About wildcats and life on the trail - #lakewoodnews

Do you know your Colorado wildcats?

It's all about the tail, said Alicia Vermilye, a nature educator with Open Space.

Bobcat tails are shorter and look "dipped in paint," whereas mountain lion tails are long and unmarked.

Mountain lions are "successful hunters," Vermilye said, "not only because of their tails and claws, but because they're camouflage. They blend in to their surroundings."

On July 14, Jefferson County Open Space volunteers set up an Education Station to teach Apex Park users about the wildcats of Jefferson County.

"We found out about a mountain lion sighting here," Vermilye said. "When we educate about mountain lions, it makes you a safer hiker."

The frequency of the Education Stations vary --; it just depends on the needs of the park, Vermilye said.

Helping set up the table for the wildcats was Erykalynn Draper-Miller.

"I like helping," the 10-year-old said. "So that's how this all started in the first place."

Draper-Miller was accompanied by her grandmother Millie Travis. The two of them attend a lot of Open Space programs together, Travis said, but it was their first time to visit Apex Park.

Open Space parks are definitely the place to be, Draper-Miller said. She likes to visit her grandmother, who lives in Indian Hills, and the Open Space programs are fun because as a resident of Denver, Draper-Miller likes to get away from the crowded city and the traffic.

And Travis likes bringing her granddaughter to the programs because she likes to see her have a good time.

"And I always learn something as well," Travis said.

Jeffco Open Space parks have a wide variety of wildlife, said volunteer Billie Erxleben.

"My purpose for being here is to help people not be prey," she said. "When people have knowledge on how to protect themselves, they'll know what the animal does and how to counteract."

The Apex Trail leads right to Open Space volunteer Heidi Burgess' house. So because it's her neighborhood trail, she keeps track of the happenings.

But, she said, "I am really crazy about Jefferson County in general."

And her goal is to hike all of the Open Space trails.

Sheila Martus of Lakewood stopped by the Education Station while visiting Apex Park to do some mountain biking. The Apex trail is one of her favorites.

But all of the Open Space parks are fun, she said.

"It's so close to town, yet so far from life," Martus said. "You can forget about things while you're out enjoying the trails."

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