Mountain Lion Attacks Cyclist in Washington

This is wild. Only a few days prior to this attack someone got game cam footage of three cougars in this same area. It's a place I've ridden quite frequently. Thankfully that woman was with a group of people.

That is terrifying. I can't imagine holding it down with a bike. 

I was out with a group of 3 today on fatbikes and we came across some big ol' kitty tracks on the groomed trail. I was head on a swivel for the rest of the ride. 

I just saw some big fresh tracks on the river levy very near the beach here in CA. They're not just in the mountains.

I used to ride after work with my buddies in Carbon Canyon regional park, AKA Mountain Lion territory. Never saw one, but I always joked that I was the weakest, slowest rider in the group and therefore the one most likely to die! I never let myself fall off the back too much on those rides!  

Saw this story yesterday - scary!

I see them here once in a while, including during the Xmas holidays while out on a ride - let's just hope they are nicer here. 

Weird story. Cat was reported to be a kitten, estimated to be six months old…I know that could be 45 pounds but…they pinned it with a bike until a cop could show up and kill it? Strange. 
Weird story. I just don’t get how they kept the cat there. 
Definitely more evidence / sightings of cats in that area than any other I know of in the state…

Couple more pieces of info on this: 
-It was a group of gravel cyclists, riding about 5 miles north of populated areas. About 4 miles from very popular MTB trails. 
-This is the second cougar attack on a gravel cyclist in 6 years in the immediate area. The other attack was 4 miles away. That first attack, in 2018, was on group of 2 people and resulted in a death. 

Gravel bikes, not even once. 

Also it is wild that the two attacks we have had are in that same zone.  Double weird this year as the snow level is so high that finding food should be EZ.  Guess all that lycra got that cougar hot and bothered. 

There has been logging at these trails. It’s owned by a timber company and they log sections every 4-6 years it seems.  I’m sure the logging disrupted habitat and was part of the cause of the attack.  
 

For those of you unfamiliar with the area this is basically where the wild meets humanity.  To the West is the Seattle Metro area, to the East rolling hills that turn into the Cascades that have pretty limited access for the public. As population grows and more people go outside there will be more encounters with wild animals. 

Yes, the recent logging likely did play a role in this. Especially considering there was logging close to the previous attack in 2018. 

Must not search for Cougars at work...

Cougar attacked a woman in Washington state. The woman had a group of friends with her, that helped her fight off the cougar. Witness stated that the cougar came in from the side, moving quickly, and aggressively. Her friends said that the cougar appeared much younger, and that the woman let her guard down, but this old bitch was obviously drunk. 
 

trying to tie in that last bit about obviously drunk. Catch me up.

The COUGAR you can’t search at work 

I’m sure that Charlie will tell me that it’s not technically non sequiteur, but I digress.

and I’ll see myself out 

That is pretty standard practice to kill animals that attack people.  They have lost all fear of humans and it will happen again if they are just tranq'd and moved somewhere else. 

It sucks.  Logging and the ever steady expansion of the seattle area has pushed a ton of animals out of their territory.  

But yeah I have no clue how they kept it pinned. Hell trying to get my 35 lbs dog to hold still while clipping its nails is a fucking task.  

Forget trying to pin down our 55lbs dog, the ~5lbs cat we have is next to impossible to pin down. She can get out of just about anything, we regularly comment on how scary Kiki would be if she were 10x her size, we'd all be dead.

Scary AF. We've been especially vigilant with dog and kids playing outside the last ~8 months as some Florida developer bought about 70 acres up the road and is developing it into 12 custom homes (which is a whole other debacle). They started moving earth late summer/early fall and since it's pretty much weekly that a neighbor is posts Ring cam footage of anywhere from 1-3 lions roaming around, likely mom and cubs. We've always known/assumed the lions are around, dog and I have come across a cache on some occasions while hiking, but they rarely would venture close enough to homes for Ring cams to catch footage but now their home is being destroyed so they gotta go somewhere. I suppose the only thing that comforts is knowing there's tons of mule deer, elk, fox, and turkeys for them to eat, and we see enough evidence that they are eating those so maybe they'll leave people alone. 

The most updated news release says the kitten was 75lbs (yes, still considered a kitten at the weight!). There were 4 women working to restrain it and and fifth man who rode up upon the scene after the attack that helped restrain it under a bike frame. There need to be more details released on this. That said, I can't image them being able to hold a 75lb cat down like that--as one of the Fish & Wildlife officers said, it was amazing given it's claws and teeth. 

And yes, once an animal attacks humans, it's protocol to have the animal euthanized because the chance of it doing it again is far greater. As evidence by the attack in SoCal in 2004 (as well as many other incidents with other types of animals, etc.).

Ahh yes hold a cougar down long enough and they may just give in to you. 

Remember this one:

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/mountain-lion-attacks-kill-1-injure…

I remember that the lady's face was half torn off.  As for Mr. Reynolds (RIP), what a horrible way to go: "The autopsy concluded that he died from the removal of organs in the chest and abdomen," said Amormino.

It's summer here in Aus, we got this bastard called a "brown snake" which is a very inventive name for a snake that is brown.

Anyway, this asshole of a reptile WILL LITERALLY CHASE YOU if you are in it's vicinity. Not only that, it's the 3rd most venomous snake in the world (pro tip, the top 2 are also Aussie lol) if you get bitten, you are most likely dead unless you are riding in the hospital carpark.

I see them all the bloody time, I secretly shit myself whenever I see one. A pussy cat with some nails in a tree aint scaring me bro's, but brown snakes.... I'm out!

dude SEVENTY-FIVE POUNDS? 

report

someone's little map, top arrow where attack happened / bottom arrow where someone saw a cougar last week or whatever makes sense to say on facebook:

(the [REDACTED] mountain bike trails are to the southwest of the arrows, above the rail trail.)

...gravel biking remains ultra violent...I need to see some knee high socked gopro vlogs about this incident to really grasp what happened here. I just do not get it!

Finally, I found where that Trinidad trail is! :p

this makes more sense.  I thought it attacked on the SVT, which would be super bold.  This is like within a mile of where the last attack happened?

also popping onto Trailforks it says tokul is closed till further notice? 

The rider who posted that map saw a cougar at the lower arrow an hour or two before the attack that occurred at the top arrow. The group of women who were attacked road past the lower arrow on their route that was heading north, until the attack. 

Part of Tokul East is closed for logging. There is some though that this logging, that started about 10 days ago may have put these cougars under stress, leading to this attack. There was nearby logging immediately prior and close to the 2018 attack in the same vicinity. 

Trying to decide between them saving other mountain lions from certain euthanasia by keeping it there to be the only one wiped out and them being stupid enough to hold down a starving, weakened and most likely desperate and injured kitten that may never go near humans again if they just let the damn thing go find a suitable meal and/or habitat or die of starvation.

Nature...cruel.  Humans...just stupid.  I'm of the mind to just run the damn thing off and hope a ranger never finds the pitiful thing.

Imagine getting your face eaten off by a big cat because you rode Tokul. 
 

Still waiting on The Story. There’s just no way five gravel bikers could keep from vlogging about this for four days already. There’s gotta be some UFO connection or an unclaimed winning lottery ticket—they’re hiding something.

Who are these big cat wrestlers and how did they manage to hold a 75 pound cat there? And why gravel biking? 

Riding today. If anyone has to peel a cat off their head, Vital forums will be the first to know. None of this misinformation from my camp.