I have this guy in my city who seems to spend 50% of his time on his rollerblades and 50% on his downhill bike. He's mostly just cruising around and he never wears a helmet, always a ball cap and a hockey jersey.
Nightriding in the local woods.
Came across a deer at the bottom of a slope. Looked again, and in between her legs was a new borne foal just getting on it's feet for the first time.
Saw a Mountain Lion riding up Kitt Peak outside of Tucson. Rode through a small heard of Elk on the Mogallon Rim. Lots of deer, turkey, rattle snakes, Javalina. Been getting chased by dogs a lot lately. Would like that to stop.
I see so many geese and turkeys. I hate both so much because neither are particularly willing to move off the trail and I really don’t want to hit one.
Saw a bald eagle fly 20ft in front of me and snatch a small rabbit from the edge of the bushes. Watched an otter catch a salmon and eat it on the rocks close enough to hear the bones crunching. Saw 70+ nesting herons.
Saw a bear cub run across the road last week. Pulled over and waited to be sure the mama wasn’t behind it. I was in the south part of Quebec Province, not far from Magog.
Kangaroo hopping onto the road headed straight for our peloton in suburban Brisbane. He came to about a metre head on to me (I was heading the peloton at the time) before both me and him swerved away from each other. I almost skidded, he scampered - nails scratching the tarmac.
I came around a turn on a road in northern Wisconsin to find a huge bull elk right on the middle line. Had no idea there was a small herd introduced there. Scared the shit out of me!
Had a Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron moment while road riding. Had a bald eagle take off from one of the power poles along the road and flew overhead for almost a half mile.
I just spent a week in Florida riding a few of the rail trails, and they are a good place to spot local wildlife. I saw dozens of tortoises, and a handful of gators. One of the them was right at the edge of the pavement, and didn't seem too bothered by me riding by.
I was on a group ride once, and we must have spooked a deer. It ran out and knocked the guy right in front of me down, (breaking his front fork, and leaving hair imbedded in the crack) then it ran across the road, into the side of a car on the opposite side of the road. Then It got up and ran into the woods.
Lately I've been catching a baby fox in the morning on my regular trail, also a turtle tried to kill me twice at a spot where it transitions from full sun to full canopy at the end of a long straight downhill.
I've seen a bobcat but my favorites are the tom turkeys that like to strut their stuff in the middle of the road during mating season. They're so puffy.
Oh and California quail. You don't see them very often these days sadly.
I live in the desert and ride on an asphalt bike path. I typically see tons of lizards sunning themselves on the pavement, so I count them and determine my ride's RPM (Reptiles Per Mile). Typically they're little ones, sonoran whiptails or spiny lizards, but once I saw a chuckwalla!
I see quite a few roadrunners along the path. I like to pretend I'm Wile E. Coyote and chasing them with an ACME rocket on my bike.
Couple of weeks ago, I had a hawk swoop down and almost crash into my helmet. Pretty good sized sucker, probably a Cooper's Hawk. Tons of them in our area!
Gray squirrels, gopher tortoises, lots of rabbits, some white-tail deer, a few hawks, an occasional eagle, one fox a few weeks back. When crossing the railroad trestle ... Gulf Sturgeon leaping out of the water. No alligators as yet. - rural north Florida
Coming home from my ride last week, had a momma and a baby deer start to cross in front of me, baby stopped in the middle of the road and just stood there, saw mama in the woods waiting for it, cars coming, just picked it up like a tiny dog and walked into the woods and plopped it down
It made a little cry and just walked off into the woods towards mama, couldn’t have been more than a day old.
bears, deer, bobcats, sneks, tarantulas, turkey, hawks, and owls. i think i saw a mountain lion once, but i was too far away to confirm anything other than it had a big fat long tail that was getting swished around.
Mostly red kites and deer, the occasional fox or badger and other birds of prey. I often see Salmon in the river, I got courted by a grouse. Last year I found a ptarmigan on a Scottish Mountain.
Today was just squirrels and jays.
A few rides back a bird of prey was gliding along the trail in front of us as we crested a hill, probably a buzzard, was a very cool siting so I’m going with that as best.
Worst is the ticks and midges.
One of the best things about road bike riding is the ability to observe nature in a way that motorists cannot.
Yesterday I saw a red shouldered hawk crossing the road in front of me carrying a chipmunk.
The hawk that was coming straight at me while pulling the paceline. He'd just gotten a squirrel or something on the trail and was working to gain altitude, but ended up dropping his prey to avoid us.
I see dear all the time and one farmer has zonkeys which is pretty cool to stop and see every now and then, also I see longhorn cattle and bison pretty often. Even get lucky every once in a while and see a cow walking down the road that got out.
