Sightseeing Day:
- Deer Park
My Happy Birthday began with a warm cup of yummy coffee delivered to me by my sweet husband. We once again, put Circus World on hold. We are still in need of recoup time. I, being my birthday, decided that all I wanted to keep the day simple.
We, again my choice, went to Mr. Pancake for breakfast (I have been fixated on crepes since I read their menu in one of those visitor brochures). Dave calls the brochure racks “fly traps.” I flock to them like a fly—I’m always looking to find something unusual that I just might have missed in my volumes of preparatory reading.
Yes, the cherry crepes were yummy. And, Dave had peanut butter pancakes. Not only did the pancake have a peanut butter flavor, but the batter had hunks of peanut butter throughout.
Our relaxing activity today was a trip to the Deer Park. This was so much fun. We walked around about 5 acres of deer from all different countries. Most of the deer were not constrained and I’d say there were approximately 100 deer roaming free. But, they seemed to stay within their own territory, although they could have gone to most areas.
Some of the deer were separated by species from one another.
The pathways for humans were block-top and lined with a single fence post railing. The deer can easily duck under the railing, which they do as soon as they think you might have a yummy snack for them. Dave and I just loved it. They were so gentle and all but gave us kisses. Dave got in a few hugs!
You purchase crackers at the entrance, but throughout the pathways you can purchase corn and grain pellets in a dispensing machine similar to gumball machines. As soon as deer see you getting the corn mixture, they rush over as well. They are highly “trained” and scarf up any pellets you may have dropped or that rest on the ledge beneath the dispenser. They just flip their tongue up to the ledge and take the leftovers.
It was a very different experience to have a deer with antlers right up next to you. Their antlers are very soft to the touch, like a velvety texture. They follow you like kids and are very gentle. They can either take the crackers that you hand them, or they will take the pellets from the palm of your hand. It couldn’t have been more fun.
You know we just love our critters. There were goats and ducks and buffalo and llamas and elk and all sorts of other animals. But, most of those critters, except for the goats, were behind wire fences and you couldn’t touch them—but, some you could feed. The goats were behind wood-railed fences, so they didn't roam free, but you could pet them over the fence. The llamas could get snacks from you behind their wire fences if you poked the cracker through the fence, but we didn’t linger long for fear of being spat upon.
Check out the look this goose gave Dave!
As we were leaving, Dave was confronted by a lion, and my hero, as you can see in the picture, put his physical safety aside and protected me by distracting the lion. But, I was able to snap this picture!
Our next adventure for today was to drive around Lake Delton to see the destruction from the dam that broke and drained the lake. We were not able to see too much damage, but the lake is gone. It’s so sad because the shoreline is filled with businesses that depend upon the lake. It will be quite some time before the dam is rebuilt. To find humor in this tragedy, Dave and I chucked at the many “Lakefront Home” for sale signs. I thought they should be changed to “Beachfront Home.”
This afternoon Dave and I were sitting out at the picnic table. Dave spotted what he thought might be a vulture flying overhead. Quickly, he realized it was a bald eagle. He began his bald-eagle call and sure enough, the eagle began to circle overhead and get closer and closer. This must have continued for a 3-4 minutes before the bird realized that Dave was just too big for his next meal and flew away. It was so cool to watch the bird respond to Dave's call.
For dinner, Dave took me to the Moosejaw Pizza restaurant. We had planned to go to Italian, but when we saw this place on our drive around Lake Delton, we decided we had to go where the moose would roam. So glad we did. It was a nice place. I had an Italian meal and Dave had a steak.
Dave bought a Beanie Moose for me. I have named her Mini-Moose. But, Dave burst my bubble by telling me that female moose do not have antlers. So, I guess I have a cross-dressing moose. She's still Mini to me! I crocheted a mini swing for Mini so that it hangs from a grab bar on the dash of Dave's car. I also crocheted a little jacket for her, but I think it's a bit too warm for her to wear it yet.
We settled in for a good night's rest and slept well. It's getting cold at night again, so we were snuggled in our wildlife blankets. Dave has a Tiger blanket and I have a Panda blanket. Did you expect any less from animal lovers?
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