Man fought off a mountain lion weeks before a suspected fatal Colorado attack
This photo provided by Gary Messina shows a mountain lion in the brush between two trees along the Crosier Mountain trail in the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests near Glen Haven, Colo., on Nov 11, 2025. (Gary Messina via AP)
A solo hiker who authorities believe was killed by a mountain lion on a remote Colorado trail on New Year's Day was not the first person to encounter one of the predators in the area in recent weeks.
Gary Messina said he was running along the same trail on a dark November morning when his headlamp caught the gleam of two eyes in the nearby brush. Messina used his phone to snap a quick photo before a mountain lion rushed him.
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