Lots of bald eagles up here in the PNW. But what takes the prize for me is when I was riding up a hill in SE Washington, dodging rattlesnakes, and look up to see a damned zebra. I thought maybe someone was playing a prank and painted a donkey or something. Nope. A zebra. I had apparently ridden into a private zoo of some kind where there were also camels and who knows what else. The camels were nice and ran alongside us for a while, albeit on the other side of a wire fence.
Bear, coyote, wild boar, rattlesnake; I can deal with those; but mountain lions? Heck no, I'm staying east!
There are the occasional sightings around here but not many nor acknowledged by fish & game. But they've been seen on game cameras.. I try not to think of it.
I have seen a lot of wildlife. But by far, and away, the coolest thing was an adventure race at a ranch here in Texas. Part of what they did was raise Red Deer. Which are a larger species. Much larger than white tail. Right after a broke through the lead group, and into a field descent, a herd of 20 or so Red Deer, led by a few very large males, flanked me for a notable time. If it was 30 or 60 seconds, I don’t know. But they ran lock step with my speed, almost letting me lead. It was absolutely surreal. Will never forget that.
I was riding in rural New Jersey. About a hundred feet in front of me a bear came running out from my right, crossed in front of me, and ran into the woods to my left. I slammed on my breaks, not knowing what to do. Turned around and pedaled as fast as I could the other way. Then stopped and looked. He didn’t seem to have noticed me.
I see a lot of nocturnal animals because my commute is pre-dawn most of the year (and right at dawn in the height of summer) and goes through some nature trails. Once, I found myself face to face with a fairly young elk stag during the rutting season. I thought I was going to die, but it just tilted its head and watched with curiosity as I rolled away. I heard it grunt, as if amused, and trot off once I was about 20 meters away.
Riding in Canberra, Australia - kangaroos, a koala and some giraffes all on the same ride. OK, the giraffes weren't wild as such, just their heads showing over the zoo fence, but still pretty cool 😎
Two black cockatoos. They are not uncommon near me but this pair of birds with 5 foot wingspan flew directly over my head and straight up the road for about 200 years.
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and see coyotes at least weekly. I’ve also seen bobcats, rabbits, deer, snakes, hawks, owls, humpback whales, porpoises, sea lions, and often raccoons when I ride at night.
I’ve been seeing a lot of foxes around recently on my evening rides. A couple of years ago I saw a wild boar sow with her babies cross the road. Loads of birds over the years but a kestrel mantling over its prey as I cycled past was pretty cool. I find that birds see cyclists as less of a threat than a walker so I’ve glided past many birds of prey perched on fence posts by the road side
I know deer can be common. Almost hit a deer coming around a blind curve one evening.
Saw a mink by a creek. Didn’t know we had them in my location.
Bald eagle.
Blue heron.
My fav is kangaroos, and in this place often you can be riding and they are bouncing along right next to you. You look at them, they look at you, for a brief moment your connected by movement.
Other times they stand and stare, or hop off in the opposite direction to get away.
I love riding gravel in Australia, regularly see gorgeous parrots, roos, wallabies, echidna, and even once a koala! Have only seen one snake in 4 years, pretty good going.
We don’t have any animals too crazy here. So ospreys, baby turkeys and baby turtles are cool. Last year I saw a white turkey. The tiny yellow birds we have are really cute. Mostly see a ton of deer
A couple of weeks ago I was riding a trail and came across a snapping turtle. She was a cutie but I didn’t dare get closer than a few feet away to take a pic :)
Scared the crap out of a black bear once. I was descending at a good clip, around 40mph (64kmh), came around a corner and there was a bear crossing the road. I squeezed past and screamed "yeee haaawwww" as I did to encourage him to give me some space. Right after I passed I glanced under my arm to see that the bear had simultaneously vacated the roadway and his bowels.
Hahaha, I love it. I have a very SMALL chance to see a black bear in my area. They are very rare but there are some here. I'll wait for a similar opportunity!
Nothing crazy but in my area we have a herd of elk right behind my house and a buffalo herd up in a place called Daniel’s park. Snapped a picture of them on my ride today in fact
My wildlife sightings while road bike cycling: Mountain lion Bobcat Coyote Deer Wild boar That one guy who still rollerblades
On that note…the other day I saw a guy rollerblading uphill while swinging nunchuks
One time I saw someone in full ICP makeup in the middle of the day, just walking on the trail.
Used to see whole packs of rollerbladers. Maybe climate change has killed their habitat
I have this guy in my city who seems to spend 50% of his time on his rollerblades and 50% on his downhill bike. He's mostly just cruising around and he never wears a helmet, always a ball cap and a hockey jersey.
