Pete Thomas Outdoors

British Columbia cougars found to prey on seals, sea lions

Mountain lions in British Columbia's Pacific Rim National Park Reserve like to fatten up on black-tailed deer, but also on unlikely prey items such as harbor seals and sea lions.

Researchers made the surprising discovery -- believed to be the first showing that cougars prey on marine mammals -- after collecting scat samples for a recent diet analysis.

They also were surprised to learn that black-tailed deer comprise only a quarter of the predators' diet, and that raccoons are their top food source.

But seals and sea lions?

"This is really interesting; imagine a cougar stalking its way across a barnacle-infested reef," researcher Chris Darimont told the Leader-Post newspaper. "I know of no other account of cougars eating a marine mammal.

"But I'm not completely shocked. There is some pretty delicious seafood out there. Seals are loaded with calories, fat and protein. They're big prizes, and, compared with deer, a little safer to hunt."

The analysis involved 29 scat samples from a vast park area along Vancouver Island's west coast. It showed that raccoons comprised 28% of the cougars' diet; harbor seals 24%; black-tailed deer 24%; river otters 10%; sea lions 7%; mink 4%, and unknown species 3%.

Prey items were identified through scat examination but also carcass analysis in the field.

Yosemite Half Dome cable permits required daily this season

Yosemite National Park officials have announced that day-use permits to climb the Half Dome cables will be required seven days a week for the 2012 summer season.

An interim program that required permits on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays was implemented by the National Park Service in 2010 and switched to a seven-day-per-week system for 2011, to better regulate the number of hikers using the cable system. Safety issues have arisen from crowding, which also has led to long waits on the popular hike.

Some changes to the permiting system were made this year, and permits will now be allocated through a preseason lottery, a two-day-in-advance lottery, and as part of the Wilderness Permit process, with a maximum of 400 hikers allowed each day on the Half Dome Trail beyond the subdome.

Permit fees also have increased, with two separate fees collected for 2012. A non-refundable processing fee of $4.50 will be charged when applications are submitted online ($6.50 if done by phone). An additional $5 per person refundable fee will be charged when permits are received, and helps offset the cost of stationing park rangers at Half Dome to check for permits.

Further details regarding the lotteries and the wilderness process can be found at the park's website at www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdpermits.htm.

The Half Dome cables are generally in place from mid-May through mid-October, depending on snowpack and weather conditions.

Image of Half Dome and climbers using the cable system courtesy of Scott Gediman / National Park Service

BASE jumper Jeb Corliss injured in Table Mountain crash

Renowned American BASE jumper Jeb Corliss suffered severe leg injuries and remains hospitalized but is fortunate to be alive after a failed leap Monday from Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa.

Corliss was wearing a wingsuit and parachute, and was jumping with photographer Jeff Nebelkopf. The leap was videotaped (Corliss is in black) and footage shows the daredevil striking a rocky outcropping and tumbling about 180 feet onto a path below. (Warning: There is brief profanity in the video.)

 

Corliss, 35, is famous for his exploits and has completed successful jumps from the Eiffel Tower and Golden Gate Bridge, to name a couple.
 
A story in the Cape Times states that Corliss issued this message to friends and fans from his bed in the intensive care unit of Barnard Memorial Hospital, via hospital spokeswoman Michelle Norris: "I feel better than I've ever felt."

However, he faces charges for attempting an illegal jump within Table Mountain National Park. Park spokeswoman Merle Collins told the Cape Times:

"The danger associated with base jumping does not allow us to issue permits. He did not have permission. We will definitely fine him and possibly press charges."

Corliss reportedly completed the same jump a week earlier, for a cable television special.

Joby Ogwyn, a friend and fellow BASE jumper, suggested that a sudden gust of wind could have been a factor in the crash.

Yellowstone visitation tops 3 million for fifth consecutive year

The natural beauty of Yellowstone National Park continues to draw visitors in record numbers, with almost 3.4 million people spending time in Yellowstone in 2011.

Last year was the fifth consecutive calendar year visitation topped the 3 million mark and the second highest annual numbers on record, bested only by the year prior when a record 3.6 million people visited the park.

In fact, the last time Yellowstone recorded fewer than 3 million annual recreational visits was 2006, with 2.87 million visits.

Overall, more than a quarter of the park's total 2011 visitation was during the month of July, with 906,934 recreational visits recorded.

December visitation was down 5% compared to year-ago levels, with 16,509 visitors recorded in 2011 compared to 17,386 during the same period in 2010.

