I like raccoons -- they are cute little burglars who try to clean their food and their hands before eating, and doggone it, they're funny little fellas with funky voices. I know homeowners hate em, because they break into trash cans and leave a mess...the very first time I saw one, was on Canyon Drive in the Hollywood Hills, at night, breaking into trash.
Last Thursday morning I was on the bike early morning (4:30 am) on the Waterfront. As I turned to go on the lower walkway of the Steel Bridge, in the din I could see what I thought at first was a trio of cats in the distance. When I got up to about 20 feet, I realized these guys were young raccoons (no mother to be seen -- sad!) scared by this human (me) coming upon them.
They made a critical mistake: they split the narrow walkway, stuck on either side, while trying to cross in front of me. I had no choice but to slow down as I carefully passed them, so as to not hit them or scare them...they were already freaked out that they were stuck with only two ways to go on the walkway, and that I was coming from one end, and the other end was 200 feet away.
All four of us were staring at each other as I passed them by, and you could see the fear in their little eyes. Without any sight of their mother, it seemed obvious that she had died and the three were on their own, scared and sticking together...you know, like those old Disney nature films.
The second time around the Waterfront, I didn't see them, so it's fair to say they found their way out, down to the river's edge. One gets the sense, Portland needs a natural link from Forest Park down to the Willamette River.
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