Mountain Lion Attack Up the Road

[TromboneAl]

This mountain lion attack happened just up the road from us. We often hike in that park, and we've see one of these cats near our house.

Cat attacks are rare, and it's even more unusual for one to attack two adults, but I think I'll carry a knife in my belt next time I go hiking.

 

[Martha]

Better yet, take your wife.

 

[brewer12345]

I would have to guess that a can of pepper spray would be m ore effective.

 

[TromboneAl]

I read this book: Cat Attacks

a few years ago. Very interesting.

 

[dex]

get bear spray - If it gets close enough for you to use a knife; it may be too late.

 

[Sandy]

Give your wife the pepper spray and knife.

 

[TromboneAl]

If it gets close enough for you to use a knife; it may be too late.

I know what you mean, but in many of the attacks I've read about, there is a prolonged struggle with the cat.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Wear good sneakers and bring someone that you're faster than.

I had a neighbor up the street from me that eschewed the "no trespassing" signs on his large lakeside property in favor of a printed "mountain lion attack" newspaper article stapled to the trees near the roadside. Only thing is, the article was something he faked up, saying that several mountain lions were seen near the area he lived...he said his trespassers dropped to zero after posting the faux 'article'.

Bear spray...whats that old joke? In bear country, wear bells and carry pepper spray...and when you see dung full of bells and smelling vaguely of peppers, you know its bear doody?

 

[Dawg52]

Better yet, take your wife.

Are you implying his wife will scare off the cat?

 

[dumpster56]

What do you do if you come across a bear or mountain lion in the woods on a hike? Throw $hit in its face. Where are you gonna get the cr@p? Oh it will be there!!

 

[KB]

One of the people listed in the book Al mentioned.....Cat Attacks .... lived in the next county from where I live. Her name was Barbara Schoener and she was killed by a mountain lion while jogging on one of her regular jogging paths. It was in a rather rural area, but the first human death in our area in quite awhile. It was all over the local papers. Lots of concerns about cats moving closer to civilization...or maybe civilization moving into their natural habitat.

I live in a more populated area ..... at the edge of a subdivision but close to the hills...and had a bobcat walking behind my wrought iron back fence last week. When I banged on my glass slider, the cat just looked at me and kept walking . Didn't even scare him a bit. I hear coyotes nearby occasionally, see raccoons, but never have seen a bobcat nearby. Kinda scary.

 

[Craig]

Frankly, a good .44 mag or at least a .357 mag revolver seems the way to go, where legal, with training.

 

[Khan]

Some folks think that maybe cougar attacks are the result of people releasing exotic pets when they are too much trouble. The 'pets' don't know how to hunt (humans are the easiest prey) and they aren't afraid of humans.

 

[Jarhead*]

I live in one of the highest density of Mountain Lions, in North America.
(Sierras).

They don't want anything to do with you. The same things with black bears.

In the 50 years plus, I've spent tromping around the area, fly-fishing and
hunting, I've spotted probably in the 100's of those magnificant cats. Likewise black bears. The second they are aware of you, they'll show you their heels.

I've never heard of an attack in the area.

I didn't read the book, but my guess is that it would be higher odds than
winning the lottery.

 

[bosco]

Frankly, a good .44 mag or at least a .357 mag revolver seems the way to go, where legal, with training.

shoot your buddy in the leg and run!

 

[youbet]

They don't want anything to do with you. The same things with black bears.

Actually black bears can be a nuisance and you do need to take precautions. If your home is in bear country, garbage, bird feeders and other sources of potential food for pesky scavaging bears must be kept properly out of reach. When camping, it's essential to keep a clean camp and store food by hanging it in a tree or keeping it in a bear proof container away from where you sleep.

I do some canoe camping in the BWCAW (USA) and Quetico Provincial Park (Canada) and have never had a negative black bear experience. I did have one minor scare though........ One night while camped on the Falls Chain, I crawled out of the tent in the middle of the night to pee and found myself near face-to-face with a bear. I spoke to it in a firm tone. It trotted away. My urge to pee completely subsided and I crawled back into the tent.

 

[Jarhead*]

Actually black bears can be a nuisance and you do need to take precautions. If your home is in bear country, garbage, bird feeders and other sources of potential food for pesky scavaging bears must be kept properly out of reach. When camping, it's essential to keep a clean camp and store food by hanging it in a tree or keeping it in a bear proof container away from where you sleep.

Youbet: Absolutely true, re: black bears, and allowing them to find an easy source of food.

My post was mainly for the hikers, etc. that were concerned about the "attacks" from mountain lions.

We built our home on the rim of a canyon, and our nearest neighbor is about a mile away. (We've had a number of incidents in the past where a black bear has beat the garbage guy to the "goodies".

We pretty much solved that by waiting the day of the p/up before putting it out. And also have a large male Lab that has a vicious bark.

In any case, re: Hikers, etc., not much to worry about there.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Although i've lived in cat country for most of the last 15 years, only seen one. Camping on the Russian River, I went down to the river in the morning to get some water and clean up. As I picked up my head there was a big cat taking a drink right opposite me and keeping a close eye as he did.

All I could think of was "Hmm...this waters about a foot deep...except for my girlfriend back at the empty campsite, there isnt another human being within 10 miles of us. Uh oh."

But as I backed slowly away he turned and walked along the river away from me.

Told my girlfriend and we promptly went and checked into a bed and breakfast. Which turned out great, btw!

 

[TromboneAl]

The black bear we had here stopped worrying about those silly humans after he cleaned out my neighbor's freezer from her garage, and got some good feasts from bird feeders, compost bins, and garbage cans. He became harder and harder to scare off, and I think fish and game finally shot him.

 

[Martha]

We have quit a few black bears around here. I have even seen them in the city when walking to work.

I never was much worried about the bears as they are easily startled and run off. But in the last few years people have been attacked (though no one killed) by black bears in our area. One was a teenager on a scout camping trip. A bear dragged him out of his tent and mauled him, he was rescued by other campers.

Another was a woman out for a walk in the woods. A black bear attacked her. She and her dog fought back:

I punched it in the nose -- I mean, each time it charged me. I whistled for my dog to distract the bear, and the dog ran by behind the bear, and the bear went after the dog, and as soon as the dog outran the bear, the bear came back and chased at me again," Mann said.

"At that point it took a swipe out of my knee, and the dog went by again, and it chased the dog again, and I looked at my knee and it really hurt bad, and I kind of went "ahhh." And the bear heard me and came back," Mann said.


"That's when it knocked me down to the ground, and grabbed me by the waist and shook me, and grabbed my armpit. And then it just looked up and it took off again, and at that point I just stood up and walked away as fast as I could," she said.

Until now, the bear stood on the path between Munn and her home, but this time the way was clear. Munn started for home, a quarter of a mile away. She never looked back.

"I didn't want to see it. I didn't want to look back, because I just had no more defenses. And I just kept walking and hoping it wasn't behind me," said Mann. "And my dog joined me again about 50 feet later, and she stayed with me on the rest of the walk home."

Munn called 911 from her house. She rested in the shade outside her home and waited for the police.



http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org/features/2005/08/01_kelleherb_bearattack/


Because of these increasing incidents I am not quite as comfortable around bears.

 

[Craig]

Very creative, bosco.

 

[yelnad]

During certain times of the year I will only take the 4 wheeler to get the mail 1/4 mile through the woods. I won't walk. My husband and father carry a handgun. Our driveway is very narrow and a mother and cubs often cut across it on their way through. There's no way I want to accidentally come between them.