Detailed park visitation information is available online at http://www.nature.nps.gov/stats/.

Yellowstone National Park - Annual Recreational Visitors:

Rank	Year	Visitation
1	2010	3,640,184
2	2011	3,394,321
3	2009	3,295,187
4	2007	3,151,343
5	1992	3,144,405
6	1999	3,131,381
7	1995	3,125,285
8	1998	3,120,830
9	2008	3,066,570
10	1994	3,046,145

Image of Old Faithful geyser in the winter and attendance chart courtesy of National Park Service

Search continues for killer of Mt. Rainier park ranger

 

The "manhunt on the mountain" continued Monday for the man believed to have shot and killed a Mount Rainier National Park ranger on Sunday during a traffic stop inside the vast Washington state wilderness park.

[*Monday night update: Police find body of shooting suspect.]

Margaret Anderson was married with two young children and Benjamin Colton Barnes, 24, a veteran of the Iraq war known to possess survivalist skills, is "a strong person of interest" in the case. Barnes, a suspect in an earlier shooting that injured four people in Seattle, is said to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and prone to anger spells.

Police believe Barnes may have fled into the national park to hide out in the aftermath of the Seattle shooting.

Park officials evacuated 125 visitors and the manhunt involves about 200 personnel, searching from the ground and air.

Webcams installed throughout the park reveal the vastness of wilderness, and a mostly snowy landscape, with dark and threatening skies.  It's eerie to look at the webcams, knowing that a sick killer is on the loose.

Anderson, certainly, could not have known what kind of person she was contending with after the gunman sped past a checkpoint used to make sure visitors carried tire chains for the snow.

After a pursuit she was able to use her vehicle to block the road in front of the gunman—the road that leads to Paradise—and according to the Associated Press, Anderson was fatally shot before she stepped out of her truck.

She had worked at the park for four years. She and her family lived in the nearby small community of Eatonville. Above is an AP video news report about the incident. Below is an image showing a view of Mt. Rainier National Park from its "Mountain" webcam.

Lottery registration open for Yosemite's Ostrander Ski Hut

Cross-country skiers and snowshoers considering making the 10-mile trek from Badger Pass to the Ostrander Ski Hut in Yosemite National Park are advised that the lottery registration period for the winter season ends on Nov. 16 at 5 p.m.

The immensely popular hut, at the end of a physically demanding but truly spectacular trek, is a rustic two-story stone building at the edge of Ostrander Lake at 8,500 feet. It provides overnight accommodations for $42 Mondays through Thursdays, and $52 Fridays through Sundays.

"Along the routes to Ostrander, there are places of solitude and awe-inspiring views of Half Dome, the Clark Range and Mount Hoffmann," says Mike Tollefson, president of the Yosemite Conservancy, which is handling the registration lottery. "The ski area around the Ostrander cirque offers many unique ski trails, including multiple descents off Horse Ridge."

Adds longtime hut-keeper Fritz Bagget: "It's truly a unique experience to be in real wilderness in a national park during winter. Imagine open granite bowls stretching from ponds and lakes to peaks and steep ridges--it’s very special."

Accommodations are limited and in high demand so applicants are chosen via a random lottery system. Applications must be submitted to the Yosemite Conservancy by the deadline and, beginning Nov. 28, remaining reservations can be made by calling 209-379-5161. For lottery and registration information, visit the Conservancy website.

The hut will be open from mid-December through early April.

-- Image of Ostrander Ski Hut is courtesy of Hugh Sakols

Yosemite National Park trail improvement project completed

Yosemite National Park is a place of such natural beauty that it seems easy to take little notice of the areas that help visitors enjoy their magnificent surroundings. Thankfully, there are those who realize the importance of maintaining these oft-overlooked spots, and a 75-mile trail restoration project in Yosemite has come to completion with a ceremonial ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday at the park's East Valley Loop Trail.

The six-year, $13.5-million project -- funded mostly by Yosemite Conservancy doners -- is reportedly the largest trail repair and restoration project ever undertaken in Yosemite.

"Our goal was elegant in its simplicity -- improve the condition of Yosemite's most treasured, high-profile trails in order to protect irreplaceable natural resources," said Yosemite Conservancy president Mike Tollefson.

More than 30 miles of the John Muir Trail, from Tuolumne Meadows through Little Yosemite Valley to Yosemite Valley, had work done. There are new stone walls and rock staircases as well as drainage structures and habitat restoration to improve safety and protect areas bordering the trail.

