I ran into one on a trail about a year ago at the Westwind Barn in Los Altos Hills. He was going the opposite direction from me, maybe 30 ft. away. Scared the daylights out of me. We warily eyed each other, kept our distance, and both moved on. I was thinking “Here I am totally defenseless...no rocks or sticks nearby...what do I do now?” I have mainly kept a sharp eye out for the big cats and not expecting to see coyotes, even though the probability of spotting a coyote is far greater than seeing an elusive cat.
I’ve never seen a coyote closer than maybe 100 yards while hiking. I also keep a close lookout for mountain lions-their tracks, and for wild hogs.
One day I was hiking on a trail between a game fence and a rock face and I saw fresh mountain lion tracks-my hair stood on end. I walked backwards to the main trail swinging a big stick and singing the first song I thought of-Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap-as loud as I could-I haven’t hiked that trail alone since...