Cascade Mountain School: PCT Game Trail Carnivore Camera Setup

A group of four from the 2015 Cascade Mountain School Field Ecology Course posted a camera approximately one mile south of the Stagman Ridge trail on the Pacific Crest Trail, north of the trail on Monday August 10 around 10:00 am. We chose this area because it is located near a drainage and a trail, both of which animals use for travel. At the top of the drainage is a small meadow with a copse of live trees among a forest of burnt trees. It will be interesting to see if foxes still inhabit the area after the recent year’s forest fires and at lower elevations with changing temperatures due to climate change. The camera and scent lure are at a north-south orientation with the camera facing north to avoid direct sunlight at all times of day. We placed the scent lure on an easy access side of the tree to encourage approach from the front in the camera’s view. There is also a game trail passing through the view of the camera and multiple rocky areas possible for denning. Due to the aforementioned features we think the area is a likely fox habitat and an ideal camera location.

~Spunky Grizzlies
Rachel the Mountain Goat, Maria the Black Bear, Ankita the Anteater, Luca the Chinchilla