The Ozark Howler: Monster Cat in the Ozarks?

Ozarks of Arkansas

One of my favorite stories from my years of living in different parts of the South is the tale of the Ozark Howler in Arkansas. (It is also said to live in Missouri and Oklahoma, maybe even in Texas).
Now let me be clear from the start that this mysterious animal or beast or monster or whatever it is has been the focus of an incredibly large number of hoaxes and false reports. One hoaxer even admitted to a researcher that he spread as many false stories as he could to poke fun at the Chupacabra craze that swept through Texas a decade or so ago.

Small Waterfall in the Ozarks

That said, there are real stories from sincere eyewitnesses of a strange creature roaming through the Ozark Mountains. Its nightly cries are said to sound like a the screams of a woman.

I first heard reasonable eyewitnesses talk about the Arkansas Howler in 2004 when I was living in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Several people that I talked to who had seen or heard it or found its prints did not believe it to be a real "monster," but instead thought that a mountain lion or cougar was loose in the Boston Mountains that stretch between Fort Smith and Van Buren on the south and the booming Northwest Arkansas corridor.

Wildlife authorities maintained at that time that there were no native cougars left in Arkansas. Nevertheless, residents who lived in and along the fringes of the Boston Mountains, which are part of the Ozarks, were serious in their claims that a large animal was roaming their neighborhoods.



Cougar as seen in a USDA Photo

The most convincing evidence I saw during my time in Arkansas were photos from a trail cam belonging to a couple that lived north of Van Buren in Crawford County. The photos without doubt showed a large, tawny cat that looked just like a cougar to me. State wildlife officials did not dispute that it could be a big cat, they simply point out that there is no evidence of a breeding population of such animals in Arkansas.

Be that as it may, they do agree that there could be cougars or other large cats roaming the wild areas of the Ozarks, just believe that if they are there, they were someone's pets that either escaped or were released by their owners when they got too big and dangerous.

The Ozarks from White Rock Mountain

Now to be fair, other eyewitnesses claim to have seem something much more monstrous than a cougar in the hills and hollows of the Ozarks. Sightings ranging from a cat much bigger than a cougar to a cat-like monster with glowing eyes and horns growing from its head have been reported.

Whatever it is, and a recent investigation in Newton County, Arkansas, obtained plaster casts of what a biologist identified as possible Puma tracks (Puma is another name for a big cat like a cougar), the Ozark Howler is very much part of the modern folklore and tradition of the Ozarks.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ozarkhowler.

Summer Escapes #1 - White Rock Mountain, Arkansas

With much of the Deep South gripped in a heat wave, I thought I would spend some time over the next week or so telling you more about some of my favorite summer escapes.

White Rock Mountain is located in the Ozarks of western Arkansas. An easy drive (if you don't mind a few bumps and dirt roads!) from Fort Smith and Fayetteville as well as the growing Northwest Arkansas Metro, the mountain is part of the Ozark National Forest and offers some of the most spectacular views in the region.

Historically, the mountain is unique because it overlooks some of the rugged land popular as hideouts for guerrilla bands during the Civil War and the rough years that followed. The park on the top, along with its beautiful old stone cabins and lodge, was a Depression-era project that is now more than 70 years old. The cabins and lodge have been restored and the park is among the most beautiful in the South.

What makes White Rock Mountain such a great hot weather escape, particularly for those suffering in the heat and humidity of the Arkansas River Valley, is the fact that the overlook on the point of the mountain projects out over two connecting valleys. The breezes swirling up to the point are cool and refreshing on almost any summer day. The temperature on top of the mountain is well below that down in the valleys.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/whiterock.

White Rock Mountain - Arkansas

Located deep in the Ozark National Forest in western Arkansas, White Rock Mountain provides some of the most spectacular views to be found in the South.

A part of the Ozarks region that covers large areas of Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas, the mountain takes its name from the sheer rock cliffs that surround its crest. An unusual lichen that grows on the rocks give the cliffs a striking white appearance when viewed from a distance.

The drive to the mountain is a bit of an adventure. It requires navigating several miles of bumpy and often steep gravel roads, but the view at the top is well worth the journey. A recreation area that is now itself a historic site was built atop the mountain as a public works project during the Great Depression. Three original stone cabins and a beautiful old lodge are now available there for overnight guests. In addition, hiking trails lead past a series of overlooks built by Depression era workers to help visitors experience the spectacular mountain views.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/whiterock. One note, this area of the Ozarks experienced heavy damage in this year's ice storm. The cabins, etc., on the mountain are open, but cleanup work is continuing on roads, hiking trails and at other recreation spots in the area.