3 posts tagged “deer”

She Who Must be Obeyed surprised me this morning. I was sure she was dead set on going for a bicycle ride in the unusual hot and humid October weather. She just bought new cycling shoes and had been itching to get out on the road. I had already decided not to object and that I would enjoy the two-wheeled outing. But no! She began waffling. Whilst She did want to get out on this sunny day, perhaps a hike would do ... but not in some area we always go to. Pulling out her handy-dandy ring binder containing trail maps and brochures she said, "how about Mentor Marsh?" Sounded intriguing to me so off we went, cameras and all. The first part was a little disappointing: it was a flat wooded area whose understory was littered with fallen trees and limbs and no sign of new plant life. Hmmmm... We trekked back to the nature center at the trail head --it was closed when we arrived-- to find the door open and someone inside. After a friendly encounter with the nature center staffer who was enjoying her lunch before the "official" hours began, we set out exploring (after lunch on our own). The staffer said we would find an area where we would cross into the marshland via boardwalk. So we began walking the two-mile trail that we thought might do the crossing. Noope! We did have a long lovely hike there, however, over undulating terrain in a sometimes deep woods. The trail, however, never crossed into the marsh though it came to its edge several times. Many birds flitted amongst the trees and scrub. Some mosquitoes buzzed about but not as many as one might expect. Fallen trees in various stages of disintegration provided food for fungi of all sorts. We shot lots of photos, many not very good due to difficult lighting conditions. We saw four deer, too, or possibly the same pair twice.

On the return walk (an out-and-back trail) I got the accompanying picture which was exactly the image I wanted. The deer, in semi-silhouette, is in tack-sharp focus. Very pleased indeed. Got back to the car, looked at the Marsh brochure and, oh!, it's another trail that goes out into the marsh! A few minutes' drive, resolved confusion about where to park and where the trail head was (thanks to some neighborhood kids), and we were on the boardwalk. The most impressive thing there? The height of the marsh reeds! The photo with this post illustrates just how dense and tall those plants really are. Quite incredible. So, after a very good set of hikes, two very sweaty people headed home for showers and baked spaghetti. A beautiful Sunday in the marshlands.

Lately I've noticed the deer coming closer to our homes, later in the day than ever before. I spotted these at about 11:00 AM. I'm sure loss of local habitat to development is driving the deer to do this ... they've got to eat! Interestingly, and potentially unfortunate for the deer, the animals pictured here actually approached me as I was shooting the photos! Had I been shooting bullets, it would have been nearly point-blank -- these guys were only about 20 feet away!

It was a pretty nice morning this day. I had a reasonably good night's sleep (too brief, as usual, but restful except for waking briefly suspecting the shadow on the wall had supernatural significance, telling my id it was stupid, then going back to sleep). As I was getting dressed for work, clad in briefs and a dress shirt, I spotted a deer munching on tree ring plants in a neighbor's front yard. So I went downstairs, grabbed my camera, and shot a few photos of our visitor. The deer strolled out of the neighbor's yard and toward ours so I moved to the balcony, still clad in briefs and a dress shirt. Hey, I was covered! Anyway, the deer was becoming wary apparently hearing my camera's stupid beeps and clicks but was checking out some ragged landscape plants when I shot the photo shown here. Shortly after that, our Friday morning visitor disappeared into a small wooded area nearby and I went indoors to put my pants on. The deer around here regularly visit our front yards in search of good grazing but we usually don't see them this long after sunrise. They are emboldened by the pressure of diminishing habitat as wooded areas and open fields are developed, mostly for new housing. I can't help but feel sorry for them: they're just trying to make a living in a world that is increasingly hostile. I wish we would preserve more green areas around here as refuge and habitat for these and other wild creatures. Politicians and developers define such lands as "vacant" or "idle." Just shows you what they don't know about the natural world and it's too bad so few people recognize the value of such areas.

The cats are both doing well. You can tell Tasha's feeling better because she was a total grouch towards Missy last night. She's probably transferring the aggression she has over the outdoor cats she sees through the window on to poor old Miss who she sees moving through the nighttime shadows of the living room. At any rate, she charged and hissed at Missy several times last night and was difficult to calm. This morning they were apparently at peace with each other as they got their respective medicines, foods, and treats.

My niece is to be married tomorrow. Most of the family will be traveling to the Dayton area for the ceremonies but we won't be among them. I'd made an early prior commitment to run an open house at the College Observatory for Alumni Day. Pretty important to not miss. By chance we also got into the conflicting requirement for regular medication of two cats who definitely will do better at home than boarded at the vet's. Long-term stress is just no good for them. Still, I'm sorry to miss this important day in her life and the chance to see my family. So, weakly in our stead, we sent our best wishes and a generous gift to dear Rachel. Even now I usually think of her as a 10-year-old girl rather than the engaged recent college graduate she now is. {Sigh!} Where did those years go?