# Where do you find mountain lions?



## anotherlife

On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.


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## The Great Goose

What takes you to the US.


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## TNHarley

Cougars have been spreading out. There have been a few reports of some in West TN.


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## B. Kidd

anotherlife said:


> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.



They'll find you before you see them. Do you still feel lucky?


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## The Great Goose

B. Kidd said:


> anotherlife said:
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> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.
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> They'll find you before you see them. Do you still feel lucky?
Click to expand...

Well do ya? Punk?


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## yiostheoy

anotherlife said:


> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.




"National parks" have a lot of people, which scares the lions away.

There are many lions up on the crest of the California Coastal Mountains around Big Sur, way up near the top.  You can also try around Santa Cruz CA or south of San Jose CA, or west of King City CA in the Los Padres National Forest just to the north of the Fort Hunter Liggett US Army base.

Lions are elusive however, and they probably see you long before you see them, then they hide, or creep away.  Lions do not want to be seen by humans.  Humans are apex predators and lions know that.

The best strategy for seeing a lion is to ride a mountain bike along a trail at the crest of a coastal California wilderness area.  Does not need to be a national park (there aren't any like that).  Any California county park in the coastal hills would be a good place.

Over several decades of hiking and hunting I myself have only seen a handful of lions, and they all saw me first and started to run away before I ever saw them.


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## B. Kidd

I live near the base of Frenchmans Mtn. in east Las Vegas in a gated community of 600+ homes that borders the desert. I saw a mountain lion trudging through my front yard around 6 a.m. last June from my kitchen window heading for the wall to jump over it to get back to the desert. Our community has a golf course and tons of jack rabbits which is not only a plentiful food supply for mountain lions, but also for coyotes and snow owls. Mountain lion sightings are rare, but alot of coyotes and snow owls.


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## Meathead

Let's see. Mountain Lions, eh? If only there was a clue in it's name, you know, like a Burmese Python.


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## B. Kidd

anotherlife said:


> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.



Here is a good place to start.  (winter comin' any moment tho' in Idaho, Montana, Colorado). If you are visiting very soon, Utah and New Mexico would be your best bet.

Mountain Lion Hotspots


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## AZGAL

Mountain lions are all over the USA and they are dangerous to be around.


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## Skull Pilot

anotherlife said:


> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.



you'll never see one.

The closest I have ever been to seeing, one and I have backpacked for thousands of miles all over the country, was in Glacier National Park where we spotted some tracks and spoor


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## tycho1572

I saw one once in Pennsylvania. I spotted it from a small boat shortly before entering a cave.
That's the first and only time I've ever seen one.


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## Coloradomtnman

Skull Pilot said:


> anotherlife said:
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> 
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> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.
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> you'll never see one.
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> The closest I have ever been to seeing, one and I have backpacked for thousands of miles all over the country, was in Glacier National Park where we spotted some tracks and spoor
Click to expand...


Same here.  Many days in the wilderness and lived in the mountains for a decade.  I still haven't seen one.  Thankfully.


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## tycho1572




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## westwall

anotherlife said:


> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.






The Sierra Nevada mountains and the Snake mountains are good spots to see them.  You will have to be very patient though.  Elusive doesn't even begin to describe them.


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## tycho1572

westwall said:


> anotherlife said:
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> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.
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> The Sierra Nevada mountains and the Snake mountains are good spots to see them.  You will have to be very patient though.  *Elusive doesn't even begin to describe them*.
Click to expand...

Unless they're hungry......


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## westwall

tycho1572 said:


> westwall said:
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> anotherlife said:
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> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.
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> The Sierra Nevada mountains and the Snake mountains are good spots to see them.  You will have to be very patient though.  *Elusive doesn't even begin to describe them*.
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> Click to expand...
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> Unless they're hungry......
Click to expand...






They will only attack people if they are sick.  Sickness causes hunger and the inability to chase after their traditional prey.  I live in the mountains, have for over 25 years and have had two run ins with them.  I see them when I am hiking, or occasionally cross country skiing, but that is rare.


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## tycho1572

I love getting out and doing all sorts of things. Seeing a mountain lion while hiking isn't one of them. lol


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## westwall

tycho1572 said:


> I love getting out and doing all sorts of things. Seeing a mountain lion while hiking isn't one of them. lol






The key when faced by a mountain lion is to not show them your back.  If you turn away from them you are dinner.  Face them and advance at them waving your arms and howling at them.  It's worked for me twice which is good because I would have hated to have to kill one of them.  They are magnificent creatures.  They truly are.


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## Weatherman2020

anotherlife said:


> On my next trip to the US, I want to go to a national part where there are mountain lions.  I would like to make my own pictures of them.  They are beautiful.  I hear these animals are very illusive and widely avoid human paths.  Yet, which national parks have them?  I hope I will be lucky and see one.


Throughout the West.  I've had mountain lions, Bobcats, etc on my property.
They are elusive and you will not see one unless you have a year to spend in the wild.
And they consider you dinner.
Go to the San Diego Zoo.


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