Blond Bobcat
https://youtube.com/shorts/WIXvykEhxsU?si=fEW6HJh9joXpuLKA
Sometimes it all pans out…sort of.
I have seen two bobcats in the swamps in southern Virginia Beach since I have been venturing into these flooded forests. Luck, mostly. I have heard the chilling screams of several bobcats floating through the cypresses and my trail camera has captured a few at night. Today, I got lucky again.
On this day, I was kayaking instead of wading because the water in the swamp was high due to southerly winds and recent rain. After exploring and enjoying the sounds of the winter swamp for several hours, I turned the kayak around and headed noiselessly back south towards the truck. I rounded a clump of trees covered in Spanish moss on a small creek and saw her. She was crossing the creek on a fallen tree. I thought to myself, what on earth is a housecat doing out here? I thought it was a housecat because she was almost white in color. It took me less than a second to realize that she was far too large to be a housecat and the tail was bobbed. This was no ordinary bobcat - it was large, beautiful and white!
She saw me at the same time that I saw her. She stopped in her tracks, mid-stride and stared. I had a split second decision to make - the camera or the phone? She turned and started to slink back in the direction from which she had come from. I grabbed the phone - it required less movement from me - and filmed her. After a few seconds, she disappeared into the reeds. I quietly and quickly turned the kayak around and paddled back in the direction that I had come from. My plan was to hide myself on the creek and hope to cut her off as she crossed the peninsula of trees between the two creeks . I know these woods, I thought I knew where she might appear again.
I paddled to where I thought she might come out of the reeds and looked for a good place to conceal myself. I saw a small group of trees growing out of an old cypress stump in the middle of the creek and decided that was the place to hide and wait. Now, remember, I had just seen a bobcat. I paddled over to the island and reached for one of the trees to steady the kayak. As I did, I heard a loud hiss come from a hole under the island. The sound startled me so badly that I jumped back. Of course, there is no jumping back in a kayak - into the water I went! I was wearing chestwaders, so my very first thought was not to let them fill with water. I had a wading belt on, but drowning definitely crossed my mind, or, not drowning. The paddle sank. The boat hook went over. Yes, I carry a telescoping boat hook in the swamp. It came in handy. The kayak flipped. My very expensive camera and lens, though attached around my neck, went into the water. I flailed, but managed to flip the kayak back over once I realized that the water was only chest deep.
The hissing sound? That was a muskrat hiding under the tree island. How do you get back into a kayak in chest deep water? In waders half full of dark swamp water? You don’t. I waded over towards the bank towing the kayak, using my boat hook as a walking stick. Once back in the kayak, I used the boat hook to push myself to where I had fallen into the creek. The paddle was nowhere to be seen. It had sunk and the water was a churned up mess of mud and detritus. I used the hook end of my boat hook and fished around until I found the paddle! My lucky day! Yes, it was a great day. A white bobcat? Really? It was an awesome day. The camera and lens? They’re insured.
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