Restoration and improvements were also made to about half a dozen trailheads along Tioga Road, offering better defined routes to popular locations, safer parking, food storage lockers or wilderness education exhibits.

"Yosemite's trails are pathways to discovery and inspiration. Some of the park's most important trails were improved to reverse years of degradation," said Park superintendent Don Neubacher. "The result is better trails, restored habitats and greater education opportunities for visitors."

 

Photo: Hikers enjoy the John Muir Trail near Nevada Falls and Liberty Cap in Yosemite National Park. Credit: Keith Walklet

Young mountain lion killed while trying to cross L.A. freeway

With so little open space and so much human bustle in just about every direction, it should come as no surprise that a 15-month-old mountain lion was struck and killed earlier this week while trying to cross Interstate 405, just south of the Getty Center southbound freeway off-ramp.

The male kitten, named P-18, embarked on his own earlier this summer after leaving his mother's home range in Malibu Creek State Park. His slow easterly progress was tracked via GPS collar by the National Park Service as part of a long-term study on the movements of mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains. (P-18 is pictured above.)

Because male mountain lions are territorial and claim large wilderness parcels as their territory, and because there are two other male lions with GPS collars in the Santa Monica range, it's likely that the young male had been moving east, closer to civilization, in an attempt to stake out his own territory.

The death of P-18 underscores the need for safe wildlife corridor crossings, for wild animals to pass through rather than having to traverse freeways and highways.

In fact, Caltrans and several government and nonprofit partners are trying to identify suitable locations for such crossings along the 405, 118 and 101 freeways, according to a news release issued today by the National Park Service.

These crossings, intended to facilitate safe movement between the Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Susana Mountains and the Los Padres National Forest are deemed critical for the long-term health of mountain lion populations, and to ensure genetic diversity among the small population that exists within the Santa Monica Mountains.

"Mountain lions must be able to move freely between large parklands with suitable habitat throughout the course of their daily movements, as well as exchange genetic material to prevent inbreeding in specific parkland areas like the Santa Monica Mountains," said park superintendent Woody Smeck.

Since the study began in 2002, only one lion has been documented safely crossing a freeway surrounding the Santa Monica range. Ironically, it was P-12, who sired P-18. He crossed the 101 Freeway in 2009 and has been in the Santa Monica range ever since.

-- Image shows P-18 as seen via web cam before he was killed while trying to cross the 405 Freeway. Courtesy of the NPS

Hiker falls to death on Half Dome in Yosemite National Park

A 26-year-old woman fell to her death Sunday while descending from the summit of Half Dome within Yosemite National Park.

Hayley LaFlamme, of San Ramon, Calif., plummeted about 600 feet from the cabled route on the granite monolith. The incident is under investigation but thunderstorms were in the vicinity most of Sunday morning and the incident occurred at about noon.

Stormy weather makes for extremely hazardous conditions. Those planning to climb Half Dome should consult a web page set up by the park to show how to prepare for the endeavor.

The last hiker to have died on Half Dome was Majoj Kumar, also from San Ramon, on June 13, 2009. The most recent fatal accident on Half Dome's cabled route before that was in 2007.

Yellowstone bear encounter interrupts taping of safety lecture

These are crazy times in Yellowstone National Park. Last Wednesday a hiker from Torrance, Calif., was killed by a grizzly bear while on a park trail with his wife. It marked the first fatal attack inside park boundaries since 1986.

Now comes word that a CNN crew visiting the park on Friday, to film a segment on bear safety, witnessed an actual encounter between a hiker and a black bear.

The hiker, Erin Prophet, was walking backward toward Joffe Lake, away from the advancing bear.

Fortunately, the bear seemed only to be intent on reaching the the water and showed no aggression toward Prophet. Once at the lake's edge, Dave Beecham, one of three men in a kayak, helped her swim safely away.

"When the guys in the kayak offered to pull me across, that seemed like a better plan because the bear seemed like it wanted to be down there by the edge," Prophet told Reuters.

Said park spokesman Dan Hottle, who accompanied the CNN crew: "That was what we refer to as an incident within an incident."

The incident occurred as Yellowstone biologist Kerry Gunther was about to demonstrate the proper way to use bear spray.

Sales of the bear repellent have been brisk in the area, in the wake of last Wednesday's fatal attack on Brian Matayoshi. Neither he nor his wife, who also was attacked but was not seriously injured, carried bear spray.

-- Generic black bear image is courtesy of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service