View Full Version : What kind of protection for a mountain lion?
hikerboy57
06-11-2011, 10:01
recently Ive heard mountain lions are all over the Northern half of the AT.should I bring pepper spray? is a swiss army knife good enough? do you hang your food?
CrumbSnatcher
06-11-2011, 10:03
just hike with someone slower than you, or trip the guy trying to run past you, cause he spotted it first :-)
Shouldn't be a problem. Different number of chromosomes.
Protection FOR a mountain lion? I suggest he wear a bullet-proof vest, because a lot of AT hikers carry guns. Yep.
Protection FROM a mountain lion? Just practice saying 'here, kitty, kitty' your most saccharine voice. If my cat is typical of the felinae, her response to the above is to run in the opposite direction as fast as possible.
55 gallon polyethylene drum (steel weighs too much) with a lid that can be opened from the inside. Absolutely waterproof. Just hope that someone doesn't kick it downhill with you inside.
Sarcasm the elf
06-11-2011, 10:27
According to the Greenwich resident interviewed in the local paper, if the mountain lion gives them any trouble, they will just bop it on the head with their golf clubs.
Second Half
06-11-2011, 10:41
This website should have what you need:
http://www.theincontinencestore.com/
you probably won't see the ML until its too late to do anything to protect yourself.
Panzer
If you actually happen across a mountain lion the only thing to do is be loud and make yourself "big." That is, don't run or crouch down to make yourself smaller. If you're in a close enough position to think you need to use spray, it's too late.
If you're hiking with people, normal conversation should be enough to keep the average mountain lion away. If you're hiking alone and are concerned about it, make noise every once in a while (bang your trekking poles together, sing, or whatever).
Don't worry about hanging your food - it's you they to want to eat. Of course, if you're packing some tri-tip for the trail, you might want to cook those up first.
Sarcasm the elf
06-11-2011, 11:57
According to the Greenwich resident interviewed in the local paper, if the mountain lion gives them any trouble, they will just bop it on the head with their golf clubs.
In case you thought I was joking, here is the link to the article:
http://m.stamfordadvocate.com/stamford/db_34094/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=aOklYZOE&src=cat
Carl in FL
06-11-2011, 12:04
The simple approach to a solution here is to think of what the mountain lion wants
more than anything. In this case, the best answer is to travel with a spare mountain
lion of the opposite sex. In the event of a potential attack, release your spare mountain lion.
atraildreamer
06-11-2011, 12:46
recently Ive heard mountain lions are all over the Northern half of the AT.should I bring pepper spray? is a swiss army knife good enough? do you hang your food?
Bring some cat treats for them to snack on! :D If you can make friends with one of the mountain lions, they'll clear out the shelter mice for you! :banana
Or...you can fight back! (See attachment.) :-?
The only mountain lion I've seen while hiking was standing over my food bag. When I got up in the morning my food bag had slobber all over the bottom.
Hope and pray that they like GORP and beef jerky!
If I was to encounter a mointain lion, puma, catamount, etc(all different names for the same cat) I would feel privledged. It's rare, typically very rare to see one! I have seen sign(tracks, scat, scratchings, leftover cat killed carcasses, etc) but I have not seen one yet. That doesn't mean they haven't been watching me though! I have never felt threatened by them even though they could kill me. It's not likely they would see me as an easy meal. I'm a big guy. I carry a can of Whiskers or Friskies with me when in big cat country to lure them in but it hasn't worked so far to the best of my knowledge. I hear they really like the chicken flavored cat food.
They are elusive. They make great hunter trophies for bragadocious hunters. Humans like killing them because they are considered by some folks as predatory threats. Most of us have probably seen a wildlife scene/painting depicting a mountain lion higher up on a perch about to attack a cowboy, settler, etc. Humans don't always take kindly to coexisting with something they feel threatened by or something that can kill or compete with them. I suspect humans will not have to contend with them in the wild for very much longer. They will be gone and then I will have to try to feed the leopards coming across the southern border with Mexico.
Shooting Star
06-12-2011, 10:17
I think bear spray would work great on these guys. But in the east US, there
is such an abundance of deer that I doubt any Mountain Lions here would
consider people to be much of a meal. Why eat meatloaf when you can have
prime rib? They know those funny upright creatures are trouble and keep their
distance.
Tim Miner
06-12-2011, 10:44
:p
recently Ive heard mountain lions are all over the Northern half of the AT.should I bring pepper spray? is a swiss army knife good enough? do you hang your food?
Pepper spray would be a good choice of condiment and add a fork to the swiss army knife (unless it comes with one). I've found when I hang my mountain lion for "curing" not to let it hang for more than 2 days depending upon how hot it is outside. It kinda tastes like chicken!
we can rest assure car 1 mountain lion zero