereafter there is a blood curdling ROAR, coming out the woods and I figure I was about 100-150 feet away from the roaring critter. I did the horror movie thing and fumbled and dropped my keys getting into the house, but fortunately did not get CHOMPED by the thing.

What could it (realistically) have been? A neighbor saw a mountain lion three weeks ago in their field 2 houses down. My friend saw one here about 10 years ago, another neighbor saw one jump out of tree about 2 years ago and I have chased a bear out of my trash right up close and in person about 6 years ago. Bears still come and go.

It was not a little roar. It was a BIG roar. Any advice appreciated. I'm thinking mountain lion (although they're not supposed to be around here) or a bear. Probably not an alien.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

DR.ÖTEK Metal Detector, Waterproof Gold Detector, Pinpoint & Terrain Modes, Professional Metal Detector - Grab it through Amazon!

[Mark Todd]

Well, I'm not sure whether what you heard is the same thing I heard about 40 years ago approximately this same time of the year, mostly because you described it as a "blood curdling roar" rather than a blood curdling "scream".
During mating season mountain lions (both male and female) sound forth a call usually described by hearers as the scream of an old crazy lady or a blood curdling scream of an old lady. It's usually one scream but may repeat once more every minute or so, but it is definitely not what I would call a roar.
In fact World Book Encyclopedia under the heading Mountain Lion described their mating call as: sounds like an old lady screaming.
The following was my experience; I was a freshman in high school, I was coon hunting with my neighbor who was in his mid thirties at the time, he had a veteran dog, we had just let the dog out of the jeep and he (old Luke) immediately ran across the couple hundred foot corn stubble field to the edge of the timber and hit a hot track. As old Luke was barking hot track and we were headed across the field we hear this blood curdling scream a few hundred yards down the holler from where the dog was barking. I looked at my neighbor him being older an all, and been hunting his whole life, but he looked at me at the same time and said " WHAT IN HELL WAS THAT!". Old Luke was still barking hot track so we kept walking thinking that if the dog wasn't afraid we shouldn't be either. Then we heard it again but it was closer, the dog was still barking hot track, we stopped walking this time and my neighbor pulled the long barreled Ruger pistol out of it's holster. Thirty seconds or so goes by and it screams again even closer. This time the dog stops barking, all is stone cold silence, except our imagination. All of a sudden we see two eyes shining in our headlamps coming out of the wood and approaching us at high speed. It was old Luke, he must not of even heard the first two screams over all the noise he was making, we thought he was running to us for safety but that wasn't the case, he ran right past us like we we weren't even there, not slowing down until he got back to the jeep, we watched in amazement as he put both front paws on the back bumper and looked back at us and just stared as if to say, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU MORONS WAITING FOR! We didn't need any more coaxing than that, we headed for jeep too, we didn't walk backwards but we definitely shined our lights over our shoulders every few seconds. Well, we had no coon hides to show for our brief hunt that night but it sure made for a memorable story. I still wish we'd stuck around a little longer and maybe got a glimpse of that beast.

 

[HAPPYCAMPER]

Just wanted to add my story,over 40 years ago here in central Ma,I was about 10 years old...my family had built a house kinda out in the woods,one side surrounded by a large swamp area going north and south along property..believe we were all outside one afternoon as we had a large deck area that was built up over the brook that ran through..well anyways all of a sudden there was a scream maybe 200 yards away near property edge of swamp towards our place..all I could think of was a screaming witch..very sharp and loud,not long though,maybe 2-3 seconds.Ony screamed once and we never did figure out what it was and never heard again..but that sound has stuck with me..not saying a mountain lion but reading your first few lines brought that day back,as it was a scream and not a roar also.

