Mountail Lion/Cougars encounters by solo cyclist on ACA Pacific Route?

[bikeways]

Hi! I'll be doing the ride from Vancouver to San Diego in October and am stressing out about encountering cougars along the highway. I hear they can come up on you. Has anyone encountered or heard of cyclist on this route having to deal with them?

[adventurepdx]

Hi! I'll be doing the ride from Vancouver to San Diego in October and am stressing out about encountering cougars along the highway. I hear they can come up on you. Has anyone encountered or heard of cyclist on this route having to deal with them?

While there are probably cougars around somewhere on the coast route, unless you are getting way off the beaten path, the chance of seeing one while doing the Pacific Coast are slim to none.

However, the animal that you will need to be the most concerned with are raccoons. No, they aren't going to attack you, but they will attack your food! They are particularly bad in several campgrounds along the way. If there are food storage lockers in your campground, use them. Don't leave your food out!

[John Nelson]

I hate raccoons.They are particularly bad at Kirk Creek and Half Moon Bay. But you won't see a cougar.

[johnsondasw]

Actually, the animal you need to be most concerned about is the distracted/drunk/stoned/etc driver. Your chance of encountering a cougar is infinitesimal compared to the dangers of the road.  I have biked and hiked thousands of miles in the west, mostly in WA, where I live in the heart of cougar country (and hike almost daily in the woods here) and have seen one very juvenile cougar (we think) at dusk, scrambling up a tree lightning fast to avoid us! Don't worry about it. 

[alessandra]

And what about other wildlife? Bears...

[aggie]

Bears are also a rare sighting.  The most likely large animal you will see are deer.