After unexpectedly witnessing a mountain lion on a California route, a wildlife photographer‘s recent hiking excursion turned into a terrifying experience!
The scene was caught on camera, and now everyone is talking about it on the internet.
Mark Girardeau and his companion Rachel de Vlugt were hiking in Trabuco Canyon in Orange County when they came across the wildcat peering out from behind a bush.
Photographer admitted he knew it was preferable not to flee, stood their ground
They had just set up a couple of monitoring cameras set out to record animals when they observed the mountain lion climb up a hill and pause to observe them from around 20 feet away, Girardeau told FTW Outdoors.
Instead of running, the experienced photographer stated they stood their ground and created a big ruckus.
The seasoned photographer admitted that he knew it was preferable not to flee. They remained firm and made a lot of noise. He could be heard continuously shouting at the animal to go back in the footage he published on his social media accounts.
Girardeau took to Instagram to share message
According to the couple, the mountain lion pursued them for a short while before veering away, as captured on camera.
“Thank God Mark was there because I think I would have taken off running (which is the worst thing you can do). We held ground and so did the lion for what felt like an eternity,” said de Vlugt, sharing the video clip on Instagram.
Girardeau took to Instagram to share the following message: “I think there are 2 things that could have caused this: either she has a kill nearby and she was defending it or she ran up at us not realizing we were humans since she couldn’t completely see us from down below. There were deer in the area that we saw so she probably assumed it was them.”
Girardeau recognizes mountain lion in the now-viral video
Girardeau told CBS Los Angeles that he’d be lying if he said the interaction wasn’t frightening, but that it was the best way to handle the wildcat at the time.
In a subsequent update, Girardeau, who has been following wildlife in the Orange County woods, said he recognized the mountain lion in the now-viral video. Uno, a female mountain lion with an injured eye, was identified by him as the animal.
“It just happened so fast. You don’t have any time to plan it. It just happens and you’re forced into the situation and you have to react. You can’t run away,” he added.