Nighttime Visitors

I left the house about 6pm last night and ran into this nice buck and his harem just up the road. My flash was on the fritz so the pictures aren't the best.

In addition to this guy, there was a little spike and 5 or 6 does. This happens every fall lately. When I was growing up, you never saw deer in town. I think there are a couple of reasons we see them more now. One, the drier weather over the last decade or so has pushed them into town and once here, they see a tasty treat of gardens, trees, and grapevines. Why go anywhere else? Another thing is the leash law, so dogs aren't running free around town, barking and yapping. Instead, they're fenced in back yards, barking and yapping. And a third reason just occurred to me. Poaching isn't as prevalant or as accepted (wink, wink) as it once was.

Anyway, it's kind of neat to look out now and then and see a few deer trotting through town. Dad would disagree, it's almost impossible for him to keep a garden anymore.