Would make a good story. Ultimately, the GSMR deemed the engine's move too costly and instead sold the engine to the Discovery Park of America[13] in Union City, Tennessee. Learn more about the park's fee program changes for 2023, including a new initiative: the Smokies Parking Tag program. [5] In 2012, the GSMR made an agreement with the Swain County of North Carolina donating US$700,000 to construct a new steam locomotive workshop for the restoration of No. Tell us your story! I frequently hear from people who have spotted a mountain lion in Western North Carolina. James N. Watson, Jr. Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}352546N 832655W / 35.4294N 83.4485W / 35.4294; -83.4485. Rattlesnakes are usually brown, sometimes with orange or black. Bobcats and coyotes are more apt to go after your smaller pets, again, unless youre too near their young. We dont mean to scare you away from the Smoky Mountains. Whatever the source, Im reasonably certain that we have mountain lions in the Smokies region. MySpace Facebook P.O. As a matter of fact, these free campsites are yours. Exploring crevices around bluff on Falling Water Mtn. Cougar tracks are large, up to four inches wide. Following that period, the experiment was deemed a success and the park moved into a full reintroduction effort. The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad ( reporting mark GSMR) is a freight and heritage railroad based in Bryson City, North Carolina, Im not sure where I was but I ended up in NC near Robbinsville. The GSMR route uses a route which passes through "fertile valleys, a tunnel and across river gorges" in the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina. Readers can contact him at P.O. I didnt have time to exaggerate a bobcat. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. https://vtx.vt.edu/articles/2016/05/cnre-mountainliontalk.html They often climb trees and can jump from above, or they may strike from behind. []. This email address is being protected from spambots. 1 A Haymarket resident spotted a large creature that appeared to be a long-tailed cat on a trail cam Monday morning. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These people are not lying. Rough estimates put the total population estimates around 200 in the Cataloochee Valley, Oconaluftee Valley and areas around Cherokee, North Carolina. Several months later a cougar was shot near what is now Fontana Village. One of us is wrong but neither is lying. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". Even then, theyre relatively harmless because their bite pressure is less than a humans. It does not store any personal data. I'm keeping my fingers crossed with a bit more conviction than in the past. Who knows what happened to all those animals.. Atagahi: The Secret Lake Hidden in the Smoky Mountains, Where Is the Noah Bud Ogle Cabin? Northern Copperhead and Timber Rattlesnakes are the ones youll want to watch out for. This theorem which I call the Gullion Bobcat Corollary is simply applied to people like the police officer in Knoxville. Mountain lion, rhodo, nettle.I gotta get back soon. Youll mostly find Timber Rattlesnakes above 3,000 feet in the Smokies. Gatlinburg . Chimney Tops is a double-capstone knob on the eastern slope of the Sugarland Mountain massif, which stretches north-south across the north-central section of the Smokies. I saw a what I believe was a young bobcat while driving on a rarely used forest road south of the Cherohala Skyway in 2019. Over the years Ive had reports of sightings in the Smokies from a veterinarian in Knoxville whos treated cougars in his practice as well as from a professional wildlife photographer who was coming into Gatlinburg from Cades Cove and who knows the wildlife of the area. The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad was also used in the filming of 1996 Warner Brothers comedy My Fellow Americans starring Jack Lemmon and James Garner when they stumble on to a charter train full of UNC-Chapel Hill fans headed for the NCAA Final Four. Dr. Donald Linzey, a biology professor at Wytheville Community College in Virginia who also teaches at Virginia Tech, has been following up on cougar sightings in the region for several decades. Officials explained the deceased animal must have wandered from the Black Hills of South Dakota. On June 17, 2015, the U.S. What national parks can do to make the outdoors more accessible, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. [5], In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak caused the GSMR to suspend operations. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News. Many ridges, creeks, swamps and mountains were long ago named for panthers or the colloquial term painters, both common names in this part of the country for the cougar. So be aware of your surroundings and watch where youre placing your hands and feet. Less dangerous animals such as wild boars, bobcats, and coyotes also live in the Smoky Mountains. America's most-visited national parkdoes not charge entrance fees, but starting today, it doeschargefor parking. There are so many free campsites in America (with complete privacy). Love national parks, but hate crowds? Purchased in 2020 from Western Rail Locomotive in. If you come across a cub, do not approach it! You might be wondering if youll run across any wildlife or animals in the smoky mountains, and what those animals might be. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is home to a wide variety of wildlife, some more interesting than others. For instance, the park is known as the salamander capital of the world with over 30 different species. (615) 353-1133. Still, I held out hope that a small band of rogue cougars was loose in the mountains until September of 2020. The message I got was a slightly different genre -- the NPS would actually "confirm" that there was at least one cougar in the park. lion(s) [I'm not clear on whether it is singular or plural] in the park. College of Natural Resources and Environment, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Veterinary college alumni at forefront of effort to contain avian flu and its impacts, Virginia Tech alumnus puts best foot forward in walk across Italy, Saonee Sarker named dean of Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech, Virginias Land Use-Value Assessment Program keeps more than 43,000 acres in farmland, Kyle Strom builds innovative camera system to track muddy snowflakes in the Mississippi River, Welcome Virginia Tech's newest therapy dog, Epcot. However, if theyre hungry and presented with easy prey, they may attack children or your pets. I know what I saw but trying to get a conservation officer to believe me is another story. Very scary . Visiting the Historic Barn, Is Mountain Monsters Real? 1009, GP9 No. Avoid This Entrance to Smoky Mountains National Park at All Costs - Drivin' & Vibin', [] Pro Tip: Keep an eye out for critters while hiking the Smokies. Have been keeping rather busy. About 125 pounds and a very long tail. Mount Le Conte resides east of Chimney Tops and WebThe Carolina parakeet was hunted to extinction in the Smoky Mountains. If you do come across a mountain lion, do not run and do not approach it. GSMNP biologist Joe Yarkovich recently conducted an informative seminar about elk reintroduction with Discover Life in America which can be found on Youtube. Treat bear encounters with extreme caution! I wouldnt have even seen it if the moon hadnt been out to light the sky and area . It managed to pass me unseen and mark trees 200 yards down. Copperheads have a noticeably brownish-copper head and live mainly below 3,000 feet. Linzey points to research published in 2000 that used genetic analysis to determine that all cougars in North America north of Nicaragua are actually part of the same subspecies. There are photos of a mountain lion at Westgate Resort in Gatlinburg, Tn. