Mountain lions and boats

I recently read an article about how a mountain lion in California grabbed a five-year-old child by the arm and was in the process of dragging him into the woods when the child’s father, hearing the kid’s cries, quickly intervened and attacked the cat, causing it to release its hold on the child and run off. The child had bite marks on his arm but wasn’t seriously injured. I’m sure he was scared to death! I think this occurred somewhere in the southern part of the state.

The article went on to mention a 21-year-old hiker who had been attacked and killed by a mountain lion in northern California within a year or two prior to the first incident. Both of these incidents illustrate a common theme – the respective mountain lions had no fear of man and were being opportunistic in their search for food.

Most large predatory animals are opportunistic when they are searching for their next meal. The problem here, though, is the total lack of fear of man in these situations. Without this fear, the lions viewed the two victims as just another easy meal, with no consequences to be concerned about.

Here in Alaska, we have seen the exceedingly rare wolf attack on a human being and bears attack humans annually. However, the difference between the lions in California and the wolves and bears in Alaska involves generally different conditions. Brown bears usually won’t attack a human unless it’s a female bear protecting her young, a bear protecting a food cache, or a bear who stumbled on you in close proximity and was surprised by your presence. Black bears have been known to actively stalk and attack a person with the intent to eat him/her, but that is very uncommon.

The incidence of wolves attacking a human being is so rare that, if memory serves me, that action has only happened a couple of times in the last two or three decades.

So, what’s the difference between Alaska and California? Bears and wolves are actively hunted in Alaska and the animals usually develop a healthy respect and fear of man if they survive their first encounter with a human being. If the parent of the bear or wolf has this fear, it is often taught to the young – stay away from humans. They will hurt or kill you given the chance.

Hunting or trapping of mountain lions in California was banned over a decade ago, if I remember correctly. The animals have completely lost their fear of humans as a result and will actively attack a person if they sense an easy chance for food. I remember reading a commentary on this behavior shortly after the hunting/trapping ban was enacted, written by a pro-hunting person who was concerned about the long-term safety of folks hiking and enjoying the remote outdoors in California. At the time, most people thought the described behavior was an overreaction and that mountain lion attacks would not happen. So much for that thought!

The season is basically over for fisheries requiring a boat. The hunting season is well underway and will be mostly over by the end of this month. The need for a boat to hunt will end with the season or once the water starts to freeze. Most boat owners are starting to think about winterizing their boats for the upcoming freezing weather. Now would be a suitable time to either do the work yourself or make an appointment with your favorite marine mechanic to get the work done.

I was able to get my riverboat fully operational with all broken or damaged parts repaired or replaced this year. I had a marine mechanic do a major tune-up and he commented that the engine was running like a top. But, for reasons beyond my control, I have not been able to take the boat out this year to run it. My wife is no longer able to help with various boating operations and I’m getting too old to try to do everything myself.

I had decided that, if we didn’t use the boat enough this past summer, I’d probably look at selling it. I guess we’re at that point. Now is not the best time to sell a boat in Alaska, so I’m not sure when I will officially list it for sale. I have an appraisal of the boat’s value and will be asking that price, but everything is negotiable up to a point. Watch for my sale notice.