No tigers, but bears and lions. And no, I'm not a fan of the Wizard of Oz - the title just sort of fits.
Last year I was running the Mesa Trail outside of Boulder with my dog, Doe (who I did not name), and we turned a corner and came upon a fellow who was holding his dog, standing straight up, and, what appeared to be, staring into space.
I asked, "Is your dog friendly?" because my dog was off leash and I wasn't sure if I should hold onto her. Also, he was holding his dog so I just assumed this was because he was worried a fight would ensue between his dog and Doe. Anyone who knows Doe knows that she would instantly lose - I joke that she upon encountering another dog she inspires blind hatred, given the frequency with which she is attacked. For this reason, I try to keep her out of harm's way.
The fellow who was standing in the middle of the trail didn't respond. I'm not sure that he even looked in my direction. He put slowly put his index finger up to his mouth and made the "be quite" face. Then pointed.
About twenty yards from us was a black bear foraging through the bushes. From what I could tell, it was a fairly big bear, but what do I know about bears? It didn't seem to be paying any attention to us, the dogs didn't seem to notice the bear (thankfully), so I took a gander and promptly took off.
I hadn't really thought of that until last night. I started my run by taking Doe for a short run around the neighborhood. I don't take Doe on the trails anymore because she's starting to develop bad hips and I as much as she wants to go for a run, she doesn't know her limits. We talk about pacing and stopping when there's pain, but she doesn't listen. Responsibility, I guess, falls to me to stop her.
I got to the trails and felt great. The running was wonderful, but it was dark and there were some patches of ice and snow on the trail so I was paying close attention to where I was stepping. About an hour into the run, I saw a stick up ahead. 'Weird looking stick' I thought. I approached it and stopped in front of it. What inspired me to do? I don't know. It just looked odd. I tilted my head so that my headlamp would illuminate the stick. Definitely not a stick.
Deer leg. Yes, a deer leg on the trail - bone sticking from the top, some skin still on it, and a distinct hoof.
Ok, so this is where I start really running. Even though I was feeling great, I decided to get off the trails as quickly as possible. Heart rate increased. Breathing quickened. Heading back toward town. Every sound I heard increased my blood pressure, every rock I ran passed: "Mountain Lion!" I thought. Thankfully I had no direct contact with mountain lions. I only ran across the morsels left behind by what I assume was a sloppy one.
I later thought that there probably wasn't anything to be concerned about. What I should be worried about is when I don't see deer-bits on the trial, because then maybe the lions are hungry. I also decided that maybe I should be running with a partner.
Anybody need a running partner?