Report from Chris Smith
Big Cat seen near Arisaig
By Philip Bradley (Freelance Journalist) November 1993
It was approximately 2pm, about the middle of November, and I was travelling by car along the main road between Fort William and Mallaig, just out for a wee run with a girl I was going out with at the time, (I contacted her recently regarding this, and because she is a serving police officer, she insists on anonymity. I'll call her 'J'.) We were approximately 12 miles past Glenfinnan and 'J' suddenly nudged me, pointed ahead and asked "whats that?" I looked to where she was pointing, and at the left hand side of the road and above on the crest of a ridge there was a large black shape. At this point we were about 400 yards away from it, the light was exceptionally good, and the road was empty. At first, I thought it was a bin bag dumped beside the road, and when I saw it moving, I stopped the car, thinking by now it was a large dog of some sort. We were about 150 yards away. As we watched, the animal raised its self on its legs and stood, looking straight towards us. I got out of the car for a better look. and from that distance, the animal looked black, and its shape, from what I could see from its straight on stance, was definitely feline. The face was broad, the ears erect. At this point, the animal turned around, and stretched slightly, and with this movement, I knew it was a cat of some description. The animal seemed completely unconcerned about my presence, and moved over the ridge, through some light gorse bushes, and out of sight. I jumped back into the car, and drove towards the spot where the animal had lain. I left the car again, and had to leap over a small ditch at the side of the road, and up a small ridge to reach the animals spot.
I looked over the ridge, and there was nothing to be seen. The country in front of me was relatively flat, although there was a lot of gorse bushes, long grass and heather. There were no houses of any kind and the fields led over to the foot of a large hill/ small mountain about 1 to 2 miles away. I looked for the spot where it lay, and there was a large patch of flattened long grass, circular in shape where the cat had been lying. The flattened area was about six feet across, and reaching down, I could feel a slight residual warmth from its body. There were also small tufts of short soft hair, that upon inspection, was not actually black but a very dark grey. I watched for about ten more minutes, but saw nothing more. 'J' kept the hair, and no longer has it.
Because of 'J' being a police officer, and myself feeling a wee bit spooked, we never seriously thought of reporting what we saw, and even if we did, to whom would we report it too?
Anyway Mark, thats it for what its worth. Entirely anecdotal, no physical evidence at all, except for the hair, now lost. The only thing I can say is to strengthen my story is that because of her occupation, 'J' was a highly trained observer, it was herself that saw it first. When we spoke of it, our perceptions of the animal were identical. Previous to this, I had no interest in unexplained phenomena at all. although I must admit, since then, I've changed my outlook somewhat.
Feel free to print his story, if you think it appropriate, and you can quote if necessary.
Philip Bradley
November 1993
 |
 |
 |
|
| Return to index | Return to Scottish Big Cats | Return to the Highlands | Return to 1993 |