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CopperfieldDeer
After enduring my descent into Hells Canyon, I had reached a T-intersection
where Idaho route 86 turns south to head up the canyon wall towards the town
of Halfway. To the right was a short road that led to the Copperfield Campground
which is where I originally planned to spend the night. Being as hot as I was,
I stopped the bike at the intersection and sat there in silence (I hadn't seen
another car for miles) pondering my choices. It was still rather hot and the
prospect of a hot night in a tent wasn't very exciting. If I turned left I
may be able to find a motel with air conditioning, but not before I was out
of the canyon and back in the hot sun. What to do, what to do? Just then I
catch movement to my left and not 15 feet (5 meters) away is a deer standing
in the middle of the road. She watches me for a moment and then continues across
the road and starts up the hill on a game path that is now obvious in the undergrowth.
As I'm sitting there reflecting on the rareness of such an encounter, a fawn jumps the guardrail to my left and follows its mother across the road and up
the path. This fawn is followed by another fawn and another doe. Right about
now I decide that I need to try to capture this on film so I dismount, dig
for my camera, and take this photo before the deer disappear into the landscape.
It's strange how life throws you moments like this just when you're preoccupied
with your own problems/discomforts. Somehow, the rest of the day was suddenly
much easier to manage.