Colorado hunter gets a scare from a stalking mountain lion.
Any hunter who lives in mountain lion country knows to keep their head on a swivel every time they enter the wilderness. Because you just never know when one of the big cats may be watching you, as one Colorado hunter found out last Sunday.
CBS 4 Denver reports Steve Shively was out checking his trail cameras in San Juan National Forest when he noticed something wasn't right.
What he saw next was enough to make the hairs on the back of anyone's neck stand on end. A large mountain lion only 20 yards away hiding behind a rock. Somehow the big cat had managed to stalk that close without him ever hearing a sound. He managed to pull out his cell phone and get a short video of the big animal lurking which you can see below.
It is safe to say this situation would get anyone's heart pumping in a hurry. What amazed Shively the most was that the ground was covered with dry, crunch leaves, but he never heard the big cat approaching.
"He had a fixed stare at me and didn't flinch while I pulled my 9mm out of my pocket, racked one in the chamber and fumbled with my cell phone... he only moved when I started talking to him on video," Shively told the news station.
As you saw in the video, the big cat finally backed away reluctantly after realizing the hunter was not his usual prey item. It didn't help the hunter's nerves that the wildly viral video of a mountain lion chasing a jogger in Utah last week was still fresh on his mind.
Fortunately, this big cat situation ended as well as one can. Experts recommend making yourself appear as large as possible by waving your arms and by yelling loudly at the animal. In that video from Utah, the jogger got the animal to back off by throwing a rock at it, a technique that is recommended by the National Park Service for especially stubborn big cats that aren't backing off.
The lesson to be learned from Shively's encounter is to keep your wits about you as you head out hunting this fall. A little common sense will help you avoid an unwanted encounter with a large cat.
For more outdoor content from Travis Smola, be sure to follow him on Twitter and check out his Geocaching and Outdoors with Travis YouTube channels.
NEXT: THE AXIS DEER AND HOW THEY'RE IMPACTING PARTS OF THE UNITED STATES
WATCH
