Fly like a bird

[Ciavete]

During my ride yesterday a beautiful white crane appeared and cruised alongside for a stretch. I think it was checking out my white Giro helmet, perhaps wondering what kind of odd-looking cousin it was.

It was a cool experience and reminded me of our departed fellow-enthusiast Robin Williams saying riding a bike is the closest you can come to flying.

Anyone ever experience similar?

Cheers.

[BlueFly]

I have had a red tail hawk fly into the lane from somewhere on the left (what no signal?) and pull (ok, ok - lead) me for a few meters. At the end, he just glided up and to the right for a respite on a low branch. For the rest of the ride I kept pinching myself asking did that really just happen?

One of the most "spiritual" experiences I have ever had and felt as if that day I was one with the world.

Godspeed!

[ColonelJLloyd]

I've had the same experience with a hawk.

When I was a kid I was riding down a gravel road between two fields and as I approached the tree line at the end of the field I heard what sounded like a helicopter taking off. Before I knew what was happening I spotted the turkey running out of the ditch trying to take off in nearly the same direction as I was riding. I did a skid stop before running into it while it was trying to gain altitude. I could have reached out and touched it.

[texbike]

I love seeing nature while out on a ride. I've had a ton of really cool experiences over the years. Two that stand out in the last year are reptilian in nature.

On a ride last year, a small lizard called a six-line skink came running onto the road as I was riding past. It quickly adjusted course, and was running parallel to me for about 5 feet. I glanced down at my speedo and that crazy lizard was going 18 mph!

A few months ago, I stopped at a low-water crossing at a creek that we usually stop at for a few minutes on our rides (peaceful, low-traffic spot). In the water next to the bridge were two alligator snapping turtles (which are a rare site around Austin to begin with) getting it on. Turtle love baby!

Good times.

Texbike

[jruhlen1980]

Tilford had a post about having his hair attacked by a red hawk a couple years ago, but I can't find it now.

I'm fortunate I get to see a lot of wildlife on my rides, esp. gravel, although a lot of it is roadkill that isn't killed yet. Deer, possums, etc. A couple weeks ago, however, I saw three red foxes just hanging out in some little old lady's yard on a farm out in the country. That was neat.

[junkfood]

As far as large birds I see Herons, Red Tail Hawks, Cooper's hawks and Swainson's hawks the most. I have a few routes that pass by several Bald Eagle nest also. One particularly windy ride an eagle flew over me pretty low for awhile. Pretty sure it was laughing at how much I was struggling.

Jake

[soulspinner]

Turkey vultures will sometimes fly with you for a short time. They are huge up close!

[Cicli]

I have vultures that circle me at the top of every climb I attempt. They must know something. :banana:

[dustyrider]

There's a lot of birds around here! My favorites are the little ones; they're just so colorful and not afraid to give the big ones a piece of they're mind. However, the only little birds that seem to consistently like my colors enough to check me out are hummingbirds. Crazy sounding things when they're checking your helmet out!
I do get some type of soaring hawk pretty regularly on one ride, but I think he/she mainly uses me to scan the road's edge for game I might scare up. Either that or the up drafts from the cliff face are just too fun not to ride. Down by the river I will typicall see bald eagles cruising or herons pumping out of a pond. There is an osprey couple feeding their young off carp and other big fish from the river too. Pretty cool!
Not sure what it is about a bird coming to you directly out of the vastness of the sky, but it is an experience worth taking a monument to reflect upon.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Turkey vultures will sometimes fly with you for a short time. They are huge up close!

Hit one with a ladder rack once. Several miles later we get out of the truck at our destination and the stench! It was in the truck bed. Gross.

[FlashUNC]

I had a bird crap on my face once when heading home from a ride. That count?

[Dead Man]

There's a gravel segment called South Canaan that cuts through the forest between rural farmland in central Columbia County.. slight downhill, like 1.5% for a couple miles or so.. so you kinda fly through, for gravel.. the trees are pretty tall on both sides

I was rolling through there last couple rides and spooked 3 raptors of some sort.. Falcons I guess? they jumped up out of the brush next to me, one went straight up and flew our of the threes, one sorta followed the first, but the 3rd just went about 10-15' up in front of me and lazily flapped along the road as I ground along behind it... it glided back for a bit after a couple hundred feet and seemed like it was checking me out.. probably no more than 3 arms length away.. we chilled like that for probably a mile, till we came out on a clearcut, and it flapped up and rejoined the other two.

Yea.. was kind of epic, lazily cruising along around 20mph just scoping each other out. "W.T.F. is that thing doing?"

[AJM100]

Ran into a deer and her fawn yesterday crossing and meandering along a bike path. So cool. Stopped just to watch them for a bit.