Deer in the Mountain Resort 避暑山庄

I was happily walking along a mountain trail which leads to who knows where when I chanced upon something I wasn’t expecting. It was deer. It seems that deer are being kept within the Mountain Resort grounds and are listed as one of Emperor Kangxi 康熙 scenic spots. The deer here are free roaming and are wary of humans as most deer tend to be. I saw the deer drinking from a small stream and I naturally wanted to take a photos of them since I have never seen “free ranging” deer before.

However, it seems that the deer are very wary of humans as I was trying to inch my way closer to them, one of the deer saw me and started alerting the others and they started to move further in the park where there is no path available. In another instance, I was trying to take their photo when a group of noisy tourists started to make their way to where I was. This naturally startled the deer and they scampered away. With the number of tourists here in the Mountain Resort, there is no way I would be able to wait until there is no one there.

Adorable as the deer may be it will still be wise if tourists keep their distance from the deer. The males have antlers and they will use them if they feel threatened. Still, it was a wonderful experience to see them roaming about in the park they have been here for more than a hundred years and they seem to be living well.

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