Well, I'm not sure whether what you heard is the same thing I heard about 40 years ago approximately this same time of the year, mostly because you described it as a "blood curdling roar" rather than a blood curdling "scream".
During mating season mountain lions (both male and female) sound forth a call usually described by hearers as the scream of an old crazy lady or a blood curdling scream of an old lady. It's usually one scream but may repeat once more every minute or so, but it is definitely not what I would call a roar.
In fact World Book Encyclopedia under the heading Mountain Lion described their mating call as: sounds like an old lady screaming.
The following was my experience; I was a freshman in high school, I was coon hunting with my neighbor who was in his mid thirties at the time, he had a veteran dog, we had just let the dog out of the jeep and he (old Luke) immediately ran across the couple hundred foot corn stubble field to the edge of the timber and hit a hot track. As old Luke was barking hot track and we were headed across the field we hear this blood curdling scream a few hundred yards down the holler from where the dog was barking. I looked at my neighbor him being older an all, and been hunting his whole life, but he looked at me at the same time and said " WHAT IN HELL WAS THAT!". Old Luke was still barking hot track so we kept walking thinking that if the dog wasn't afraid we shouldn't be either. Then we heard it again but it was closer, the dog was still barking hot track, we stopped walking this time and my neighbor pulled the long barreled Ruger pistol out of it's holster. Thirty seconds or so goes by and it screams again even closer. This time the dog stops barking, all is stone cold silence, except our imagination. All of a sudden we see two eyes shining in our headlamps coming out of the wood and approaching us at high speed. It was old Luke, he must not of even heard the first two screams over all the noise he was making, we thought he was running to us for safety but that wasn't the case, he ran right past us like we we weren't even there, not slowing down until he got back to the jeep, we watched in amazement as he put both front paws on the back bumper and looked back at us and just stared as if to say, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU MORONS WAITING FOR! We didn't need any more coaxing than that, we headed for jeep too, we didn't walk backwards but we definitely shined our lights over our shoulders every few seconds. Well, we had no coon hides to show for our brief hunt that night but it sure made for a memorable story. I still wish we'd stuck around a little longer and maybe got a glimpse of that beast.

 

[Ant]

Thay happened to me in 1979, it was 3:00 am in a swamp in MS. Latter I learned that it was a bobcat. How did I learn that, well latter in life I bought a Johnny Stewart predator caller and one of the 2 bobcat sounds was the same roar that I heard that morning. It was as loud as a hog hollering.

 

[Ant]

Oh and I was going raccoon hunting that November morning, and this is bobcat and mountain lion mating season, they are trying to find mates. I still have bobcat sound, but they are digital sounds on my Fox Pro Firestorm game caller, good luck:

 

[Crappies-n-Coins]

 

[jewelerguy]

Sasquatch

 

[smokeythecat]

Not the mother in law. Wasn't a scream, there is a bobcat here and I've heard that scream. SAW him about two weeks ago.

 

[MountainDewed]

Obama?

 

[G.I.B.]

What kind of tracks were left behind?

Any squatch poo?

 

[Ant]

You stumbled onto a tom bobcat territorial dispute. Toms are out in the woods looking for mates. There is nothing else out in the woods that is native that makes that sound, well my wife can but she doesn't go into the woods after dark like I have and do, j/k about the wifie. It could be a Mt. lion like I wrote, but to me it sounds like a bobcat like this one, (for you it was a road killed bobcat):

 

[G.I.B.]

View attachment 1240267

Aww come on... I've heard of Flying Squirrels before, but a Flying Bobcat?

Can you imagine a whole (would they be a flock or a pack?) swooping down for an attack!

 

[bill_wabo]

Hey, I would've drop my keys and also something in my pants too. I have a wood cabin and we have bobcat here but no mountain lion. Friend of mine, met a wolverine while chopping some wood. He never goes alone in the woods anymore, was too freaking scared. Wolverines are not big but they are mean as hell.

 

[Ant]

 

[calisdad]

First guess would be a lion but have you ever heard a fox scream? What a gawd awful noise they make. Truly creepy. They climb trees too.

 

[Ant]

To me a fox sounds like a crow or chirping birdi, a rabbit is louder. I've called do many gray and kit foxes it is crazy.That's why electronic callers ate not legal to hunt them in California, and we cant take kit foxes. Just shining a light atound at night and they will come to your feet. I might try to load a dound file.

 

[smokeythecat]

Fox is similar, but too high in pitch, and the roar was longer also, I've heard them a lot and one lives about 100 yards from my house. This was a God-awful roar. I only dropped the keys, like in a bad horror movie. I have a trail camera. I'll eventually get a pic if its still around. My friend SAW a MOUNTAIN LION standing at the side of the road here a few years ago. 20 feet away in daylight, crossing a creek. They are here. The DNR lies. (note to self: do not self baste, do not wear barbecue sauce or blood pudding). Also do not go outside at night without "ole' Betsy". What does that fox WANT with the dog? A date?

 

[smokeythecat]

Here be my fox!

 

[smokeythecat]

And my private deer herd. Less the buck.

I have EIGHT HUNDRED pictures of the hogs. See my offering of corn? No, they're not hunted right here. Just getting pics.

 

[BosnMate]

I don't think bears make a big roaring sound either. I know if they are cornered and about ready to come at you, they will clack their teeth. Never heard of one roaring though. And
the others are right about the lion screaming. So I'm thinking perhaps ------ well, ----- did you see the movie "Fire in the Sky?" Aliens