Anglers Bypass Mountain Lion’s Lair

The sighting of a mountain lion following a horseback rider was reason enough for officials to close Cuyamaca Rancho State Park in San Diego County for two days early last week, but it didn’t keep anglers from visiting Cuyamaca Lake, a small reservoir just across the highway from the wilderness park.

“Those that felt they were too ornery to be bothered by the mountain lion were rewarded by some purrific trouting,” Hugh Marx, head ranger at the lake, said in his weekly report.

Corny or not, Marx said the lake is finally cooling and the fishing is picking up, with anglers catching one to five trout daily, most of them half-pounders.