The forecast for today: hot and windy, with a chance of running buffalo.
Some whippersnapper is going to say, "They are bison, not buffalo," to which I will reply, "Bite me." Though the terms are often used interchangeably, buffalo and bison are distinct animals. Old World “true” buffalo (Cape buffalo and water buffalo) are native to Africa and Asia. Bison are found in North America and Europe. Both bison and buffalo are in the bovidae family, but the two are not closely related.
I have called them buffalo since I was a youngster, and I will continue to do so. The roundup in that will happen next month is officially called the Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup. So, officially... bite me.
I got out early this morning (shortly after 8:00) for a motorcycle ride, with a plan to beat the heat and building wind. It was plenty breezy as I rolled south on Hwy 79, a crosswind going west on Hwy 36, but I knew I'd have a tailwind on Iron Mountain Road. I left cameras behind, and enjoyed listening to Breakfast With The Beatles on SiriusXM along the way.
Shortly after turning onto Iron Mountain Road - literally around the second curve - I saw fresh buffalo scat on the road... a sure sign that these big mammals are close. Yep, close...
They had been standing in the road, but turned towards the curve ahead when I pulled up. No car behind me, no camera... so I took my phone off the handlebar mount to get that photo above. When they disappeared around the curve, I proceeded slowly.
Lots more in the ravine to the left, across the road, and moving up the hill to the right...
I am no dummy: I didn't get close and didn't make any fast moves; I kept an eye on my mirrors rto make sure any traffic behind me could stop in time. Then, sat back to watch them. About that time, a bus came rolling up from the other direction...
When the road was clear, the bus and I moved on. The rest of my ride wasn't as eventful, but there was hardly any traffic... not a single vehicle in front of me the rest of the way on Iron Mountain Road. I enjoyed the ride, taking in the sights, the smells, and the feel of the bike on the road.
At my first re-hydrating stop, I sent Joan a text with a photo of the buffalo. She send back: "DOOOO NOT PET!" As if I needed that reminder. ;-)
Nice way to start my day.
2 comments:
Sounds like a great ride. We were once stopped by a herd of caribou outside of Paxton, AK during a ride near the Worthington Glacier. You sit there and enjoy and let nature do its thing.
Yep. You sure aren't going to try to "thread your way through" a herd. The buffalo in this encounter were moving right along. Fun to watch, from a distance.
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