In the woods outside Ellicott City, high above the Patapsco river, one may find the remains of a seminary where diabolists allegedly hold their revels. That's where I went today. I may devote a Sunday column to this epic investigation -- but the short version is that I found no evidence of Satan's minions at work. There is nothing there beyond the very scenic remains of a demolished seminary.
And lots of stairs. LOTS.
And a deer leg.
At the time, I didn't think much of the find, but now it seems odd. Why just the leg? Why no sign of the rest of the carcass?
Perhaps more experienced hikers can explain the mechanism of such an event....
4 comments:
I hope that deer is okay. I have seen deer footprints on my rambles but never any body parts, other than the rare whole deer leaping away.
Did you perchance perform an examination of the leg to see how it might have become detached from the body?
When I was young I was taken to the Major Oak, where Robin Hood is meant to have lived. Not so much as a "Robin waz ere".
Maybe hunters considered the leg a sacrifice to the gods of the woods and took the rest of the carcass out?
When I eat in the woods I always throw my last bite of apple or pear or peach into the bushes to excite the palate of little woods creatures who probably have not tasted the like before and probably will not again.
I've updated this post to include a (slightly over-exposed) picture of what I found. Domesticated dogs will sometimes drag choice morsels of food to a new location before consumption. So now I'm thinking that a canine scavenger did something similar.
Doing a little research, I found that coyotes have been seen with increasing frequency in Howard County, Maryland. I didn't know that!
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