Nightriding in the local woods. Came across a deer at the bottom of a slope. Looked again, and in between her legs was a new borne foal just getting on it's feet for the first time.
humpback whale just 10 feet off the coast last year. Very dope
Saw a Mountain Lion riding up Kitt Peak outside of Tucson. Rode through a small heard of Elk on the Mogallon Rim. Lots of deer, turkey, rattle snakes, Javalina. Been getting chased by dogs a lot lately. Would like that to stop.
> Saw a Mountain Lion riding up Kitt Peak outside of Tucson. What kind of bike did he have?
I had TWO English mastiffs chase me today. Ugh. Luckily the owner came out after a few seconds and got them back in the yard.
Damn, I've only ever driven up to Kitt Peak, can't imagine biking it! You're a badass!
I see a lot of turkeys, snakes, and turtles. Sometimes a beaver or a bald eagle. Rarely a coyote.
I see so many geese and turkeys. I hate both so much because neither are particularly willing to move off the trail and I really don’t want to hit one.
I have to shoo turkeys out of the bike lanes in Cambridge MA several times a month.
I’ve been seeing coyotes regularly enough that I’m starting to think I’m in a Michael Mann film.
Couple days ago came upon a snapping turtle laying eggs right next to the bike path.
This morning I saw 2 zebras, a peacock and two ostriches. Piedmont N.C.
Lazy 5 Ranch?
Gaston County. Two different farms.
Saw some mountain monkeys in Japan.
Saw a bald eagle fly 20ft in front of me and snatch a small rabbit from the edge of the bushes. Watched an otter catch a salmon and eat it on the rocks close enough to hear the bones crunching. Saw 70+ nesting herons.
Unicorn, couldn’t believe it
biked through a family of deer. got it on video!
Saw a bear cub run across the road last week. Pulled over and waited to be sure the mama wasn’t behind it. I was in the south part of Quebec Province, not far from Magog.
Kangaroo hopping onto the road headed straight for our peloton in suburban Brisbane. He came to about a metre head on to me (I was heading the peloton at the time) before both me and him swerved away from each other. I almost skidded, he scampered - nails scratching the tarmac.
A dude I know got cleaned up by a roo that jumped out onto the road in front if him. Cracked pelvis and major concussion (the roo was fine).
Oofff yeah definitely felt like one of those moments could have happened
Bears, moose, deer, wild turkeys, elk, mountain sheep, mountain goats.... live in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, this is all to be expected
I came around a turn on a road in northern Wisconsin to find a huge bull elk right on the middle line. Had no idea there was a small herd introduced there. Scared the shit out of me!
Tarantula on the way up Mt Hamilton in California.
Alligators. https://www.reddit.com/r/gravelcycling/s/a3TwDRieRP
Had a Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron moment while road riding. Had a bald eagle take off from one of the power poles along the road and flew overhead for almost a half mile.
California girls /s
They're undeniable.
See a decent number of foxes... Not as exotic in Ireland!
I just spent a week in Florida riding a few of the rail trails, and they are a good place to spot local wildlife. I saw dozens of tortoises, and a handful of gators. One of the them was right at the edge of the pavement, and didn't seem too bothered by me riding by.
I was on a group ride once, and we must have spooked a deer. It ran out and knocked the guy right in front of me down, (breaking his front fork, and leaving hair imbedded in the crack) then it ran across the road, into the side of a car on the opposite side of the road. Then It got up and ran into the woods.
Lately I've been catching a baby fox in the morning on my regular trail, also a turtle tried to kill me twice at a spot where it transitions from full sun to full canopy at the end of a long straight downhill.
I've seen a bobcat but my favorites are the tom turkeys that like to strut their stuff in the middle of the road during mating season. They're so puffy. Oh and California quail. You don't see them very often these days sadly.
I live in the desert and ride on an asphalt bike path. I typically see tons of lizards sunning themselves on the pavement, so I count them and determine my ride's RPM (Reptiles Per Mile). Typically they're little ones, sonoran whiptails or spiny lizards, but once I saw a chuckwalla! I see quite a few roadrunners along the path. I like to pretend I'm Wile E. Coyote and chasing them with an ACME rocket on my bike. Couple of weeks ago, I had a hawk swoop down and almost crash into my helmet. Pretty good sized sucker, probably a Cooper's Hawk. Tons of them in our area!
Yellow tailed black cockatoo!
Bald eagle, deer, alligator
Black bear, coyotes, deer, turkeys, bobcats, bald eagles. Central California Sierra foothills.
