Last spring I passed along to you the details of a mountain lion sighting by my friend Dan, who'd spotted one while hiking on the Province Pond Trail just over the state line in Chatham, NH.

Mountain lions are pretty rare in these parts, but sightings do seem to be more frequent than ever. And in the six months since that blog entry, a number of people have written to tell me of their close encounters with the elusive mountain lion in Maine.

I thought you'd like to read a few of their comments...

There are probably more than 100 mountain lions now, since my son in law had a mother with young ones cross in front of his truck one evening at the base of Mt Abram, ME.
--Anonymous

A friend of mine had been hunting in northern Maine above Moosehead and spotted a mountain lion. He's been hunting for 40 to 50 years and knows what he was talking about. I suspect the giant forest fire a few years back in Canada pushed many animals out of their natural habitat and into Maine and NH.
--Hank

My family and I were hiking on Monument Hill in Leeds, ME this past Sunday (August 7). My 14 year old daughter was leading and she saw a mountain lion sharpening his/her claws on a tree on the trail. We were on the backside of the mountain, where the snowmobile trail is. The cat hunkered down like it was going to pounce, my daughter backed up and yelled for her father. My husband looked up just as the cat ran off into the woods.
--Charlotte

I spotted a mountain lion on I-95 Labor Day weekend around Mile Marker 252 (Mt. Katahdin scenic view). A man had once told me he saw one while deer hunting. I thought he was crazy. I thought wrong.
--Emery

My friends and I were in the woods hiking in Pelham, NH and as I looked up I saw the silouette of a mountain lion. As I looked on further it moved it ahead. We then walked down the trail quickly and left.
--Ben

I live in military housing in Brunswick, ME. I have a mountain lion in the woods behind my house. Our housing managers are reluctant to deal with the issue. We all have small children and can sometimes catch the cat watching us. It will run if the adults approach it, but our children are not safe. I currently have a motion sensative camera in my back yard. Hopefully we will catch something.
--Tracey

I live in freeport on the Lower Flying Pt. Rd. One morning I was going to work around 4:30 am on the Lower Flying Pt. Rd. I saw what I thought was a deer crossing in front of my truck lights. One big problem it was a big cat with a very long tail. I called the Maine Warden Service in Gray, but they never returned my call. I was shocked at what I saw. I am a deer hunter and have seen all kinds of wildlife but but never anything like this. I will never forget what I saw that morning.
--Ted

My aunt in Hartford, ME said she saw a mountain lion about 3 weeks ago. She just happened to look our her window and it was walking along the rock wall in front of her house. She described it as a big cat, with a long tail, and about 3 feet tall at the shoulder. She knew she wasn't looking at a bobcat.
--Jenn

My mother and I saw what appeared to be a young mountain lion walk across her yard in Sanford, ME in August 2005. It stood about 2 feet tall, had a long tail that dipped to the ground, and was tan in color. My mother saw it closer than I did and said it had faint rings on the tail. It pounced into the woods when a car approached.
--Jennifer

While deer hunting in Poland, ME I heard what sounded like a person except it was moving fast. The animal ran to my right and then circled behind me I turned to see a large tan animal on a dead run. At first thinking there's my deer I was shocked to see that the animal was low to the ground with a long tail and a very stalky cat like appearance. There is no doubt in my mind that this was a Mountain Lion. It was too big and stealthy to be a dog. After the animal left my area two hunters walked from the direction he had come. These two hunters spooked a mountain lion and it ran right by me.
--Marty

So the big cat is definitely out there. And a lot closer than you think...

But where the heck is the Beer Troll?