FEASTING ON DEER

From the time I was a little girl visiting my grandparents who lived in the North Woods in the Baldwin area, I have always loved watching deer.  We'd go out after dinner and drive the back roads looking for deer.  We even kept a log of how many we'd seen each night.

I guess I still have that same behavior.  As I'm out in the country looking for wildlife to photograph, I'm always on the lookout for deer, especially as dusk approaches.  I almost always see one or two.

But this evening, I hit the jackpot.  First I saw this doe and her fawn grazing in a field of wildflowers.  The doe seemed on high alert with her tail coming up as I approached.  I expected them to bolt any minute.

And bolt they did, flying across the field with those beautiful white tails high in the air.  The young spotted fawn was learning what to do in the face of perceived danger.  Not that I was.

The next deer I saw was just emerging from a wooded area.  I actually drove by it and caught it in my side vision just as I passed it.  I stopped and backed up, a sure action that causes most deer to run off.  I was lucky, though, as the deer stayed until I had my fill of picture taking.

I drove on and spotted three young bucks grazing in this field of greens.  They were all sporting first nubs of velvet.  They held my eye and showed no fear as I watched them.  Finally, I drove off and left them to their evening feeding.

I saw over 20 deer that evening, although I didn't get usable photographs of them all.  This was my last image, a statuesque beauty grazing in another field of wildflowers.