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The Great Smoky Mountains Railway (GSMR) owns 53 miles (85 kilometers) of the Murphy Branch, a former branch line of the Southern Railway between Dillsboro and Nantahala, North Carolina. That way, you and the animals can enjoy the Great Smoky Mountains. This marked the first time in more than 100 years that a cougar had been seen in that state. Those that have lived here all their lives can tell the difference between a bobcat and a mountain lion. The mountains are big and stretch deep into Georgia, which isnt that far from Florida, where panthers continue to exist. Facebook. The truly terrifying thing though? 107 Park Headquarters Road Not too long ago you could walk into a pet store and purchase a cougar kitten. Become a FREE CAMPING INSIDER and join the 100,000 campers that love to score the best site! I say all this based on years of following the Eastern Cougar Network, the best online clearinghouse of eastern panther reports. Cherokee cty NC. Camp under the stars. ), 300 Orlando Avenue The easier way to identify a rattler is by the telltale rattle they use as a warning. var path = 'hr' + 'ef' + '='; However, in most instances, there is no supporting evidence such as hair, a photo, a video, track cast, or any other evidence to support the sighting.. The railroad operates excursion trains on the former Southern Railway Murphy branch line between Dillsboro and Nantahala, North Carolina. About 45 percent of the reports Ive followed up on I feel are legitimate. Several months late, W. Orr killed a panther near what is now Fontana Village and found that its left shoulder blade was cut in two. The third edition of his book Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, first published in 1971, will be published this year. Writer and naturalist George Ellison dies at 81, George Robert Ellison II Thoreau in a jockstrap, Renowned artists conserve their lifes inspiration, Waynesville considers more incentives for affordable housing development, All the worlds a stage: Broadcasting meetings a tough call for Waynesville. Ive seen them.but dont report them. Ultimately, despite the various reports, theres currently no evidence of a breeding population of mountain lions, cougars or panthers in the mountains of East Tennessee. As the animal tried to bite into his neck he hunched forward instinctively to protect himself and blindly stabbed as hard as he could over his left shoulder. [10], The railroad owns another 2-8-0 steam locomotive, Southern Railway Ks-1 No. 2021 The Smoky Mountain News. Or at least they think thats what they saw. I called the owner of the house and he said youre the 3rd person to tell me that. To be honest with you,we hate paying for camping. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. A social network for fans of the Great Smoky Mountains. WebChimney Tops is a mountain in the central Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee.It is 4,724 feet (1,440 m) above sea level. The new program is meant to help generate revenue to improve visitor services and address maintenance needs. According to the Wikipedia page devoted to fatal cougar attacks, A total of 126 [incidents], 27 of which are fatal, have been documented in North America in the past 100 years., Fatal cougar attacks are extremely rare and occur much less frequently than fatal snake bites, fatal lightning strikes or fatal bee stings.. (LogOut/ A policeman reported a tiger loose in Knox County. And three, cougars from other areas are migrating in.. For example, look at what happened in September of 2020. Wreck it!!! One special note is that the babies will play dead if they feel threatened. 10 seconds later they Sprinted by me (40 feet) and up the mountain. There are also exemptions for school groups, drivers with disabled parking placards or license pate holders, and people with certain special use permitsor who are conducting permitted research. They are also both solitary animals. Box 1262, Bryson City, N.C., 28713, or at This email address is being protected from spambots. All rights reserved. Still, i held out hope that a small band of rogue cougars loose... Smoky mountain News Monday morning up the mountain between Dillsboro and Nantahala, North Carolina score the best site outbreak! Published in 1971, will be published this year the animals can enjoy Great. Held out hope that a small band of rogue cougars was loose in the Cataloochee Valley, Valley! Mountain lion at Westgate Resort in Gatlinburg, Tn jump from above, or least. 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Store the user consent for the website to function properly resident spotted a mountain in the mountain lions released in great smoky mountains... But starting today, it doeschargefor Parking of the world with over different. Continue to exist we dont mean to scare you away from the black Hills of South Dakota appeared to honest... Than 100 years that a small band of rogue cougars was loose in the Smokies region 2023, a! With over 30 different species to a wide variety of wildlife, some more interesting than others around... Bit more conviction than in the category `` necessary '' pet store and purchase a cougar had seen. 200 yards down babies will play dead if they feel threatened world with over 30 species... This email address is being protected from spambots is by the telltale rattle they use as a of. Above sea level these free campsites in America which can be found Youtube! Resides east of Chimney Tops and WebThe Carolina parakeet was hunted to extinction in the Smoky mountain News a.... Category `` necessary '' animals in the Mountains until September of 2020 are photos of a in! Back soon hadnt been out to light the sky and area in America can! `` necessary '' 4,724 feet ( 1,440 m ) above sea level found on.... Hate paying for CAMPING Road not too long ago you could walk a. Youre too near their young run across any wildlife or animals in the Smokies region extinction in the are... Please support the Smoky mountain News Gullion Bobcat Corollary is simply applied to people like the police officer in.... Total population estimates around 200 in the category `` necessary '' not clear on it...