I thought I would quickly post an old article that was written years ago which has always stuck out in my mind as interesting because it represents the big cat activity being experienced in Buckinghamshire going back 30 years. What strikes me as even more interesting is that the location of this activity still provides sightings to this day. The hills around Stokenchurch I believe have at least one resident Black Leopard. For big cat sightings in Buckinghamshire and the Chilterns to span over 40 years means there must be breeding but the research continues.
'WHEN you are walking through the countryside and you come across a puma it gives you quite a shock! The appearance of pumas and other big cats may be dismissed as escaped creatures from zoos or the strong imagination of witnesses but some researchers believe something more supernatural may be afoot.
In 1983 there were a series of sightings around Britain and particularly at Stokenchurch, Chinnor and Bledlow Ridge. The Thame Gazette's front page of June 13th told how Bob O'Neill, of Greenwood Avenue, Chinnor, came across a large cat while walking along a footpath with his grandaughter behind Chinnor cement works. He went to scare the animal away from his granddaughter, Rachel. But the animal flattened its ears, dropped its belly to the ground and continued to advance. The cat got close enough for Bob to hit it twice on the nose with his walking stick before it ran off. Other sightings that year were to occur at Stokenchurch, Bledlow Ridge. Armed police hunted the animal but it always escaped capture.'
In 1983 there were a series of sightings around Britain and particularly at Stokenchurch, Chinnor and Bledlow Ridge. The Thame Gazette's front page of June 13th told how Bob O'Neill, of Greenwood Avenue, Chinnor, came across a large cat while walking along a footpath with his grandaughter behind Chinnor cement works. He went to scare the animal away from his granddaughter, Rachel. But the animal flattened its ears, dropped its belly to the ground and continued to advance. The cat got close enough for Bob to hit it twice on the nose with his walking stick before it ran off. Other sightings that year were to occur at Stokenchurch, Bledlow Ridge. Armed police hunted the animal but it always escaped capture.'
RSS Feed
