How would you interpret this?

[WildernesStudent]

Someone once told me that part of being a good hiker is being able to read the woods around you and being able to interpret and act on it based on your instincts. Now, I would like to know whether this is true or not especially considering something that happened a while a go that still has me thinking.

 

I feel perfectly safe in our woods. Its true, and though a few others have warned me that this is dangerous thinking, I feel as though nothing could ever happen in our woodsmy woods. Now, I dont hike by myself anymore but I used to a lotI like being surrounded by nature (call me new-agy if you want to but I think it speaks to us sometimes) One day I started on a hike on the same trail I always took (at that point I was hiking the same trail by myself about once a day) and something was wrong. I couldnt put my finger on it but something was defiantly different. There was tension in the air and the farther down the path I walked the worse it got. I found my destination (a nice little spot with a small waterfall by a creek) but didnt stay for very long because even though in that place I always felt safe and peaceful, that day it wasnt. My first instinct was GO BACKFAST!! But I couldnt understand why. I left and headed down the path and that is when I realized what was different about my woods.

 

It was the middle of the afternoon, the sun was shiningnot a storm cloud in the sky but the woods were silent. I didnt hear a bird, or a squirrel or even a flyit was as if everything had died. Now, I have experienced that kind of silence beforeusually before a very big storm like a tornado but as it was sunny outside I was starting to get even more concerned. I walked down the path a bit and that is when I started to realize that I could hear one other thingsomething like faint breathing or slight footsteps, though I couldnt pin point it and that is when I recognized the other feelingthe feeling of being watched. My first instinct was panic the second was curiosity and the third was to take a deep breath and calmly head back the way I had come. I noticed that when I stopped walking whatever that noise was also stoppedI couldnt see anything but I could hear it, though faintly. It was then that I recognized the feeling of not only being watched but being stalked.

Now, at that time I was not familiar with the animals native to the North GA woods but for some reason the first thing that popped into my mind was some kind of catwild cat. I have a house cat, Ive watched it play and stalk little animals in the yard and to be honest I would rather meet a bear any day. Now, I am not a calm person by nature. (oh noI can panic quite well) but my first instinct in this situation was this: running = dying, remain calm no matter what! This in itself shocked me because thinking rationally is not something I usually doI wanted to book it out of there! I kept track of how close I was getting back toward campus wondering how far an animal would actually go to people and noticed that once I crossed one of the creeks (which put a creek of about 12 feet between me and the side of the woods I thought the noise was coming from) I still felt watched but not stalked.

Two days later I found out that a cougar had been spotted in our woods.

 

Now my question is this. Had anyone had anything similar to this? After I told my friends about this they simply believed I had gotten spooked out there by myself (one of my guy friends even took me and another friend out there in the dark to prove there was nothing therethere wasnt at least that time). Is it possible to read the woods or was it just a one time coincidenceafter all, as my friends were kind enough to point out, besides for the noise I thought I heard I never actually saw anythingmost of it was based on what I was feeling. I dont knowI dont go hiking alone as much more, at least that is what I got out of my little adventure. I just wondered what you might think of this story.

 

[vol_scouter]

I believe that many of us have had a similar experience. Our brains, if we allow them, perform continual pattern recognition analysis. Whenever the pattern is changed, it comes to our conscience. I think that we should at least respect if not heed those intuitions. It has developed to prevent us from being eaten by the big cats, etc. I would imagine that the mountain lion was nearby else why did the woods become quiet (often happens with a large predator) and that was part of your pattern recognition (it involves all of our senses if we allow it).

[Basementdweller]

The "woods" especially on the east coast and mid west have changed since I was a kid, early 70's. Where I grew up we never saw bears, now they are common. I am told that my father saw a cougar in one of the back pastures one morning just after new years. Yikes.

 

Over xmas while visiting my parents house I was taking my son to see my old tree house in the woods. As we got ready my father handed me his hand gun and said just take it with you. A 70 year old farmer packing a hand gun on his own farm whats up with that. He said that most of the barn cats are gone. they had 30 or so at one point and they are down to about 5. Coyotes eating them.

 

We are not the very top of the food chain any more. Especially if your alone.

 

 

[CalicoPenn]

Wild,

 

You may still be pretty new to the exploration of the outdoors, but I'd take you on a trip with me anytime. You seem to have a natural affinity for the outdoors and an attunement with your surroundings that most Boy Scouts and Scouters take a long time to get - if they ever do.

