Mountain Bikes Anger or Attract Mountain Lions

[Mike leroy]

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Believe me, if you are in cougar territory, know what a "screech-growl" sounds like. We were so damn confused, it only antagonized the cougar. A screech-growl means cease and desist. Like Boone Smith told me pay attention to the squirrels and birds.
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Cougar scrapes are aggressive territorial markers. I confused the many scrapes in the area with the lion using its claws for traction in the mud. I now know the area the cat is most likely to defend.

Enough cougar sightings have been reported in my park that Redwood City Parks no longer handles the issue. CA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife is dealing with the problem.​

I think mountain bikes anger or attract cougars. The warning sounds can be very confusing. We actually heard a "screech growl". After an hour we could not agree whether the "growls" were "gurgling" or "rumbling". In any event, we were totally confused. It me hours of anxiety to figure it out.

I followed over 100 mother/cub mountain lion tracks this morning. The tracks primarily followed a lone mountain biker for over 1 mile, in both directions! The cat crossed a creek and followed the bike tracks perpendicular to preceding trail. The cat turned around when it reached the street.

When I first noticed the tracks, i thought, oh no, not again! God damn, this happens after every rainfall. A friend lives next to the trail. I borrowed his spade to cut a perfect paw impression from the mud! He wears a .38 when he walks in his backyard. He also keep a pistol in the shed.

We decided the cats were marking their territory, because they felt their space was violated. This morning was unusually cold, but probably only coincidental. The cat patrolled the entire park perimeter. I think the lion's den is on a cliff above the creek, because the tracks always converge on that area. The deer footpath to the creek is in the same place.

I assume the same lion, named Silverhill, growled at my neighbor's dog. He walked his dog about 500 yards from my place. The dog panicked. The cat was hidden in the trees above the grass meadow where the deer regularly graze. Mountain lions have often been sighted at that spot.

He also had an encounter across the street at night. The dog freaked, so he shined the flashlight. He saw two red eyes, spread wide apart, inside a big head. I am sure it was Silverhill, because the lion made the evening TV news for killing a deer in a neighbor's backyard.

I guessed the cat followed the deer path through the brush switchbacks. Sure enough, like predicted, exactly what I expected. I find the same mother/cub pair of tracks there. These cats are creatures of habit.

My favorite picture using the same angle as the Mountain Lion TrailCam on Miramontes Trail:

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[Mike leroy]

I decided to install a trail camera or two to get some video. I am also considering using a drone.

 

[George S.]

 

[Mike leroy]

The cleaned up 4.5 inch Mountain Lion paw print:

View attachment 2695

Here is today's tracking. I dug this from the ground. It is five inches square. The cub print is adjacent. Two toes are in the top RH corner.
This location is within yards of the mountain bike trail that Silverhill tracked last time.

George,
Actually, stick your hand in the cougar mouth and pull down on the jaw. seriously. it will release you.

 

[Mike leroy]

View attachment 2695

George,
You have to see the cleaned up picture. I cut the paw print from the mud. One BIG cat! Scary!

 

[Mike Smith]

Why not just close the trail until the Cubs are gone. Following it will only provoke it and why kill a beautiful animal that it only ding what nature intended. Find a new trail to ride and leave the cougar to do its business. Why mess with it? That thing will eat you for breakfast and then have to be shot by the local authorities to "protect the community". Just leave it alone for 3 months and find another place to ride. Next thing we will have all ebikers sporting side arms. Move one man and go watch some birds.

 

[Mike leroy]

Why not just close the trail until the Cubs are gone. Following it will only provoke it and why kill a beautiful animal that it only ding what nature intended. Find a new trail to ride and leave the cougar to do its business. Why mess with it? That thing will eat you for breakfast and then have to be shot by the local authorities to "protect the community". Just leave it alone for 3 months and find another place to ride. Next thing we will have all ebikers sporting side arms. Move one man and go watch some birds.

I do not ride in the park. I used to run in the park. I only hike now.

For the complete picture, very small children were innocently playing directly upon the cat tracks today. I know the den location. I am very certain the cats were watching all of us from the den on the cliff.

