Utah hiker, 70, fights off mountain lion with a rock after he's ambushed in canyon

A 70-year-old hiker in Utah fought off a mountain lion that ambushed him in a canyon last week, telling local reporters he used only a rock and his hand.

The mountain lion attacked the hiker around 1 p.m. Thursday in Diamond Fork up Spanish Fork Canyon, the Utah County Sheriff’s Office said. The 70-year-old escaped serious injury, suffering lacerations on his arms and head.

The hiker, identified as Evan Ray Nilsen, told KUTV that he was feeling "alright" following the attack but described the encounter as "a shock and a half."

"A mountain lion hit me right on the side, knocked me down the hill," Nilsen said. "I kind of hunched up or folded up, and it come down around behind me. And I hit it with a rock – just with my hand with a rock – and it took off."

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Nilsen said he was able to drive himself down the canyon and got...