Thursday, October 12, 2006
Three deer and a cyclist
I saw three deer in a small ravine this morning. I noticed one of them while I was riding along, then I stopped and saw her two friends. It was in the exact same spot where I saw deer last year, which is only about 1 km from two major expressways, the 407 and the 404.
They were enjoying eating and sniffing around and whatever else deer do. When I walked onto the sidewalk, they raised their heads and pointed all of their noses and ears at me.
A bunch of cars drove by while I stood there. I was hoping a kid would walk past who would enjoy the sight, but it must have been after school started.
The deer remained frozen in place with their leaf shaped ears, operating like satellite dishes of a perfect ancient design, aimed straight at me, triangulating my position and determining I was not a threat. They watched me intently but decided not to run. I didn't think I was making much noise, but I suspect that when I left, they snorted at each other about the grumbles in my stomach and what I must have had for breakfast.
Eventually I decided it was a staring contest I had no chance of winning, so I returned my bike to the road and pedaled off.
They were enjoying eating and sniffing around and whatever else deer do. When I walked onto the sidewalk, they raised their heads and pointed all of their noses and ears at me.
A bunch of cars drove by while I stood there. I was hoping a kid would walk past who would enjoy the sight, but it must have been after school started.
The deer remained frozen in place with their leaf shaped ears, operating like satellite dishes of a perfect ancient design, aimed straight at me, triangulating my position and determining I was not a threat. They watched me intently but decided not to run. I didn't think I was making much noise, but I suspect that when I left, they snorted at each other about the grumbles in my stomach and what I must have had for breakfast.
Eventually I decided it was a staring contest I had no chance of winning, so I returned my bike to the road and pedaled off.
Darren J 10/12/2006 12:23:00 p.m.
2 Comments:
Cool! It's amazing how few people will have seen those deer.
Ravines and even hydro corridors provide paths for them to get around. I used to see the odd deer in the hydro corridor right at Yonge & 407/7. Nobody else seemed to notice.
Ravines and even hydro corridors provide paths for them to get around. I used to see the odd deer in the hydro corridor right at Yonge & 407/7. Nobody else seemed to notice.
I usually pass within 10 yards or so of ~6 deer a day on my commute. Recently, I noticed one on the bike path ahead of me. It turned and looked at me so I stopped pedaling and coasted as it moved just off the path. We eyed each other as I passed within reach of the thing. Scary part is, this is fairly close to a major intersection.
