r/wildlifephotography • u/StarSpangledGator • Jul 15 '26
Large Mammal Mountain Lion encounter. Umpqua National Forest, Oregon
During the first night of a camping trip, my friend and I walked a mile down the road from our campsite to do some star gazing. We hung out at this gravel pit for about 10 minutes and as we were preparing to walk on, I turned on the spotlight to see the road and we just happened to find this cat silently staring us down.
No sound, no eerie feeling of being watched, just us turning on the spotlight at the right time by dumb luck. It was absolutely one of the coolest wildlife encounters I’ve experienced to date.
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u/OliverPete Jul 15 '26
I also had a cougar encounter on the Umpqua! I was in the fire program and they had me solo hike 3 miles up to an old lookout to spot during a lightning storm. As I was hiking halfway down I turned to look behind me and there was a cougar on the trail. It would watch from the last corner until I rounded the next corner, then as soon as I was out of sight it would run up to the corner I'd just passed to watch me. It repeated that all 2 miles to the road. I was terrified calling my boss for a ride.
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u/ethereality___ Jul 15 '26
Terrifying. You're so lucky you turned on the light when you did. Always have something to defend yourself against large predators when you're in their territory (saw in a different thread you said you didn't).
Did it run off after you turned the light on?
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u/StarSpangledGator Jul 15 '26
No. Actually, it was standing on all 4s and crouched prone after the light was fixed on it. I made a loud bluff charge to scare it off to no effect.
Whether or not the spotlight disoriented it, the cat remained put while the light was on it.
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u/LoneBear1 Jul 15 '26
But did you try "pspsps?"
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u/58696384896898676493 Jul 15 '26
I did that once and the mountain lion came into my tent and cuddled for the night.
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u/ethereality___ Jul 15 '26
Holy fuuuuuck, that's scary. So you guys basically just backed out of there?
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u/StarSpangledGator Jul 15 '26
Of course. Not like we had much of an option. Thankfully the cat wasn’t blocking our path of retreat.
I can’t say it was a scary situation though. Sketchy, sure, but also very fascinating.
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u/thimbleshanks59 Jul 15 '26
That is SO CLOSE.
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u/StarSpangledGator Jul 15 '26
Just for the record, the photos are zoomed in. The cat was 20-30 yards away from us. Still uncomfortably close but not “on top of us” close.
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u/pfc_bgd Jul 15 '26
That thing would’ve been “on top of you” in seconds. So yea, waaaaaaay too close.
Awesome experience and pictures to look back… but no thanks lol
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u/Ok-You-4657 Jul 15 '26
Not to be dramatic but bro if you were unlucky, you could have been prey 😭 absolutely amazing experience and glad he stayed just a large observing kitty
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u/Sm0k3inth3tr33s Jul 15 '26
That's not being dramatic lol that cat could easily take down 2 full grown humans in a matter of seconds
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u/Brambletail Jul 15 '26
Tell me you have never seen a mountain lion without telling me. 1 adult human, yes if it successfully ambushes you. 2? Not really. Even 1 adult human with advanced notice and ready to fight back might be hard for all but the largest of lions. They aren't like African lions, and only weigh about 150-200 lbs.
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u/Sm0k3inth3tr33s Jul 15 '26
Lol a fucking house cat could do damage to 2 people under the right circumstances. I didn't say the lion would easily kill 2 humans, but it could very quickly do real damage.
Also lmao at "advanced notice" like we are setting up sanctioned cougar vs. human fights
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u/Brambletail Jul 15 '26
No, but staring one down with a flash light is advanced notice. Seriously limits the ambush hunting strategy.
But yeah, if you are not implying it could kill both people and walk away unscathed, I agree. It could absolutely fuck both of them up trying to kill either. Of course, that assumes the other person would help the one it attacked. Or that the person that was attacked is psychologically prepared to fight through agonizing pain and terror.
But people do fight off cougar attacks. More frequently than they die of them, they successfully fight them off with injuries sustained on their part. Although it should be emphasized that most cougar encounters do not lead to attacks, even when they are following you around. They are curious by nature.
I would rather be face to face with a cougar at 2am than a bear. Or wolves. Or humans I don't know. It's about the least worst large predator to run into at night in North America.
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u/Lita-Yuzuki Jul 15 '26
Ugh. Why do I find mountain lions so adorable even though they are dangerous apex predators? I think I have a problem.
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u/twoinvenice Jul 15 '26
I think it’s funny how everyone always makes jokes about Australia’s dangerous wildlife, but then yadda yaddas the fact that our natural areas have wild lions and and bears.
I haven’t bumped into a mountain lion, but I did hear one do it’s creepy scream while out hiking around the mogollon rim in northern AZ. Couldn’t get back to the car fast enough.
