How's This For Frightening?

[KnottedYet]

Wow! I just remember the advice EVERYONE gave me about deer: hold your line. If that means hit the deer, then "hit" the deer. They move fast (and jump, holy toledo!) and if you try to swerve you are more likely to hit them.

Hold your line. "hit" the deer. Slow down if you can.

[Starfish]

This is something I have to deal with worrying about coming down from Hurricane Ridge. There are ALWAYS deer grazing by the roadside. They are very used to cars, and mostly don't move. But, they get more startled by fast moving bikes. Still, mostly they stay put...but not always.

Is it enough to keep me moving really slowly down a 20 mile, 5000 foot drop? No. But, sometimes I wonder.

[crazycanuck]

Wowie!!!! Amazing, cool & frightening at the same time.

I wonder if a roo's ever done that?

C

[GLC1968]

That's hilarious!

When we were riding in the moutains a month ago, we were descending this curvy road and as we came around a blind curve, three of us had to stop short to avoid hitting three baby deer (which are called what?). There was a mama and her babies crossing the road and as I came up on them (I was the third person, so the first two bikes must have already spooked them), they were kind of dancing in the road scared out of their wits. I screetched to a stop as quickly as I could and then swerved off the road away from the mama deer who was definitely getting super agitated. I've seen pissed of mama deer before...not something you want to tangle with if it can be avoided!

The whole time, DH was staring in wide-eyed amazement. He'd never seen deer up close like that before!

[Bad JuJu]

three of us had to stop short to avoid hitting three baby deer (which are called what?).

Fawns. Did they still have the white spots on their sides? I think it's unusual for a doe to have three at a time, isn't it?

And BTW, yikes!

[GLC1968]

They did still have white spots!

Yeah, I think deer normally just give birth to one fawn (thank you...I was having a brain fart!) at a time, so the other moms were either still in the woods or perhaps they had been killed? Do deer care for the young of other deer?

[Tuckervill]

On the Katy Trail last week I saw two little fawns standing on the trail. The dog never saw them, thank goodness. They scooted off into the woods when they heard us coming, and then the mama (she was little--only about a foot taller than my dog) came bounding through. They were SO cute.

I don't think triplets are common, but it is possible. The deer population is way, way up, so the healthier the does the more likely there are multiples, I would think.

Karen