A cougar sighting lifted the spirits of two exhausted backpackers after they encountered the animal at the south end of Buttle Lake in Strathcona Provincial Park on Sunday.
Lisa Nielsen and Caleb Overbye captured clear footage of a cougar attempting to run up a bluff at the Shepherd Creek Trail pullout around 8:30 p.m. on July 26. The two were returning from a gruelling backpacking trip in the Bedwell Lake area of Strathcona Provincial Park when they spooked the cougar at the end of what was a hot, dry day with temperatures of about 32 C.
B次元官网网址淭hat day was like 32 degrees, like not a cloud in the sky on Sunday and so it was super hot and the cougar had been drinking at the lake,B次元官网网址� Nielsen said.
As they came upon the cougar it bolted back across the road and attempted to flee up a bluff that it apparently had come down.
B次元官网网址淚t was just coming up from the lake, which was right there, to cross the road,B次元官网网址� the Comox Valley resident said. B次元官网网址淎nd we came around the corner and spooked it. And of course, the way that it came down was the way that it tried to run up, which is why in the video, youB次元官网网址檒l see it tries to scale this rock wall and it actually falls and itB次元官网网址檚 hanging from a tree and then tries to scale it again (and) realizes it canB次元官网网址檛 get up. ThatB次元官网网址檚 when it runs back down and runs behind my car.B次元官网网址�
The whole encounter only lasted about 30 seconds but it left an impression on Nielsen.
B次元官网网址淚t was super cool,B次元官网网址� she said.
She grew up in northern B.C. so she is no stranger to wildlife encounters but it was still impressive to see the big cat so close.
B次元官网网址淚t was like 15 feet away,B次元官网网址� Nielsen said. B次元官网网址淚t was pretty special.B次元官网网址�
This came after a tough backpacking trip and lifted the pairB次元官网网址檚 spirits.
B次元官网网址淪o it was a big, buggy, hot, sweaty trip and we were just so happy to be back in the car and then kind of feeling a little, like, disheartened, I guess, after the weekend of abuse and then we saw that andB次元官网网址hen it was so great.
B次元官网网址淪o it totally made the trip worth it.B次元官网网址�
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