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California boasts a ton of hiking trails that allow you to soak in the gorgeous scenery it offers, but you need to keep your head on a swivel for the wild animals you risk encountering during those treks. That includes a mountain lion that gave one woman quite the scare before she was able to ward it off during a recent excursion in Ojai.
There aren’t really any states that can rival the geographical diversity that makes California a prime destination for nature junkies who have plenty of options to pick from.
You can scratch your desert itch at places like Joshua Tree, get your ocean fix thanks to its nearly 850 miles of coastline, immerse yourself in a number of protected forests, and scale some sizeable mountains with the help of the more than 13,000 hiking trails scattered across the state—although you’ll also need to be prepared for what you may encounter.
The aforementioned geographical diversity is also responsible for a level of biodiversity that means there’s no shortage of potential dangerous creatures you may encounter during your travels, including venomous snakes, scorpions, and spiders as well as some slightly more sizeable threats like bears and mountain lions.
The big cats that can be interchangeably referred to as cougars and pumas usually don’t pose a major threat to humans (there have only been six recorded attacks resulting in a fatality since 1890), but that statistic probably isn’t going to do too much to calm your nerves if you ever come face-to-face with one in the wild.
According to Edhat, Cortney Rasura found herself thrust into that scenario while traversing the Gridley Trail in Ojai on the morning of July 3rd, as she was walking when she realized she was being followed by a mountain lion and pulled out her phone to record her efforts to dissuade it from coming closer.
Rasura told the outlet she’s been hiking in the area for around 15 years and had never encountered a cougar, but she thankfully knew the proper procedure to follow when she ended up in the situation (she correctly stood her ground and yelled at the animal as it began to approach her).
She added she may start carrying an air horn with her when she returns to the trail, and that’s probably not the worst idea.
Content shared from brobible.com.