 

Sounds to me like your senses were working just right, and your actions were perfect. Given your tale, I would concur that there was something in the woods that day, and that you were being "stalked" or followed. That a big cat was found in those woods two days later gives credence to the thought that it was likely the presence of the cat that you sensed. If so, then your flight or fight response worked very well - had you started running, and it was a big cat, you would have been in much greater danger of being attacked - running from a cat, even if you don't see the cat, is considered a weakness to be exploited by these predators (most tales of attacks by cats on people involve people jogging through the woods - it isn't that the people are fleeing, its that the running movement is interpreted by the cats as a weakness - it's a really unfortunate coincidence). Moving at a consistent pace as you did, if being followed by a cat, may make the cat curious, but tends to also make them wary as it shows confidence and strength - they continue to watch to look for weakness, but if they don't see it, they won't risk an attack on something that might be a threat to them, especially something as large as a human, (who can look like a bear walkiing on two legs). Crossing the creek crossed a boundary that the cat didn't want to cross.

 

Of course, its also possible it wasn't a cat (I'd guess it was most likely, given the facts that came out later). It could have been Coyote, or Bear or the most dangerous predator of all - Man.

 

It's no real secret how you got this woods instinct. You walked these woods on an almost daily basis - you know the woods, you know the moods - I think that 90% of instinct is just the application of knowledge and experience. The real test is can you transfer your outdoor instincts from your familiar woods to other places - not just in Georgia, but in other states too. I'm thinking the answer, in your case, is going to be Yes.

 

Calico

[Gunny2862]

I would much rather go into the woods with someone who was smart enough to realize that something was bothering them than some of the oblivious people I do deal with.

 

"Oh those black clouds are moving right towards us, how pretty!"

 

Okay at some parts of the year in Missouri just time to hole up, at others, like right now it may be time to activate the escape plan. Tornadoes and Boy Scouts do not mix. Although a Tornado might mix them up!

 

Pay attention,and heed your instincts but don't go overactive with the imagination either.

[Shadowrider]

A sight, sound, smell, or something we can't quite put or finger on. These can all be warning signs of danger. Trust your sences, even when you don't know why. The outdoors, no matter how familure we are with the area, can throw us a curve ball. When are brains nag at us that something is wrong, it is time to "get out of Dodge". This is especialy true when we are with Scouts, as we are ultimately responsable for their safety. There is no reason to hang around and try and find out what the problem is, just "feeling" there is a problem is enough justification to get the Scouts to safety.

 

I too encountered a big cat. Hunting with a buddy we found ourselves in a wooded clearing when the cat growled from cover. It was a warning that we took very seriously. With only 20 guage w/ #7 shot and .22 we no match for a big cat. We backed shoulder blade to shoulder and left the are as quick as we could safely walk.

[eisely]

An interesting story. I personally have never experienced anything like this.

 

Big cats are an issue here in California. They are now over protected by state law such that even the Fish & Wildlife people working for the state cannot impose controls on them.

 

There was an incident in Southern California, probably about 15 years ago, where someone was attacked by a mountain lion in a State Park in Orange County. A family had been over the same trail earlier with small children and had been taking pictures. When they had the photos developed, you could clearly see the cat in the brush a few feet away from one of the children. The photo was published in the LA Times. The parents never saw the cat until they developed the photos. Scary.

[WildernesStudent]

Wow, crazy story.

Yeah, you know after this happened to me (before the cat became common knowledge around campus) I talked to a couple other people who had done the same thing (gone hiking alone) and had at the very least felt like they were being watched by something. The scary part was that these two other people were also girls. When we asked the guys (who often go hiking by themselves) they just shrugged and said they hadn't noticed anything. Then I noticed how the guys behave in the woods might have something to do with it...they are loud, they are constantly going off the path, making noises etc...We girls just walked quietly a long making us seem less of a threat then our 6 ft, well-built guy friends.

 

I would very much like to know what the animal was thinking because it was spotted on campus (around some of the dorms and out in the open) I think the scariest animals are the ones that 1). Have the potential to become dangerous and 2). Not afraid of humans.

 

Hmm...Anyone know what you should do if you happen to look up from the path and see a cat staring at you? ( I'm guesing it's not here kitty, kitty, kitty!)

 

[eisely]

Carry a can of bear spray perhaps. Or a lot catnip?

[WildernesStudent]

Hmm actually, I think the best method would be to rub myself in steak or something and then set a trap like...dig a huge pit, cover it with leaves or something and then once I caught it I could tame it and keep it forever and ever!

 

Me and my crazy trap making skills...but I swear it'll work...I mean it did on the movie! hehe jk.

[Ohio_Scouter]

California department of Fish and Game says:

 

Staying Safe in Mountain Lion Country

 

Mountain lions are quiet, solitary and elusive, and typically avoid people. Mountain lion attacks on humans are extremely rare. However, conflicts are increasing as Californias human population expands

into mountain lion habitat.

 

Do not hike, bike, or jog alone.

Avoid hiking or jogging when mountain lions are most activedawn, dusk, and at night.

Keep a close watch on small children.

Do not approach a mountain lion.

If you encounter a mountain lion, do not run; instead, face the animal, make noise and try to look bigger by waving your arms; throw rocks or other objects. Pick up small children.

If attacked, fight back.

If a mountain lion attacks a person, immediately call 911.

 

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/docs/lionbrochure.pdf