EnCon,

Just wanted to say I really enjoyed reading your posts - they are very informative and have eased some of my concerns about the rumors I have been hearing. The one I heard, which allegedly is not rumor, involved 2 acquaintances on horseback who had a mountain lion cross their path near the intersection of Routes 97 and 44 in Pomfret a month or two ago. Allegedly the lion walked away after a reasonable amount of time.

Based on the info you have provided in this thread, I would say the claim is dubious. That being said, there is a POSSIBILITY that it was an authentic mountain lion sighting, and I was wondering what kind of common-sense safety precautions we as hikers and fishermen could take to avoid encounters or minimize the potential for attack during encounters by mountain lions, fishercats, bobcats, and other forest predators. My username being no pun intended!

Thanks a lot, I would like to get back to hiking the trails of Mashamoquet Park with a bit more confidence!