WATCH: Cougar stalks, pounces at runner in Utah
Warning: The video in the player above contains strong language.
PROVO, Utah (NewsNation Now) — A dangerous close encounter caught on video. A runner recorded several excruciating minutes as he tried to ward off an attack from a cougar that refused to back down.
In a post on social media, Kyle Burgess, recorded the experience and said he thought he “was done for.”
It happened in Slate Canyon near Provo, Utah on Saturday night. A cougar began following him along the trail, NewsNation affiliate KTVX-TV reported.
Burgess repeatedly yelled and made roaring sounds in an attempt to scare the cougar off, but the cougar continues to pursue the man, at a distance.
On more than one occasion, the large cat pounced toward Burgess, stopping short of actually attacking. But the hiker continues walking backward.
The nerve-wracking encounter lasts six minutes before its abrupt conclusion after Burgess threw a rock at the cougar.