Hiking in California or Utah, we risked meeting up with mountain lions. Hiking in New England, we risk encounters with ticks.
I’m much more anxious about the ticks than I ever was about mountain lions.
This might be because of the sneakiness of ticks. Pretty much if you’ve made it through your hike without seeing a mountain lion, you’re in the clear. You’re unlikely to find a mountain lion hiding between your toes or inside your ear after you’re home.
Ticks, on the other hand are not so straightforward.
Imperfect Happiness 
I hate HATE ticks. Heck, I’d purposely SEEK mountain lions if it meant not getting ticks… Half my family has had lyme disease. It sucks. BEfore i had my son and had to buck up a bit about these things, I was actually AFRAID of the buggers. Like, hyperventilate if I had one on me scared. Now, I’m not like that. It’s more a loathing than a fear.
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I think I’ve tempered my fear a bit. But then, you’ve seen how I dress to hike. My son took off his hat and dumped a fistful of leaf litter on his hair while we were hiking yesterday. I about lost it.
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hahahha, so true!!
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