Letter: Protecting mountain lions is a bad idea

Protecting mountain lions is a bad idea. I talk to mountain runners, hikers and mountain bikers, and one of their biggest fears is mountain lions. Having encountered one myself is really scary. I met the lion on a trail and seeing him get in attack mode wasn’t fun.

But I did what I was told to do by looking big and yelling, and after wetting myself, he loped away. Have you ever seen a house cat catch a mouse or bird? Big cats can do the same thing to humans. If we don’t keep instilling fear of humans and dogs by hunting mountain lions, we will be like Californians on the menu.

Corky Fitzsimmons
Gypsum