Where have people had trouble with marmots/porcupines?

[Trotter]

On Tuesday I was up hiking San Luis with my dog Wilson. Due to the possible presence of moose, I kept him "on leash" until above treeline. As we were approaching the summit a porcupine came out of nowhere, and of course Wilson tried to go make friends with it. Needless to say, the porcupine was not in a friendly mood. In an instance Wilson had about 50 quills in his face/lower neck area. I spent about 30 minutes removing them on the summit and he was fine. This is the first time I've ever seen a porcupine above tree line, let alone 13,800. I'm curious, has anyone else ever seen porcupines this high up?

I've seen one in winter, right at edge of tree line, about 12,500

[James Dziezynski]

I've had some real porcupine issues in the Coon Hill / Golden Bear / Loveland Ski area (in the summer; next time you're there in the winter look down on the pine trees from the lifts, you might see porcupines napping!) My guess is there is a lot of antifreeze and trash in that lot and the critters can visit it and quickly retreat to the willows.

[waolsen]

I had a porcupine take out my wiring harness in the Flattops near Devil's Causeway. I used chick wire for about a year but it became annoying to haul around. I roll the dice these days but that tow ride back to Denver is not something I want to do again.

[bigDmulc009]

Calif. prefers the tarp method.

https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/marmots.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

very interesting! seems ultimately less of a hassle than creating a chicken coop for your car

[kaiman]

In the bathtub.

Dick

lebowskimarmot.jpg

Nice marmot!

[tb8331]

I'm looking at Handies, Sneffels from the Blue Lakes, and Wetterhorn. Anyone had any problems at these?

[Timothy]

Not to change the subject, but, anybody got any good recipes for marmot or porcupine? I'm at the top of the food chain, and I don't take kindly to critters gnawing on my truck.

[Papillon]

I had a porcupine chew the control harness to my 4WD on the South Mineral Road over Memorial Day weekend. Bill was $1,000. I could've bought a niced signed Bukowski for $1,000.

I'm 99% sure it was a porkie because I was parked in almost the exact same spot two weeks later and one rolled into my camp at dusk with "those lifeless black eyes, like a doll's eyes..."

This was maybe 200-300 yards east of the Clear Lake turnoff. I normally sleep in my car but have been enjoying dispersed sites this summer and it is a nice change of pace. I've always kept mothballs in an airtight container and pop the lid and put them under my car whenever I leave it. These mothballs were several years old and had lost their stench. I have since replaced them with two jars.

I was talking to the host at the NF campground at the end of the same road Saturday night and noticed his entire rig was barricaded with chicken wire. His wife said they have tried everything and mothballs do not work. They were experimenting with cups of ammonia. He said his dash looked like a pinball machine with all the indicator lights on.

There are marmots all up and down the road too. Never seen them that low.

Good luck to all...

[Tim A]

I've had issues at American basin and Silver Creek trailheads with porcupines in early June. A few years ago I spent over an hour chasing a porcupine out from under my car while trying to sleep in my tent nearby. No sooner would I crawl into my bag after chasing the porker off and I could hear him again chewing on my car. At that time I was aware of this risk but didn't want the inconvenience of lugging around chicken wire. That poor choice led to the inconvenience of driving back down to Lake City at midnight.

Came back the next year with chicken wire and had no problems. That said, I was just back at Silver Creek TH at the end of June this year and slept in my car without wire. I had it handy, but didn't feel like setting it up unless I needed to, and I never heard anything chewing on my car that night. Perhaps they just come out early in spring to get their salt fix and then leave cars alone later into summer? All the same, I wouldn't go there without wire anymore. The inconvenience of carrying wire isn't even comparable to the inconvenience of calling a tow from somewhere up there.

I haven't experienced any problems personally at Matterhorn Creek or Blue Lakes, but I've heard of people wrapping their cars at both locations.

[highpilgrim]

and one rolled into my camp at dusk with "those lifeless black eyes, like a doll's eyes..."

Good Captain Quint reference, Papi.

[Papillon]

and one rolled into my camp at dusk with "those lifeless black eyes, like a doll's eyes..."

Good Captain Quint reference, Papi.

Thanks, buddy. Good to see somebody is alive out there.

[highpilgrim]

Thanks, buddy. Good to see somebody is alive out there.

Mostly it's just the waking dead, all tuckered out from "hiking burnout". Or so I've heard.

They'd be easy fodder for Ed Gein.