Exciting Day

[NuggetN8]

So today I went on a sniping trip to the middle fork American. I got down there pretty early around 7 or so. I started down river to find the spot I found last year and wanted to try sniping. I came to this big bar full of cobbles sand and gravels and notices a lion print. Looked pretty fresh to me but didn't think much of it. I figured it could have been from the night before. I continued along a wall of brush and trees between me and the river. I saw an opening where I could see the water so I decided to go check it out and see if there was any bedrock to snipe. I came around the corner and the mountain lion who's tracks I had seen was standing right there about 5 feet away from me. He wasn't a huge one just a little bigger than a large German shepherd. As soon as I saw him I let out a "HOLY S***!!!!!!!" And started pounding my walking stick against the cobbles and ran towards him a little ways. He was gone in a matter of seconds.. Lol. Despite how I reacted to seeing him that made my whole trip. It's amazing to see one of those animals up close in the wild. I know he could have torn me to shreds if he wanted to but he didn't want any trouble he was just getting a drink at the waters edge when a human came along and started yelling and slapping a stick around. Well anyways after that experience I decided to turn back and find another area to snipe away from Mr. Kitty. I found an area where the bedrock slopes down and had some little valleys in it. So I threw my wetsuit on and jumped in and sniped until about 10:30ish the water level started changing pretty drastically. I think it came up about 5 or more feet in an hour. So I ended up getting flooded out of my sniping hole because I couldn't reach the bottom anymore and the water was too swift and cold for me to want to dive down over and over. Here's some pictures. One of the kitty tracks, quartz/gold picker I found, and the total. Only got a gram but would have done much better if the water level didn't come up. Video on the way too but it will take a minute because I have to post from my computer. The video isn't that great but it's pretty difficult to snipe and film at the same time. I just did the recovery of one piece that I found today.

 

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[Oakview2]

Decimated is a funny word to use here. What has happened is a return to the natural balance of predator and prey animals. To counter their "attack from the back" strategy, stick "eyes" on the back of a hat...this will fake them out and make you safer...really!

Maybe bring the grizzly back and return the natural balance, I would suggest planting them in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco first. Good luck with that eyes on the back of your hat defense.

 

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[Duckwalk]

Mountain lions, Fox, and Coyote are very common in my neck of the woods. the lions are a bit more rare to see but we know they are here. ive had more than a few cats killed by coyotes in the past and we have a family of Foxes that live in the woods where i am. we see them walking the road in the wee hours of the mornings. my neighbor has chickens so him and myself always check the pin before we hit the sack to make sure nothing has scaled the wire or dug underneath. ive killed more coyotes than i can count out here. they are a pain in the arse. always getting my hunting dogs riled up and killing my daughters cats. I get tired trying to explain to her that outside in the woods is no place for a pet cat.

Edit: im not a mindless killer of coyotes BTW. i only kill them on sight because i know what diseases they carry and that they can pass them on to my dogs. Rabies is a real threat down here in GA when it comes to coyotes and even the raccoon. if you see a raccoon out in the day time, chances are its either literally starving to death in search of food, or it has rabies.

 

[squiggy]

That's right..no cats should be allowed in the woods!
Because we live in wilderness area, we built an enclosure for them, and they have access to house threw ramp that goes into house, but never access after dark..they need to be kept safe!

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk

 

[Duckwalk]

Yes i agree. i literally live in the woods. there are 6 houses where i live on a road cut out of the woods away from modern civilization.

 

[NuggetN8]

In other countries where they have bigger cats natives mount spears on their backs so if a cat jumps them from behind it gets impaled. Don't think that's really necessary around here though it's a pretty good idea.

 

[DizzyDigger]

For some it's better, but I wouldn't have another "indoor
only" cat. Seems to me all they do is eat, shed, sleep, use
the litter box and then sleep some more. JMHO, of course...

All three of my cats grew up feral, and over time I was able
to socialize them..at least to a degree. 2 of them will leave
only a vapor trail if anyone but my wife, my neighbor or
me approach them. One (Fat Tom) turned into a complete
clown, and loves everybody.

Wife and I live in a rural, rainforest area deep in Skagit
Valley, which is 10 miles north of Oso, where the recent
devastating slide happened.

Here's a shot of the backyard..



These cats know the dangers, and have learned to deal
with them and survive. We frequently have coyotes and
bobcat in the area, they see raccoon on a daily basis,
the sky is filled with Bald eagles in the daytime, and big old
owls at night. My youngest cat is 8, so they must be doin'
something right. Several years back I had to shoot a
bobcat right in our front yard. Poor old thing was in it's
late, late years, and no longer had the tools to hunt, so
she was catching house cats for chow.

I know it's always a risk I could lose one, but a cat needs
to be out doing cat stuff, and like any cat they like to wander
their area, fight for it if need be, and hunt little critters to
keep dad happy..

They don't travel far off the reservation they've claimed,
which covers an area about 2 acres in size. First sign of
a dog entering their turf, they head for the front porch where
they know it's safe.

Beauty is, the mice and mole populations are kept in check

 

[Fullpan]

Maybe bring the grizzly back and return the natural balance, I would suggest planting them in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco first. Good luck with that eyes on the back of your hat defense.

Yes - the re-pristiner greenies conveniently ignore the Golden bear on the calif. state flag is a Grizzly bear. You don't see any mass petitions calling for re-introduction of the grizzly, do you ? Come on you enviros - lets restore the natural, delicate balance of the fragile eco-system in the Sierra !! For that matter,
where are the vast herds of Elk in the valleys and foothills ? Could it be they might trample your vineyards ? Can't have native species screwing up your non-native acres of wine grapes. As Hoser says, sic, sic, sic.

 

[DizzyDigger]

Far as I know, Elk aren't native to Calif., but were
transplanted there by Roosevelt long ago. They've
still got a decent Tule Elk herd in N. Cal. as far as I
know (unless they've been poached out).

Re-introduction of the Grizzly might also bring down
overpopulation of mountain lion, as the two would
be competing for the same food sources. Downside
would be that grizzlies eat a lot of red meat, and the
deer and Elk population would suffer as a result, but
they would eventually balance out after a few decades.

How's California's Wolf population?

 

[Fullpan]

Hi Mike - I'm no expert on Elk, but have read accounts of pre-gold rush descriptions of large elk herds. As for the wolf, there is one wandering around norcal, or not, lol.

 

[Oakview2]

Tule elk - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Oakview2]

Fullpan, there is a neo enviormental group calling for renintroduction of both the grizzly and the timber wolf

 

[Fullpan]

Love to see a greenie go up against a grizzly on some hiking trail armed with bear spray...

 

[Duckwalk]

my wife carries bear spray in her purse instead of pepper spray. ive never been hit with bear spray but once i dropped my keys while falling into my driver seat while closing the door all at the same time and crushed a small key chain pepper spray. it engulfed the entire car. snot, tear, and drool were everywhere. i couldnt catch a breath to save my life

 

[DizzyDigger]

This is how the Canadians warn you:

 

[goldchaser3]

NuggetN8, I'm impressed that you were able to sneak up on a mountain lion! I always try to make noise just because I don't want to surprise anything!

 

[NuggetN8]

Going back to the same area Saturday to do more sniping. Bringing a buddy this time just in case lol. I'll bring a camera and have it ready if I see fresh tracks again.

 

[goldenmojo]

Bells on your shoes?

 

[NuggetN8]

Bells on your shoes?

No bells lol.

 

[NuggetN8]

I think bells might actually attract a cougar... Cats are curious animals. I'd be like a giant jingling cat toy.

 

[AzViper]

Lion who was cornered. A human does not want to be in this position without a weapon.