A Close Call in the Columbia River Gorge
A young woman on horseback survives an encounter with a starving cougar.
Miss Ida Grimes, a young woman living on the Washington side of the Columbia River, three miles north of Woodland, beat off a young cougar with her riding-whip and made her escape Wednesday morning. Miss Grimes rides on horseback to the Hill ranch to assist in the milking every morning and evening. She was making her return trip Wednesday when a young cougar attacked her horse, causing scratches and tearing her clothing. Miss Grimes defended herself with her riding-whip and finally pulled her horse away from the hungry cub. The animal was about the size of a dog and, having just been weaned, was likely starving.
“Miss Grimes defended herself with her riding-whip and finally pulled her horse away from the hungry cub.”
Encounters with cougars remain a part of rural life in the Pacific Northwest, though the landscape near Woodland has changed drastically from the wild ranch lands of 1903.
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