Who let the skunks out?
 

I saw 2 of them the other day on my ride home, and that was a first. Fortunately, they were going the other way minding their own business, but this was a first for me to see (and smell) any of them.

I used to encounter them every other morning on my paper route when I was a kid in SE WA state. That always woke me up. I have yet to encounter one in Colorado.

gak...there's a whole bunch of them around here. I'm hoping the new dog the neighbors got will keep them away!!

Woke me up too. I saw the first one of to the side of the light before I realized what it was - and then I knew why I smelled skunk. The second one must have waited for a jogger to cross the path before it did, we were both glad to miss it.

That new dog will probably end up causing the whole neighborhood to stink.

Skunks have eyes like cats - they reflect and refract light with magnification so they glow. And the "Silver-Backs" always smell. I used to live in a forest and got to know them well. The biggest skunks are the Gold-Backs - and they are non-stinkers. Unless you scare them. If you speak to them softly and calmly, they will relax. I've walked - slowly - up to many skunk - and sat down. Never once was I sprayed. They looked at me. I looked at them. And they relaxed and I spoke softly.

The Native folks - who have been around them a long time, just say: "Hey Stinky! How's it going?" and don't get sprayed. At least where abouts' I've lived.

I pity your neighbor's dog - if he thinks like some people. If the dog tangles - you could make some serious money selling cheap incense to the neighbor the next day.

This is the second skunk discussion thread I encountered this month; see:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=461540

I posted my skunk story to that one:

"One morning while riding through a Boston suburb about 6:00 AM, I came apon a skunk with its head stuck in a Yoplait yogurt container, which is somewhat conical (the frustum, the basal part of a solid cone or pyramid formed by cutting off the top by a plane parallel to the base), with the opening at the narrower end. It was meandering sightless near the street and likely would have wandered into the path of a car and was a really pitiable sight. Thinking of a local cynical (and anti-bicyclist) radio talk show host, who comments, 'No good deed goes unpunished,' I got off the bike, removed the container and quicky jumped back. Fortunately I didn't get sprayed.

"I found out about four years later that an employee where I work witnessed this event. He is a parking lot attendant, and on a rare occasion when I needed to drive from work, he reminded me of that event and waved me through for free. So take heart, Good Samaritans; we pass this way only once."

I saw one on my ride a few weeks back. He was frolicking in the middle of the trail. No easy way around, so I had to wait. I tossed some pebbles at it, but it ignored them. Took about 20 minutes for it to get bored and clear off.

The only skunks I ever see are roadkill. :(

A few weeks ago it was a very young one. That kind of ruined my ride.

I seen one on my ride to work a while back. Very shy little critters.

The 2 I saw didn't look upset, but they both had their tails up as they wandered away from the path. I used to have a 20 pound cat, and he looked like that in profile when he was out prowling; and he was a big lovable cat that just wanted to be friends with everyone. How do you tell if they're mad without getting sprayed?

Confront one. Stamp your feet and growl. Then write back how you could tell just before you got sprayed. Enjoy spending your winter in a tent!

Actually I've never seen one mad at me. I've sat down within 5 feet of them as they grazed for violets on my lawn. No problem. They would look at me and I at them. They would go back to eating. One of my cats, on the other hand, didn't do as well. He came in coated yellow from the spray (butyl mercaptan) all down his formerly white front. He was finally banished to a room with burning incense.

I know they are around here, but not seen one on the bike, did see a Porcupine once, at the edge of my feeble headlights pathetic illumination as I went past at about 15-20 kph and 1 foot clearance. That reminds me, must buy new headlight for Winter. Do Skunks hibernate?