Coyote trotting along the Salt Creek Trail near the Chapparosa Park s…

Yuna Kaur

Jul 1, 2026, 11:05 PM

Amit, that sit-and-stare would've rattled me too, especially with a terrier and a kid at Moulton. But one thing I've learned on Pacific Island Drive: a sat-down coyote is usually one that's been fed somewhere nearby, not one that's "won." Trapping the bold one just opens a spot for the next. What I'd actually push the HOA on is the food source — trash timing, that fruit tree by the Preserve trailhead, someone leaving cat food out. Want to walk the loop together some evening and map where they're getting comfortable? That's the honest plan I'd trust over a whistle.

Reza Shah

Jul 1, 2026, 11:22 PM

Amit, I walk that same stretch off Chapparosa most mornings and you usually see one right around then. Worth knowing they mostly trot the drainage line back up toward the ridge once the sun's fully up. Clapping doesn't do a ton once they're used to people. If you want it to actually move, big and loud works better, arms up, walk at it a step or two. They read a small still human as no threat.

Youssef Tran

Jul 2, 2026, 12:54 AM

Agree with the leashes up warning. That's the second sighting near Chapparosa this week that I've seen posted. It IS getting too comfortable. I'm with you on the patrols Amit.

Nicole Alvarez

Jul 2, 2026, 2:37 AM

Just a heads up, the city won't really "patrol" for a coyote using a trail at 7am, that's just a coyote doing coyote things on a greenbelt that runs straight up to open space. Not trying to argue, but removal doesn't fix the trail, another one uses the same corridor within weeks. The thing that actually helps is logging it so the pattern gets tracked.

Ying Adeyemi

Jul 2, 2026, 4:14 AM

How do you log it? Is that the Coyote Cacher thing? I keep seeing it mentioned but never actually did it.

Nicole Alvarez

Jul 2, 2026, 5:52 AM

Ying yes, Coyote Cacher (UC has a statewide one) and Laguna Niguel routes reports through the city too. Takes two minutes, you drop the location and time and behavior. The 7:40am not-spooking-at-a-clap detail is exactly the kind of thing that's useful to have on record.

Daniel Hill

Jul 2, 2026, 7:26 AM

Genuine question, is one just trotting toward houses at that hour actually a red flag, or is that pretty normal? It didn't lunge or anything from Amit's description, sounds like it was just going somewhere. Trying to calibrate what's worth worrying about.

Ming Castillo

Jul 2, 2026, 9:02 AM

Daniel from what I've read it's the not-caring-you're-there part that's the yellow flag, not the daytime itself. Dawn/dusk is totally normal for them. A healthy wary one usually gives you distance. Doesn't mean panic, just means haze it so it stays wary.

Daniela Gonzalez

Jul 2, 2026, 10:44 AM

Normal or not, I don't love it walking toward homes near Chapparosa Park with kids at the playground. Reza I hear you on the corridor but "another one moves in" isn't exactly comforting to the people living right there.

Reza Shah

Jul 2, 2026, 12:23 PM

Daniela that's fair, and I'm not brushing off the kids-at-the-park part, I've got family that walks there too. The reason I push back on removal isn't to be difficult, it's that it genuinely doesn't hold, the trail stays attractive. Securing trash, no fallen fruit sitting out, and everybody hazing consistently is what actually makes them stop treating it like a hangout. Slower, less satisfying, but it's the thing that works.

Lucia Carter

Jul 2, 2026, 1:59 PM

Saving the Coyote Cacher tip, didn't know that existed. Reported the one I saw on Crown Valley near the golf course last week just now.

Youssef Tran

Jul 2, 2026, 3:34 PM

Tried the walk-at-it-arms-up thing this morning near the same spot Amit mentioned, and yeah it actually turned and went back up the hill instead of ignoring me. Still logging it but credit where due, that worked better than clapping. Thanks Reza.