MOUNT TIMPANOGOS – Lehi resident Kevin Slider was hiking along the Timpooneke Trail when he decided to cut across the glacier. That’s when the mountain goat started walking up toward him. “That thing was like a linebacker. It was solid muscle,” Slider says.
After a few seconds, the goat started shaking its head and hopping toward Slider. “He didn’t like me being there. To me, it seemed like he wanted to fight.”
Slider tried to shoo the goat away, but that didn’t work. After that, he grabbed his pack and slowly backed away. Every time the goat got closer, Slider yelled. He says, “That was just natural instinct to yell and back away slowly. You hear that [advice] about bears and moose or anything like that. I thought, ‘This has got to be something similar.’”
The scariest part of the encounter happened after Slider stopped recording. He was able to get a few hundred yards away from the animal, but, that’s when the goat jumped down from a rock and charged, full speed. Slider says he turned and ran as fast as possible. Next time he goes hiking up the trail, he’ll bring pepper spray.
Wildlife officials say it was a smart move to yell and slowly back away. Division of Wildlife Resources Spokesman Mark Hadley says for most animals like moose, black bears and cougars. Hadley says you can’t outrun any of these animals, and running away could make things worse. He says, “Cougars are used to seeing their prey run away from them. If you try and run from a cougar, that elicits a response. It thinks you’re its prey, trying to get away from it.”