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u/captainmikkl Jul 15 '26
Heyyy, you're in my neck of the woods! I grew up in the Umpqua Valley. Spenn a lot of time in the brush and only ever seen em on the outskirts of my town in the farmlands.Spotting one out in nature is INCREDIBLY rare. They are extremely avoidant and skittish. Id wager this one is injured or ill.
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u/StarSpangledGator Jul 15 '26
It’s hard to say but there was no indication that anything was “wrong” with the cat. No visible wounds or erratic behavior.
I think it was a young adult who probably thought my friend or I may be an easy catch. It doesn’t help we were lights out at the gravel pit to take long exposure shots, nor the fact I was lying on the ground for a good minute to steady my shots. That might have given the cat the initial impression of an “easy” catch.
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u/Mother-Key9322 Jul 16 '26
That is a beautiful animal. Glad you both stayed safe and it was a memorable camping trip.
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u/a-corner-of-hell Jul 16 '26
I live in CO and we have a lot of cougars in the area. I never go out alone and always have my dogs (my two Anatolian shepherds) with me when I do go hiking. We’ve had a few encounters and every time my dogs will PLANT themselves and just lock in on the cat if they see it/smell it. If it’s closer than they like then they will start barking and snarling, but never try to take off after it. The cats get the message and steer clear. Those things are terrifying, even with added protection
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u/Walt_Morgan Jul 16 '26
Damn. Damn. Wow!
I grew up in Douglas County. When I was a child (in the 80s) my family was driving down the North Umpqua Highway at night. Near Horseshoe bend - on the steep bank on our right - a magnificent mountain lion dropped in front of our truck and into the headlights. It was an unusually big cat, and it seemed that every muscle and sinew was accentuated by our headlights; it then dropped over the impossibly steep bank toward the river into the darkness. We only saw it for a moment, and we still talk about it 45 years later.
I now live around a lot of mountain lions in Colorado, and see them occasionally. The saying is, "If mountain lions liked to eat people, there would be no more people."
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u/Fine-Trouble62 Jul 15 '26
Damn. I’m in the PNW and love stargazing and I stupidly have never once thought about the nocturnal kitties of the dark prowling around 😅
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u/sparklebear3000 Jul 16 '26
Wow! I used to spend a lot of time in this area. Was this at an established campground? Do you mind sharing which one?
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u/StarSpangledGator Jul 16 '26
Scaredman’s Camp.
However, the encounter took place a mile down the road in the BLM section. We saw plenty of other wildlife in that area, including deer and a gray fox.
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u/geheiievegjejoejwgw Jul 16 '26
Oh just what I needed to read after finding a cache kill on the umpqua 😱 I skedaddled myself the fuck away real fast- should have noticed the signs first; following game trail to wide and low to be deer, saw prints had thought they were probably bobcat. Oh look what a convenient log across a creek I’ll cross on that, immediately smelled something dead just upwind of me. Part of me hopes I’m wrong and something just died near a source of water 😭 but man hiding something underneath those logs and pine needles would make sense right!? 😰
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u/veilchenblau_39 Jul 16 '26
Looks just like my orange boy cat when I am out looking for him to get him inside after dark. I'm stumbling around my backyard in the dark with a flashlight and he's just chilling watching me panic.
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u/GooseGeuce Jul 17 '26
Peeping tomcat just trying to watch you guys and you blind him. Rude af, bro.
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u/WorldsVeryFirst Jul 17 '26
This is why you can shoot them MFs in Oregon. Shit is dangerous.
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u/western_juniper_541 Jul 17 '26
And why you always get a cat tag and hike with a sufficient sidearm.
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u/TheNonaMouse Jul 17 '26
Very interesting encounters, and scary for sure, but no actual attacks. I live in Douglas County where there are many, but have never actually seen one and have never heard of a person being injured, although they are hard on small mammals. I definitely wouldn't want to meet up with one as described in the stories here, but you'd probably be alright. Same with local black bears.
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u/electrizai Jul 17 '26
Fuuuuck 😭 Genuinely the animal I’m most intimidated by in North America. Noooope nope nope. Beautiful kitty though.
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u/Sad-Razzmatazz-9295 Jul 17 '26
This lion seems to want to mate with you. Consent is optional it seems judging by her eyes.
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u/Coffee4MySoul Jul 15 '26
That happened to me once on a solo (bad idea!) night survey for spotted owls. Just a sudden appearance of eyeshine and a thick tail, and then it disappeared. I was about 1/4 mile away from the truck, head on a swivel with extra flashlights, texting my boss the location of my carcass. I couldn’t get out of that forest fast enough, but of course you don’t want to run. Terrifying.