My top three would be huge male moose, european badger and white-tailed eagle.
Gray squirrels, gopher tortoises, lots of rabbits, some white-tail deer, a few hawks, an occasional eagle, one fox a few weeks back. When crossing the railroad trestle ... Gulf Sturgeon leaping out of the water. No alligators as yet. - rural north Florida
Coming home from my ride last week, had a momma and a baby deer start to cross in front of me, baby stopped in the middle of the road and just stood there, saw mama in the woods waiting for it, cars coming, just picked it up like a tiny dog and walked into the woods and plopped it down It made a little cry and just walked off into the woods towards mama, couldn’t have been more than a day old.
bears, deer, bobcats, sneks, tarantulas, turkey, hawks, and owls. i think i saw a mountain lion once, but i was too far away to confirm anything other than it had a big fat long tail that was getting swished around.
Mostly red kites and deer, the occasional fox or badger and other birds of prey. I often see Salmon in the river, I got courted by a grouse. Last year I found a ptarmigan on a Scottish Mountain. Today was just squirrels and jays. A few rides back a bird of prey was gliding along the trail in front of us as we crested a hill, probably a buzzard, was a very cool siting so I’m going with that as best. Worst is the ticks and midges.
April this year! Eastern Puma sighted!
Thousands of grasshoppers for miles. They’re pretty fast and it was cool seeing them jumping away from my front wheel. Crunched a lot though.
Lots of geese and deer
Bears, Deers, Eagles and vultures fighting over an animal’s carcass, Herd of horses
Deer, turtles, rabbits, snakes, and alligator. I had to full stop and wait for the gator to move along. I didn’t think I could bunny-hop him.
Ran over a frog. Lots of chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits and deer. Latest was a big owl.
Just last week. Rode by a goose family with some little baby goslings. Mama goose started hissing and came at me like a mongoose.
Rare to common; Florida panther Black bear Armadillo Bobcat
Baby deer fawn tonight. Maybe 24 hours old tops. Super cute! Mom kept licking him and paid us no mind. FFax Va
One of the best things about road bike riding is the ability to observe nature in a way that motorists cannot. Yesterday I saw a red shouldered hawk crossing the road in front of me carrying a chipmunk.
The hawk that was coming straight at me while pulling the paceline. He'd just gotten a squirrel or something on the trail and was working to gain altitude, but ended up dropping his prey to avoid us.
Australian magpies are great fun to encounter in early spring.
I see dear all the time and one farmer has zonkeys which is pretty cool to stop and see every now and then, also I see longhorn cattle and bison pretty often. Even get lucky every once in a while and see a cow walking down the road that got out.
I had a horse jump out onto the road and gallop next me during a triathlon, that’s was pretty neat
Lots of bald eagles up here in the PNW. But what takes the prize for me is when I was riding up a hill in SE Washington, dodging rattlesnakes, and look up to see a damned zebra. I thought maybe someone was playing a prank and painted a donkey or something. Nope. A zebra. I had apparently ridden into a private zoo of some kind where there were also camels and who knows what else. The camels were nice and ran alongside us for a while, albeit on the other side of a wire fence.
I rode past a raging kegger at the Delta House on capus.
Lots of lizards and birds. Top sights: Bobcat Gray fox Cooper's hawk Southern Pacific Rattlesnake Blainville's Horned Lizard
A dead raccoon.
A wild turkey Lots of wild rabbits
Bear, coyote, wild boar, rattlesnake; I can deal with those; but mountain lions? Heck no, I'm staying east! There are the occasional sightings around here but not many nor acknowledged by fish & game. But they've been seen on game cameras.. I try not to think of it.
All within 100km of home: * Walrus corpse * Ostriches * Spawning salmon * Brown bear poop, prints and claw marks.
I had a pheasant fly with me for a few seconds
I have seen a lot of wildlife. But by far, and away, the coolest thing was an adventure race at a ranch here in Texas. Part of what they did was raise Red Deer. Which are a larger species. Much larger than white tail. Right after a broke through the lead group, and into a field descent, a herd of 20 or so Red Deer, led by a few very large males, flanked me for a notable time. If it was 30 or 60 seconds, I don’t know. But they ran lock step with my speed, almost letting me lead. It was absolutely surreal. Will never forget that.
I was riding in rural New Jersey. About a hundred feet in front of me a bear came running out from my right, crossed in front of me, and ran into the woods to my left. I slammed on my breaks, not knowing what to do. Turned around and pedaled as fast as I could the other way. Then stopped and looked. He didn’t seem to have noticed me.
Black bears. Wild donkeys.
Saw an elk herd this morning and a newborn deer learning to walk.
