July 12th – With it being so sunny, and no shortage of people around, I didn’t expect to see the deer at Chasewater. Fortuitously, I was wrong; there were three discrete groups, one with a young fawn, all browsing the North Heath.
They were largely tolerant of my attention, and were looking in good health.
A sight I still find astounding. Such beautiful creatures.
January 18th – For the first time in weeks, my deer magnet was on an working well. Crossing the north heath at Chasewater, I spotted a female red deer laying in the scrub by the fence, then as I approached, about seven others became evident, loafing in the scrub, including a young male. The were tolerant, co-operative and in no hurry to go anywhere. A lovely sight.
Turning to leave, I noted three darker reds up on the bank 100 metres away. They were more skittish, and I’m not convinced they were from the same herd… they certainly didn’t seem friendly with the ones on the lower pasture.
A brilliant sight on a great ride; how I love these graceful, peaceful animals and the fact that they roam wild in my hometown.
December 29th – I saw her in the usual place, near Penkridge Bank – an elderly, lone fallow doe. Split from her herd, she was clearly in good health and not troubled, just sheltering in a patch of scrub. Oddly, she was the only deer I saw that day, but it was good to see her.
People seem to get overly concerned about deer this weather, but this really is the kind of winter they’re built for. They’ll be fine.
March 17th – I haven’t seen the local deer for a while. I know they’ve been about from the reports of others, but my path and theirs hasn’t crossed. This is unusual, and I’ve missed seeing them. I like the red deer a lot, and feel quite some attachment. I think it’s partially due to the fact that they wander so freely, and pretty much appeared unannounced. They’re like odd, brown, cervine ghosts; you see them often enough to know they’re there, but the movements they make from place to place are unseen and mysterious. Recently, they’ve been on Clayhanger Common. One has to wonder how they got there… you can’t enter clay hanger without crossing the canal.
Today, they were on the fields of the former Highfields Farm, south of the M6 Toll near Chasewater. I spotted them first from near the Poole Crescent footbridge, and then got closer shots from the roadside near the old farm. The group of does – I think there were about 15 in total – were loafing and grazing, and were not disturbed by my presence.
I love these graceful, beautiful animals. It’s lovely that we have them here. Such unexpected, wild beauty in a postindustrial place.
June 17th – My deer magnet is clearly functioning well right now. These two delightful yearling hinds were grazing on the scrub adjacent to the railway track at Chasewater Heaths. Note that they’re still very young, and have the traces of their juvenile whit spots still present in their summer coats. They happily browsed the vegetation whilst keeping an eye on me, eventually wandering into the thicket nearby. A lovely sight, and one I still pinch myself in disbelief, every time I see it.
May 13th – Finally break the longstanding deer deficit. At the rear of the old Rising Sun Inn, on Brownhills common, I come upon this old doe. I scared her, actually, coming around a blind spot in the track. Clattering feet, snapping saplings, she headed for the thicket where she glared at me, my infernal bike, and chewed solidly.
She looks a bit mad, actually. Since that heron, all the wildlife I see seems to have a vague look of mental instability. Is it a sign of something?
BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking 