What would you do if a mountain lion started stalking you on a hiking trail?
That’s the question at the center of a viral video that has sparked thousands of comments online and plenty of disagreement. In a recent breakdown, Colion Noir dissected the encounter, using it to explore a much bigger discussion about wildlife, self-defense and what people expect someone to do when an apex predator decides they’re on the menu.
The video shows a hiker backing away while a mountain lion follows him through the woods. The cat repeatedly closes the distance as the man tries to scare it off. Eventually, he fires his handgun.
The comments split almost immediately.
Some argued the lion was simply in its natural habitat and shouldn’t have been shot. Others countered that once a predator begins stalking a person, the conversation changes from wildlife appreciation to survival.
Noir didn’t hide where he stood.
He joked that the hiker deserved credit for filming the encounter at all, since the footage is the only reason viewers know exactly what happened. But his bigger point was simple: nobody should be expected to gamble their life trying to read the intentions of a wild predator.
Yes, mountain lions can be curious. They don’t attack every person they see. But there’s no way to know when curiosity becomes an attack, and betting your life on reading the mood of a cougar isn’t a decision most people want to make.
Noir also pushed back on commenters who insisted a warning shot would have solved everything.
According to Noir, that assumes the animal understands what a gunshot means. A mountain lion doesn’t know what a firearm is, and there’s no guarantee a warning shot scares it away. Depending on where you are, firing a round without a target could even create legal problems, though Noir acknowledged there’s room for discussion about whether wildlife encounters deserve different treatment than human self-defense cases.
His biggest criticism wasn’t about the shooting. It was about the hiker’s reaction beforehand.
Rather than calmly talking to the cat, Noir said he’d rather see someone get loud, make themselves look bigger and convince the animal they’re not an easy meal. Wildlife experts generally recommend making noise, maintaining eye contact, avoiding running and attempting to intimidate a mountain lion if one appears aggressive.
Still, the bottom line was straightforward: if it ultimately comes down to your life or the animal’s, he’s choosing to go home to his family.
What do you think? Did the hiker make the right call? Should he have waited longer, tried something different or fired a warning shot first?
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