This Week in Nellie Gail Ranch

From the week ending on December 31, 2021

The Recreation Center Tennis & Swim Club will close at noon Friday, December 31st and will be closed all-day New Year’s Day, Saturday, January 1st. The Club will be open on Sunday, January 2, 2022. The Association Business Office will be closed Friday, December 31st.

We received a credible report of a mountain lion spotted in the backyard of a property on the west side of Lost Colt Drive approximately 1 a.m. the morning of December 29, 2021. According to the CA Department of Fish & Wildlife (CADFW), mountain lions may be attracted to the community by the horse and farm animal population. In light of this reported encounter, please keep a close eye on your horses, alpacas, goats, dogs and chickens.

Please report any mountain lion or bobcat sightings to the CA Department of Fish & Wildlife at (858) 467-4201 or file a Wildlife Incident Report (WIR) at https://apps.wildlife.ca.gov/wir/incident/create. If your encounter with any wildlife is an emergency, call 911.

Filing a Wildlife Incident Reporting (WIR): The WIR System assigns a designated “Investigator” based on the geographic location of the wildlife incident reported. The Investigator may be a Department Biologist or Wildlife Officer (warden) who will receive general notification by email of an assigned WIR incident. Department staff strive to respond to all WIRs in a timely manner.

The below link provides some additional information regarding Mountain Lions: https://www.orangecountyoutdoors.com/wildlife/land-mammals/mountain-lion.

Trails are currently closed through the weekend due to rain. Please do not schedule feed or hay deliveries while the trails are wet. Every year we get one or two drivers who think they can beat the odds and it turns into an ordeal to offload and wait for the trails to be dry enough to send out a rescue. We do not send a general re-opening notice because our 25 miles of trails dry at different rates.

If you are not sure about your specific trail condition, please contact Jeff Hinkle at 949-425-1477 and he will inspect and evaluate.