Not exactly the wildlife you run across during a hike and say to yourself, "Dear God! Run!", but any creature that size and with sharp horns should be considered dangerous. I've always looked forward to encountering deer on the trails, but I had an experience about 5 years ago that caused me to moderate that idea. I turned a bend and there was a nicely-sized buck with a respectable rack standing in the middle of the trail about 40 feet away. Instead of bolting, he just stood his ground and stared at me. This went on for about 30 seconds, then he lowered his head a bit - and was looking at me almost through those prickly horns. I became acutely aware of how much damage those things could do if he decided to charge me. He was Bambi no more in my mind - more like Cujo. I slowly retreated about 20 feet and he eventually turned back into a deer and sprang away. Bucks have never looked the same to me since.
"Turtles, Frogs & other Environmental Sculpture"
