Recreational & Family - encounter with a hedgehog

Yes - you read it right... a hedgehog. I was riding yesterday and on mile 7 came back to do a 1 mile loop through my neighborhood when out comes a hedgehog running right at my front wheel! Now - I live in the Mississippi Delta - not a hotbed of hedgehogs. I'm guessing it was someone's escapee pet. It ran into my front wheel (I heard some crunching of the spines) and then took off under my bike and ran off. I did not wreck! I let out a girly scream (I am a girl) and my feet came flying off the pedals, but I managed to recover - uttering what the ???? was that? for the next mile. Anyone else had a similar experience? I seem to have a knack for wierd things.

Never with a hedgehog, but constantly with squirrels. One time when two of us were riding side by side a squirrel bounced back and forth between our front wheels at least four times before he finally got free. I also had a deer jump over my front wheel early one morning when I was silently riding along on a rail-trail. Why are squirrels content to sit by the side of the trail until you are right on top of them and then they charge you instead of turning the other way?

Gak, you let out a scream, identified the species and did a little freeform by getting feet off the pedals. I just found this thread and hope you are well.

Once as i was riding alongside the railroad tracks a badger came out of the weeds/brush onto the trail. He freaked and looked like he would attack my front wheel for sure. Then he turned and ran ahead of me and ran about 25 feet and jumped-leaped actually-off into the bushes. Badgers are fierce fighters so i am glad he chose flight rather than fight.

I haven't seen that hedgehog since. I do keep a keener eye out now in that area, though. I still laugh when I think about it - how absurd - a hedgehog of all things.

I haven't seen that hedgehog since. I do keep a keener eye out now in that area, though. I still laugh when I think about it - how absurd - a hedgehog of all things.
I think I just saw him in my back yard :)

watch out - he's stealthy...

awww, I used to have one.
This yawning one isn't mine, but cute nonetheless.

awwwwwww.....

I got charged by a 8 point buck once on a rail trail. I was riding along, and his doe must of been nearby, because he ran towards me from about 50 yards. My knife came out, I got off my bike, and I was figuring I'd stab him in the neck and have a fridge full of Venison. I yelled at him when he got pretty close, and he scampered off. I got some deer meat from my uncle later on anyway, so all was not lost.

A story similar to yours is last year when my neighbors jerk off dog came running at me, and I almost ran over its neck, stopping just in the nick of time to save its life. I regret it to this day, especially when it barks all night for no reason whatsoever.

I saw a peacock along the road in Southern Illinois one one. I was up visiting my folks and took the bike along for some exercise. I went out along the county roads where they live, and as I was pedaling along I saw some large bird in the field along the road. I thought that it was a wild turkey at first, but as I got closer I saw it was a peacock. Now they aren't exactly native to Southern Ill. so I started to wonder "Just HOW FAR have I ridden?"

When I got home I mentioned it to my dad, he said that there was a farmer who had a few of them, and they would occasionally go wandering off.

just my .02

Steve W.
Who doesn't think his cats would appreciate having a hedgehog in the house

We have hedgehogs in america? I thought they were european critters...

Right you are! However some people have them as pets. Sometimes pets escape...

I was riding a rail trail here in Nebraska and turned off on a path to head into this wooded area. About 30 yards ahead I saw this big stick lying across the path. The path was about 5 feet wide and the stick was about as big around as my forearm and extended into the grass on both sides. I was just going to run right over it until I thought I should probably move it so it doesn't cause some little kid to crash or something. So, I side-skidded to a halt about a foot from the stick.

And then the "stick" slithered a little further into the grass. Holy smokes! I took off like a shot back the way I came!