I think the cat should be radio-collared. Do you know how long a cub lives with its mother? Try 18 months. You are only missing the mark by six-fold. I know the cat's habits very well. My guess is 50 to 100 dog walkers directly cross the cat's path each day.

There are untelligent and ignorant ways to co-exist. I guess some people think they know about 100 times less than reality concedes.

 

[Mike Smith]

Then close the bloody path be for it becomes a bloody path and take your children, dogs and hiking elsewhere for 18 months. Leave the cougar and cubs alone and they won't bother anyone. Bring a free meal to them and your on your own. Or else kill all the cougars wherever you live so the fat ass people can walk their dogs in safety. I thought ebiking was about being green and respecting nature and what you are proposing is the opposite. How about we put a radio collar on anyone tracking the cougars to find their remains when the cougar decides enough is enough. Sorry my friend but the cougars and other wildlife where there long before you, so leave them alone or move to an island where lizards are the only threat.

 

[Mike leroy]

Then close the bloody path be for it becomes a bloody path and take your children, dogs and hiking elsewhere for 18 months. Leave the cougar and cubs alone and they won't bother anyone. Bring a free meal to them and your on your own. Or else kill all the cougars wherever you live so the fat ass people can walk their dogs in safety. I thought ebiking was about being green and respecting nature and what you are proposing is the opposite. How about we put a radio collar on anyone tracking the cougars to find their remains when the cougar decides enough is enough. Sorry my friend but the cougars and other wildlife where there long before you, so leave them alone or move to an island where lizards are the only threat.

You might want to understand the absolute minimum about cougar territorial behavior. You are profoundly ignorant and making as ass out of yourself. You have no idea how Cougars are handled in our area. You are so presumptuous that you are revealing your IQ.

 

[Mike leroy]

My experience in female cougar territory is the activity is very unpredictable. Female territory may overlap five or more male territories. You may very well discover the female's tendencies. One can never Predict when a male arrives. We never saw a cat. One of the spookiest experience of my life!

You might be in for the surprise of your life! The sounds can be very confusing. We actually heard a "screech growl". After an hour we could not agree whether the "growls" were "gurgling" or "rumbling". In any event, we were totally confused. It me hours of anxiety to figure it out.

 

[Brambor]

I thought you were the male in the territory?

 

[Mike leroy]

A Mountain Lion about five miles away from Silverhill. This cat, MidGlen, is very predictable. I can almost always find its tracks in leaves.

 

[Mike leroy]

A helicopter with an elephant seal-like nose cone has been flying all over the park and drainage area today. I believe CA DFW is looking for the cougar.

 

[Mike leroy]

Skyline Hike Found four new mountain lions today. Tracked one cat about half a mile.

 

[Mike leroy]

Deep in the heart of cougar habitat, miles from any medical assistance, you find the most unexpected insects. The trail is "trippy" because the insect life seems so out of place. Grassy meadows abruptly turn into redwood groves. I love this area. Dragonflies and butterflies flourish. The Clodius Parnassian butterflies number in the hundreds or thousands. Every few feet, a couple of butterflies scatter along the trail. Cabbage White butterflies are less common.

I have not identified the dragonflies, but some are very vibrant colors. I believe they breed in the perennial natural springs caused by the San Andreas fault. This area is an ecological wonder and must be unique.

The following picture is the epitomy of "ambush habitat", rock cliffs along a redwood tree-lined creek. This area is the most beautiful in my area. The last three of times I hiked this area, I encountered exactly one other person. The area is spooky because it seems so perfect for mountain lion hunting, which does occur along this creek. The creek flows without rain, albeit only one inch deep. The only water source for miles, so the deer must come to the creek for fresh water. The area has an abundant deer population -- too much for my liking.

I found four cougar tracks at the trail head. I always find deer in the area. I do not want deer near me when I hike this area. I blow my whistle at the deer to make them scatter. However, the deer that live in nearby backyards are so habituated to humans that my whistle does nothing but attract a stare. When the whistle fails, I make cougar noises. Usually the deer trot along. Some still stare at me, as if to say, you do not fool me. But I know they are scared because they bounce an inch off the ground. The deer remain motionless to avoid predator detection. Too many deer squeezed into suburban fragmentation.

