Heap Big Deer Tracker

The other day I decided to head over to a remote corner of Valley Forge National Historical Park called Pawling’s Farm on Walnut Hill.  This part of the park is not visited very much.  I decided to look for some deer to photograph, usually no challenge at all, since they are a dime a dozen in the area.  Camera in hand, I strolled down the old wagon road to the site of General Sullivan’s Bridge and Fatland Ford.

It wasn’t long before I found some sign of deer in the vicinity.  Deer track!  Unfortunately, they were pointing each and every way.  Daniel Boone might of figured out the best way to go at the drop of his coon-skin hat, but I just meandered on through the woods.

After walking a ways in the quiet stillness of early evening, I encountered another sign that deer had been there not long before me.  I think the term for what I saw is “scat” – presumably short for something an animal has “scattered.”  Daniel Boone would have told me, “Deer scats in pellet form. This is the summer form. The scats hold their shape well due to the moisture content. If the diet included more moist or succulent plants, the scats would be looser, or would stick together more.”

Probably way too much information huh?  I continued my slow meandering through the woods until I encountered this…

I looked at it closely and with my considerable powers of observation and mental deduction, determined that this umm, “pile” is not from a deer!

Having reached the river without seeing any deer, I figured that my efforts to photograph them would be futile.  But the evening air was most pleasant with a cool gentle breeze blowing the bright white clouds across the brilliant blue sky.  The acrobatic squirrels and sleepy turtles abounded, so I simply enjoyed the sights that were there to be seen.  I inhaled the scene and turned to retrace my steps back to the car (taking care not to step in…anything).  A short way from the river, I looked into the tall green grass and suddenly a head popped up.

  Ah, so there you are! And aren’t you a pretty deer too!  I took a photograph and the "fake” shutter noise of my digital camera woke up a couple other slumbering beauties.

Soon, I saw heads popping up out of the tall green grass in every direction.  With a smile on my face I returned to the bend in the trail where the river softly laps against the rocks and sat and rested my feet awhile.  It was only then that I discovered I had walked nearly eight miles in my search for a deer picture.

 Rested, relaxed, restored – I continued up the trail into the golden rays of the setting sun.