By Karen Pearlman

Image of Mountain Lion courtesy Pixabay

April 17, 2025 (Descanso, CA) -- A 31-year-old Descanso runner on Wednesday, April 16, came face-to-face with a mountain lion that he says charged at him, during an evening run on the Oak Trail in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park.

JJ Goodrich wrote on his Facebook page as well as in the Descanso Neighbors Facebook page that he had an encounter with a local mountian lion.

"Please be aware if you hike out there," Goodrich wrote in Descanso Neighbors. "It was on Oak Trail between East Mesa Fire Road and Harvey Moore. Probably 140-150 lbs, never hissed, ears up, and maintained eye contact. They can close the distance incredibly fast, it was impressive."

March 14, 2022 (Descanso, CA) -- Ana Lilia sent in this video of a mountain lion spotted in the backyard of her home in Descanso, a rural community in San Diego's backcountry.  “I love how the last shot of him/her is just as he passed by our statue of St. Francis of Assisi -- the patron Saint of Ecology & Animals," she says.

By Miriam Raftery

July 9, 2019 (Lakeside) – CBS 8 reports that numerous goats have been killed in the past month in Lakeside's Morena Valley and Eucalyptus Hills communities. The CBS story quoted Billy Ortiz, a wildlife photographer, who said he identified tracks of a female mountain lion and a cub near the most recent kill.

But wildlife biologist Renee Owens says, "By the nature of the kills they were most if not all coyotes and possibly dogs.  Yes, there is a mountain lion in the area, as has always been the case–as in all areas of our backcountry, but the track Billy has posted is not definitive of a lion."  Her nonprofit organization, Wildlife Zone, is working on a mountain lion study.  She has been featured on National Geographic, the BBC, Discovery Channel and Dateline for her wildlife expertise.

By Miriam Raftery

July 8, 2016 (Mt. Helix) – Two mountain lions have been reported Monday by a homeowner on Mt. Helix.  La Mesa Today sent an alert warning the lions were seen  off Lemon Avenue in the Lake Helix area.  A CBS 8 news story ran two photos taken by the homeowner in unincorporated  La Mesa and footage of the location outside the home. 

The homeowner, who asked to stay anonymous, said the lions were on a hillside above a pool where her children were playing and two large dogs were present.

A long-time La Mesa resident  posted on a residents’ online forum that through the years he has previously seen mountain lions in the Boulder Hills area of La Mesa near Chevy Chase, above the La Mesa Village. 

April 3, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – A female mountain lion’s call has often been described as sounding like a woman’s scream.  Here is a call caught on a trailcam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hM2Sw8dsMDQ

June 9, 2011 (Alpine) - Alpine Community Network reports that an Alpine resident has informed ACN of a mountain lion siting in broad daylight.  According to ACN director Angela Brookshire, ""I received an email this morning from an Alpine Resident who told me that on their way to work at Sycuan Casino at approximately 6:50 a.m. they spotted a Mountain Lion at the corner of Tavern Rd. and Dehesa Rd. in Alpine."