The Rutland and Leicestershire Panther Watch log for 2003 records that at about 6 pm on 13 April 2003 a panther-like cat was seen by three independent witnesses next to, and then on, the embankment of the East Coast Main Line at Essendine. The first witness phoned a friend, who arrived with binoculars and a camcorder; by then it was too far away to film, but she confirmed its size. A third witness elsewhere in the village, who had watched it at the same time, then contacted the log's author and confirmed it was a very large black cat like a panther. It climbed the bank and wandered along the tracks before going into cover.
The author comments that Essendine and nearby Ryhall have long been regular locations for panther reports, and that the Lincolnshire town of Bourne, five miles north, has been a big cat hotspot. He also notes that sightings on or near railways are common nationally.
There is no film, photograph or physical evidence in the account, and the witnesses are anonymous. The log is a hobbyist site. The three separate witnesses are the main reason to record it, with the caveat that they may have been prompted by one another.
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