Good morning, Campers!   We're still working on getting more pictures developed, but while we're waiting, how would you like to hear a story about a mule deer doe we saw on the way back to Wasa from Marysville Falls?    It happened like this...

The weather had been quite unstable, and the day was cool and wet. We decided to take a short trip in the hopes of getting away from the yucky stuff and finding some decent weather. So, after we got ourselves moved to our second campsite, we grabbed our travel mugs and headed out, deciding to visit the sleepy little town of Kimberly, BC.

Kimberly really is a sleepy little town, with several very old churches and a main plaza (called The Platzl) in the center of town which contains shops, a few restaurants, and a daily live vaudeville show (summer only). There are even small, story-book, cottage-like homes complete with white picket fences and beautiful, manicured lawns and gardens.  The people are very friendly, too, and really, the feeling you get when you enter Kimberly is that you've walked back in time...

Because it was early in the morning, we decided to just grab a quick breakfast at the local A&W, and then head back to Wasa.  The sun was burning away the rain clouds, and we were hoping things would warm up enough that Roger could go for a swim at Wasa Lake.

Just on the outskirts of town, as we were heading back to Wasa, we spotted a muledeer doe on the side of the road.  She wasn't looking right, though; she didn't seem to be moving properly.  We pulled over, and she didn't run; we took her picture, and she still didn't run...




Thinking that maybe we might be able to get at least one more picture before she took off, we got a little bit closer - and when we got closer, what was wrong became more apparent to us:  The doe was in labor, and panting heavily...




There was nothing we could do for her, but that didn't make us feel any better about the fact that she was on the roadside, where anything could happen to her.  And watching her panting and trying to lay down, we could see that things just weren't going very well; something wasn't going right, and it dawned on me that this doe's fawn was trying to come out feet first (breach)...




But, traffic was picking up. We had no choice but to leave.  I didn't want to leave her, but we were parked on a less than desirable spot that could pose a problem for traffic, and there wasn't anywhere safer where we could get off the road completely.  We had to be realistic and practical, even though that meant we had to leave the doe.  The last thing we wanted was to become a traffic hazard - which would not only put us and other drivers in danger of a collision, but which would also put the doe in danger.

We hope she was able to deliver her fawn okay, and we hope she and her new baby will be safe and happy.  I wish we could have stayed so that I could help her, but sometimes, there's just nothing you can do.  The time it took us to come back was the same amount of time it would have taken us to find a vet or a ranger station.  She was already gone, so all we can do is hope and pray she was able to deliver her fawn safely, and that she and her fawn will be safe and happy...

Have a great day, Campers, and remember to stay tuned, because there's much more coming!