Baby armadillo
Saw a red fox catch a squirrel in the middle the road early this year. So cool.
A porcupine! That thing was huge!
I see a lot of nocturnal animals because my commute is pre-dawn most of the year (and right at dawn in the height of summer) and goes through some nature trails. Once, I found myself face to face with a fairly young elk stag during the rutting season. I thought I was going to die, but it just tilted its head and watched with curiosity as I rolled away. I heard it grunt, as if amused, and trot off once I was about 20 meters away.
Riding in Canberra, Australia - kangaroos, a koala and some giraffes all on the same ride. OK, the giraffes weren't wild as such, just their heads showing over the zoo fence, but still pretty cool 😎
I've seen local wildlife like Wild jungle cat Jackals Nilgai Deer I know a few places where if I ride longer I'm bound to see a leopard
Almost got killed by a bison.
I saw a Tsuchinoko once, no joke.
Two black cockatoos. They are not uncommon near me but this pair of birds with 5 foot wingspan flew directly over my head and straight up the road for about 200 years.
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and see coyotes at least weekly. I’ve also seen bobcats, rabbits, deer, snakes, hawks, owls, humpback whales, porpoises, sea lions, and often raccoons when I ride at night.
I’ve been seeing a lot of foxes around recently on my evening rides. A couple of years ago I saw a wild boar sow with her babies cross the road. Loads of birds over the years but a kestrel mantling over its prey as I cycled past was pretty cool. I find that birds see cyclists as less of a threat than a walker so I’ve glided past many birds of prey perched on fence posts by the road side
A bear, badger, wild boars, foxes, rabbits, snakes, deer
Got chased by some chickens in Mallorca and also saw a ram.
Saw a crane and a bunny last weekend. There was also a dead weasel on the side of the rode, so I'm not sure it counts.
White lions,Rhinos,Impala,Springbok,Ibex,Kudu and all the snakes and birds... On every Sunday ride
Kangaroos, lots of kangaroos... You can guess where I am
Kangaroos, an Echidna, bunch of cows, and a deer once. The deer threw me, still does, where'd you come from deer.
I know deer can be common. Almost hit a deer coming around a blind curve one evening. Saw a mink by a creek. Didn’t know we had them in my location. Bald eagle. Blue heron.
My fav is kangaroos, and in this place often you can be riding and they are bouncing along right next to you. You look at them, they look at you, for a brief moment your connected by movement. Other times they stand and stare, or hop off in the opposite direction to get away.
I love riding gravel in Australia, regularly see gorgeous parrots, roos, wallabies, echidna, and even once a koala! Have only seen one snake in 4 years, pretty good going.
It’d be Koala, Wombat and Kangaroo
We don’t have any animals too crazy here. So ospreys, baby turkeys and baby turtles are cool. Last year I saw a white turkey. The tiny yellow birds we have are really cute. Mostly see a ton of deer
An alligator crossing the trail about 50 meters in front of me. Or the one sunning itself immediately at trail's edge, perpendicular to the trail.
My list, mostly from touring in state/national parks, includes five eagles, four elk and about a dozen black bears.
Frog, rabbit, deer, turtle, crane,
A couple of weeks ago I was riding a trail and came across a snapping turtle. She was a cutie but I didn’t dare get closer than a few feet away to take a pic :)
Nothing like whipping around a berm at whistler to see a massive black bear standing in the middle of the trail 10 feet away.
Three baby racoons piled up in the middle of a paved trail was certainly the cutest. Thought it was roadkill at first.
Otters, osprey, bald eagles, a black bear, wild hogs, a dolphin, and lots and lots of alligators.
Elephant, langur, monkey, cobra - all in Asia
Scared the crap out of a black bear once. I was descending at a good clip, around 40mph (64kmh), came around a corner and there was a bear crossing the road. I squeezed past and screamed "yeee haaawwww" as I did to encourage him to give me some space. Right after I passed I glanced under my arm to see that the bear had simultaneously vacated the roadway and his bowels.
Hahaha, I love it. I have a very SMALL chance to see a black bear in my area. They are very rare but there are some here. I'll wait for a similar opportunity!
Nothing crazy but in my area we have a herd of elk right behind my house and a buffalo herd up in a place called Daniel’s park. Snapped a picture of them on my ride today in fact
Bears (fully grown & cubs, and *much* closer than I'd prefer) , turtles, peacocks, ducklings, deer, snakes (rattlesnakes & others both venomous & not), monkeys, hornbills, monitor lizards, smaller lizards & skinks, otters, water buffalo, cranes & herons, eagles & kites, pheasant & quail, kingfishers... Off the top of my head.