The deer all look scrawny this year. My guess is the 100-year drought is affecting their food supply.

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[Mike leroy]

Today found two mountain lion camera from Bay Area Puma Research. I expected to find lion evidence in these two places. Got lucky and found cameras within 200 yards of expected activity. Video.

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I believe the salamander is an Ensatina. The banana slug was about six inches. The butterfly is a Western Tiger Swallowtail. The deer are so relaxed that I came within ten feet of the deer.

 

[Mike leroy]

What in the world is a male duck (drake) doing in the middle of the Redwood forest? So weird! The creek is flowing faster and higher than usual. The water is forced to the surface from the San Andreas fault. I wonder if spring activity is an earthquake indicator? The water table should be at an all-time low because we are experiencing a once-in-a-100-year drought.

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Mountain lion camera angles for Lonely Trail (#5) and Miramontes Trail (#2). The first picture is near a creek. Either the lions and/or prey like to drink from the creek at 1600 feet. This year is a 100 year drought, so water is very limited. The exceptions are perennial seeps and springs caused by the San Andreas fault line, which runs through the park.

The second picture is also near a creek. The lions like to sleep in the brush during the daytime. This camera is at a low elevation, 800 feet.

The second consecutive day a helicopter patrolled the park near the water tank. The last DEA bust netted 12,00o pot plants with four inch diameter stalks. Straight out a movie, DEA dropped in by helicopter with assault rifles, dressed in camoflouged clothing. The pot growers tap into the water supply, so the DEA circles above the water tanks and pipelines.

The chopper flew so low that I felt the rotor pressure. Spooky! The chopper only cleared the redwood trees by 100 feet. The Vietnam war must have been psychological torture.

 

[Mike Smith]

What do any of these posts have to do with ebikes? Pictures of salamanders and mt lion tracks? Just leave them alone before you get eaten like the Grizzly Man, lol. There has to be a better forum for your posts. Like "the tracking and want to be eaten by a mt lion coalition of CA". Maybe I'm missing something here but I thought this was a community forum to discuss ebike issues. It seems like you have your own personal agenda here. I've had my own experience with carnivorous wild things so please don't call me ignorant again , because all you/we are to them is a free meal. Happy hiking.

 

[Mike leroy]

What do any of these posts have to do with ebikes? Pictures of salamanders and mt lion tracks? Just leave them alone before you get eaten like the Grizzly Man, lol. There has to be a better forum for your posts. Like "the tracking and want to be eaten by a mt lion coalition of CA". Maybe I'm missing something here but I thought this was a community forum to discuss ebike issues. It seems like you have your own personal agenda here. I've had my own experience with carnivorous wild things so please don't call me ignorant again , because all you/we are to them is a free meal. Happy hiking.

Why do you automatically "follow" my posts if you are against them? I believe the legal term is "Stalking".

Obviously, you selectively read to find the parts you want to pick upon. How about the people who unknowingly ride their mountain bikes over mountain lion tracks? What about the six year old kid in Cupertino, CA who was attacked by lion six months ago? The father had to pull the kid from the cougar's mouth? That area is as good as mountain biking territory gets in my area.

People do ride their mountain bikes past these cameras. The riders obviously have no idea of this cougar hotspot. So redhot that five TrailCams monitor the lion activity. If cougars are wary of people, their attack instinct will be invoked by anything moving quickly away from them. Especially, irresistible high speed cyclists.

I reported you for harassment. Your comments are disingenuous, inappropriate and way over the top. Cease your communications with me. Your actions are harassment.

A unique bike, Mike Smith.

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[Mike leroy]

The reason it is nearly impossible to get close or even see a mountain lion is due to the fact that they seclude themselves in cliffs and brush that is practically inaccessible to humans. I do not own a tracking dog, but this is what the entrance to a real life cougar den looks like. The camera angle does not show the sheer rock cliff about 20 yards from the entrance.

I hike 10 to 20 miles in some extremely remote, steep and rugged terrain. This type of bushwhacking is beyond my ability.