I know the area you were in, flags. What a great experience! We lived up that way just over 10 years ago. We saw bears a couple of times in that area. We owned a lot in a subdivision in Navarre that was back close to the river, about 2 miles or so upstream from the bridge. We got to know some of the people who had already built back there, and they all mentioned hearing what had to be panthers and seeing large cat tracks. One of the guys, a retired USAF pilot who had flown FB-111 at Mt. Home AFB in Idaho and Cannon AFB in New Mexico, said it sounded a lot like the mountain lions he heard while hunting and hiking in the Rockies.
My grandparents were both born and raised just north of Panama City, near Blountstown. Granny had several stories about panthers coming after their mules and other stock. They used to see black panthers up that way pretty regular, too.
You might tell about your sighting to some people who'll scoff and say there aren't any panthers up that way any more, but I don't doubt they are in those woods for minute. Eglin has some thick woods, especially along some of the rivers and swampy areas. That's one reason the Rangers use parts of it for survival training. And hearing about a sighting from an experienced hunter like you makes it even more believable. Thanks for sharing the story!
