Spotting several bobcats in High Point State Park.
While hiking the Cedar Swamp Trail in High Point State Park we rounded a bend and were stunned to see a young bobcat on the trail in front of us.
Tom started recording as we stood there in amazement. Be sure to watch the video on this page to see the bobcats in action.
We could see the white spot on the black backs of his ears and he wagged his cute little “bobbed” tail.
After a few seconds he trotted off into the woods and we thought wow, what lucky timing.
Bobcats are shy and seldom seen. We hike A LOT and we’d only seen a bobcat once before this, in Yosemite National Park, way back in 2008.
Since this sighting, we’ve spotted bobcats twice in October of 2023: when nearing Stony Lake in Stokes State Forest and leaving Steeny Kill Lake at High Point State Park.
Bobcats were locally extinct from New Jersey by the 1970s. Between 1978 and 1982, 24 bobcats from Maine were reintroduced to New Jersey. Their numbers have increased but they remain on New Jersey’s endangered species list.
Bobcats are larger than housecats and stand about 2-feet tall. Females are usually between 18 and 25 lbs while a male can be as much as 35lbs.
They breed between February and June and typically have 2-3 young. A bobcat’s lifespan is 12-13 years.
We waited before continuing in order to give the bobcat time to move out of the area without stressing him out. But then an adult, likely his mom, appeared.
She moved down the trail, pausing a few times to sit and watch us. Another bobcat! We couldn’t believe our luck.
Tom stopped recording once she was out of view but I kept an eyeball on things through my ever trusty monocular as we continued to stay put in order to give them space.
She suddenly turned back to the left and ran into the woods – with a larger bobcat on her heels! I only saw it for a split second but from the size it could have been a male.
Guess we should have kept recording. And we seldom lug our telephoto camera on hikes anymore. Ah well.
Then a young bobcat appeared again. He sniffed the trail looking for mom, looked back at us, then darted into the woods.
And just when we thought that was the end… another young one came back on the trail briefly before bounding off.
The young bobcats looked a little different so we think there were two, maybe three youngsters in addition to mom (and the larger bobcat I barely saw) – but they could have been the same little one darting off and on the path.
Overall, a very cool experience.
For further reading:
- Overview of bobcats in New Jersey from NJDEP: Bobcat Fact Sheet.
- Check out the Nature Conservancy to learn about land being preserved to create a “Bobcat Alley“.
- “Endangered since the 1990s, NJ’s bobcat population is now on the rise” – northjersey.com, Jan. 2024.
Bobcats spotted:
October 23, 2023, one crossed the driveway as we were leaving Steeny Kill Lake.
October 1, 2023, just before Stony Lake.
August 20, 2022, 11:30am at High Point State Park on the Cedar Swamp Trail, mid-way between the Kuser plaque and the boardwalk (these photos and video).