Home video captures mountain lion strolling through SLO County yard

A surveillance-camera video captured a mountain lion crossing the front yard area of a Cambria home at 1:53 a.m. Monday.

The house is located in the upper Marine Terrace neighborhood of the coastal town’s Lodge Hill area.

“When we saw it, we found it to be a surprise,’ resident Anuj Aggarwal wrote in a text later that day. ‘Cambria is a beautiful and serene place where the intersection of beauty and nature is harmonious. The animals that seek refuge are an important part of the ecosystem that makes Cambria what it is.’

The sighting was the second in Cambria in about as many weeks.

On July 13, Dawn Ellner received an alert at around midnight from her Ring security camera when it detected movement outside. The camera had captured footage of a cougar climbing into her backyard.

Typically, her camera “picks up various types of wildlife nightly, including raccoons, skunks, deer, opossums and foxes,” Ellner told The Tribune via email. “This was the first time my camera has captured a mountain lion and it was quite a surprise!”

This story was originally published August 1, 2023 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Home video captures mountain lion strolling through SLO County yard."

Kathe Tanner

The Tribune

805-781-7904 (voicemails only)

Kathe Tanner has been writing about the people and places of SLO County’s North Coast since 1981, first as a columnist and then also as a reporter. Her career has included stints as a bakery owner, public relations director, radio host, trail guide and jewelry designer. She has been a resident of Cambria for more than four decades, and if it’s happening in town, Kathe knows about it.