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Thursday November 16 2006
Orchard encounter 12:15 - 2:06 Lakeview and Chemin de la Montangne to SC and then to Magog, Georgeville, Fitch Bay, Bell Road and Brown's Hill to Ayer's Cliff. Making my final approach to the shop on the way home I spooked our resident deer over in the orchard. She pays me small heed if I am on foot and is remarkably tolerant of Bonnie. She's often in the orchard when I return from rides and usually does little more than prick her ears and twitch her tail as I go by. The last 250 feet to the shop is across grass and also includes a very sharp turn around the orchard. These days the dead leaves, wet grass, and mud make negotiating that bend quite tricky, so instead, I go past the turn, make a clover-leaf type loop to the right, and then take a straight shot at the road to the shop. Evidently the deer froze just a couple of yards away from me as I passed by the turn and I didn't even notice her. Coming out of my loop and heading for the straight-away to the shop placed me on a trajectory which would have passed within several feet of where she stood next to one of the apple trees. That, along with Bonnie's throaty growl, proved too much for her and she bolted right across my path and into the woods by the outhouse. That close encounter probably provided both of us with a good shot of adrenalin. |