RangerDanger
New Member
This occured at Henninger Flats, a facility above Santa Anita Canyon (maybe Eaton Canyon) up in the San Gabriels (Angeles Nat'l Forest).
There is a tree farm, fire fighting equip, 2 nature centers and 2 campgrounds.
One of the best aspects about the campgrounds--free firewood!
It's about a 3 or 4 mile each way hike, somewhat stenuous in parts, but worth it imo.
I was a docent at the nature centers. One evening I was camped and was the only person at the campgrounds (mid-week, in the winter).
I took an evening stroll between the 2 campgrounds, sperated by about a few hundred yards.
It was foggy and around dusk. I was walking up the trail, rounded a bend and suddenly found my self face-to-face with a mountain lion!
We were about 30' apart when we first saw each other.
We both froze for a few seconds, then the mountain lion turned around and took off at full-speed.
It's rare to have such a close encounter. Usually the lion can smell/hear you before you see it and will take off. But fog cut down on smell and hearing.
In my job as a campground host I was asked often about the dangerous animals in the woods.
Rattlesnakes? Make a lot of noise and the rattlesnakes will flee. The only coil up/attack when they feel their life's in danger.
Bears? Also terrified of humans.
Mountain lions, bobcats, etc.--same thing.
Is there an animal to fear in the woods?
Absolutely.
People.
Animals attack only when they feel threatened. They prefer to flee asap.
People however have been know to harrass/attack for no reason except that they can.
Luckily, the further into the woods a person hikes, the less chance they have of encountering a person with evil intent. The scum usually prefer NOT to walk very far. 99.9% of the people you encounter deep in the woods are cool. It's the .1% that are the problem.
For that reason I always recommend that women NEVER hike alone. Not even in 2's, unless they can run fast, know self-defense, and/or have a deterrent of some sort, like pepper spray.
But the dangers to life and limb are much higher on the streets of any city.
In 35 years of backpacking I have only encountered true scum a few times, and never had a truely bad experience with them. But the advantages of backpacking far outweigh the negative aspects.
Fresh air, excersize, peace and serenity are a few of the benefits.
Lazing in a hammock pitched between 2 tall tree's, the bonding with people of like interests, fishing, and the simple pleasure of getting high around a campfire.
Don't worry about the wild animals. I've had more bad experiences with mosquito's and gnats than with wild animals.
There is a tree farm, fire fighting equip, 2 nature centers and 2 campgrounds.
One of the best aspects about the campgrounds--free firewood!
It's about a 3 or 4 mile each way hike, somewhat stenuous in parts, but worth it imo.
I was a docent at the nature centers. One evening I was camped and was the only person at the campgrounds (mid-week, in the winter).
I took an evening stroll between the 2 campgrounds, sperated by about a few hundred yards.
It was foggy and around dusk. I was walking up the trail, rounded a bend and suddenly found my self face-to-face with a mountain lion!
We were about 30' apart when we first saw each other.
We both froze for a few seconds, then the mountain lion turned around and took off at full-speed.
It's rare to have such a close encounter. Usually the lion can smell/hear you before you see it and will take off. But fog cut down on smell and hearing.
In my job as a campground host I was asked often about the dangerous animals in the woods.
Rattlesnakes? Make a lot of noise and the rattlesnakes will flee. The only coil up/attack when they feel their life's in danger.
Bears? Also terrified of humans.
Mountain lions, bobcats, etc.--same thing.
Is there an animal to fear in the woods?
Absolutely.
People.
Animals attack only when they feel threatened. They prefer to flee asap.
People however have been know to harrass/attack for no reason except that they can.
Luckily, the further into the woods a person hikes, the less chance they have of encountering a person with evil intent. The scum usually prefer NOT to walk very far. 99.9% of the people you encounter deep in the woods are cool. It's the .1% that are the problem.
For that reason I always recommend that women NEVER hike alone. Not even in 2's, unless they can run fast, know self-defense, and/or have a deterrent of some sort, like pepper spray.
But the dangers to life and limb are much higher on the streets of any city.
In 35 years of backpacking I have only encountered true scum a few times, and never had a truely bad experience with them. But the advantages of backpacking far outweigh the negative aspects.
Fresh air, excersize, peace and serenity are a few of the benefits.
Lazing in a hammock pitched between 2 tall tree's, the bonding with people of like interests, fishing, and the simple pleasure of getting high around a campfire.
Don't worry about the wild animals. I've had more bad experiences with mosquito's and gnats than with wild animals.
