Geese!!!!
03-15-13 | 04:55 PM
#26
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From: Burlington Iowa
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Slow down and enjoy them. Whatz da big rush? Share the MUP, ya know.
03-15-13 | 05:01 PM
#27
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From: OH IO
03-15-13 | 05:45 PM
#29
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From: midwest
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I've seen a few threads about the danger of squirels and deer, but my biggest bike path foe has to be the Canada Goose. Our city is lousy with them. And, unlike other critters, they rarely get out of the way. They're normally in a group, and on occasion they attack. On a busy bike path, this means having to completely stop on occasion and wait for the giant feathered rats to move. I have yet to hit one straight on, but I've clipped a few as they scurry at the last moment and take off in front of me.
Am I the only one that HATES these animals?
Am I the only one that HATES these animals?
03-15-13 | 05:54 PM
#30
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From: baned from foo so for sure im not there .
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wonder why they never mess with me maybe there more tame down here i walk right up to there babys the mother will make this weird sound but dont come towards me. but i dont make eyer contact with them they seem to not like it if you look right at them .
03-15-13 | 05:58 PM
#31
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From: St. Louis Metro East area
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The geese themselves generally get out of my way on the MUP. It's the little landmines they leave behind ALL OVER, that really cheeses me off! 
There's also a gang of wild turkeys that hang out near the confluence trail between Alton and Hartford. They generally duck into the underbrush when I go by, but I hear that turkeys can be quite aggressive too...
There's also a gang of wild turkeys that hang out near the confluence trail between Alton and Hartford. They generally duck into the underbrush when I go by, but I hear that turkeys can be quite aggressive too...
03-15-13 | 07:18 PM
#32
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From: Mississauga/Toronto, Ontario canada
Bikes: I have 3 singlespeed/fixed gear bikes
We have lots of geese here in Canada. I never found them to be a danger when riding my bicycle, all you need to do is slow down and use a bit of extra caution. I have seen cars and 18 wheelers stop and let them cross roads... I think squirrels are a much greater road hazard for cyclists, I've ridden over one with both front and rear wheels, those little rats will run and jump out of nowhere into moving traffic.
Last edited by wolfchild; 03-15-13 at 07:22 PM.
03-15-13 | 08:30 PM
#33
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From: Springfield, MA
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I'm actually fine with migratory geese. They only stay a little while on their way north or south, and I like how seeing them flying in formation marks the changes in seasons.
03-15-13 | 08:40 PM
#34
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From: SE PA
Bikes: Trek 1.2, Trek 7.3FX, Trek 4.7 Madone, Trek Crossrip
This. While I encounter geese along my travels on the MUPs all the time, it isn't until they have their goslings that they become extremely aggressive. I've had to change my commuting route for a month or two when they became overly aggressive towards me every morning.
03-15-13 | 08:53 PM
#35
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From: Beautiful Long Beach California
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Last edited by longbeachgary; 03-15-13 at 09:03 PM.
03-15-13 | 10:26 PM
#37
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From: Eugene, Oregon
The Canadian geese around here are no real problem. They tend to clear off the path when people are riding by. The Toulouse geese will also move off, if slower. However, when some jerk with an off-leash dog frightens them, one or two will manage to take flight. Well, such flight as a Toulouse goose can manage, which means about head height. It's a flying bowling ball and I definitely don't want to be the pin.
03-15-13 | 10:56 PM
#38
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Definitely have seen many of them on the MUP, just sitting in the middle of the road, watching people walk/jog/bike around them like they own the road. I tried to scare one off once and got as close as possible while riding to see if the little bugger would move at all, ended up buzzing its tailfeathers and it didn't even move! Cheeky bastards...
03-16-13 | 09:54 AM
#41
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From: Eugene, Oregon
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Yeah, here in Eugene we have a permanent population of Canada geese. It's really funny in the fall and spring when their instincts are telling them to migrate but since they stay here year-round they just fly back and forth. There's also some funny-looking geese at the memorial gardens here in town because some of the domestic Greylag geese have been interbreeding with the wild geese.
And yes, they march up and down the bike path and don't move, no matter how much I honk my AirZound.
And yes, they march up and down the bike path and don't move, no matter how much I honk my AirZound.
03-16-13 | 05:37 PM
#42
aka Tom Reingold
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From: New York, NY, and High Falls, NY, USA
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Thanks for the tip, tsl. I'll bear it in mind.
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Tom Reingold, tom@noglider.com
New York City and High Falls, NY
Blogs: The Experienced Cyclist; noglider's ride blog
“When man invented the bicycle he reached the peak of his attainments.” — Elizabeth West, US author
Please email me rather than PM'ing me. Thanks.
03-16-13 | 06:51 PM
#43
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From: The Village
we have over a 100,000 of them in town as permanent residents. The only time I have ever gone down commuting was hitting a huge patch of goose crap, several must have been there for a while, as I was going around a corner in the park. I don't hate them but they are more annoying than squirrels around here.
03-16-13 | 07:54 PM
#45
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From: Eugene, Oregon
Bikes: 2014 Specialized Dolce Triple, 1987 Schwinn Tempo, 2012 Windsor Kensington 8
We must have more aggressive geese here than y'all. Pretty much only greenhorns and newbies to the area hiss at the geese, and they usually only do it once, especially the megaflock in the Greenhill area.
03-17-13 | 07:51 AM
#48
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From: Boise, Idaho
Bikes: 2010 Trek FX 7.2, 2006 Felt F80
I don't mind the geese. Prefer them to crows or gulls all day long. One note to fietsbob - there is a migration but here in SW Idaho we have a resident population of several thousand that never leave. You can find them along the river 365 days a year.
03-17-13 | 09:21 AM
#50
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From: The Village
Same here since we have setup a number of wildlife refuges for them, along with adjacent ranch pasture land and restrictive hunting measures in place.
I for one will not go into trying to scare any of these geese, from personal experience, many larger birds tend to lighten their load upon takeoff, and there is nothing fun about getting caught out in a white rain storm.
I for one will not go into trying to scare any of these geese, from personal experience, many larger birds tend to lighten their load upon takeoff, and there is nothing fun about getting caught out in a white rain storm.