I commute about 15 miles each way a couple of days a week in the summer months (whenever it is light enougth). I live in a Cumbrian fellside village and it is hilly twisty, with areas of road two feet deep with water for a good part of winter or covered in snow or ice.

Yesterday after a holiday it really felt like my rides were numbered now as it is getting darker cars have lights on etc. I gave a red squirrel a coronary as it raced up a tree to get away from me and it started me thinking about the things I have seen this year – little owl, red deer, hundreds of beetles crossing the road to get in trees out of the morning sun, hares etc etc.

One evening however I saw an African parrot flying overhead you know the blue/ red & yellow things. They are huge. I nearly got run over as a car driver coming the other way was also watching it and came on to my side of the road.

Hmm mostly roadkill and pants.

Dead fox at the side of the road the other day. Still a novelty for me, and this thing was the size of a sheep.

I saw my first badger last week at just after 5am. Quite often see foxes and muntjak as the first part of my commute is through a wood.

last friday on the commute home i saw another cyclist (not the usual BSO type) merrily cycling on the pavement in the opposite direction, that was until someone in a car opened their door into him. He seemed fine, but it looked like his front wheel was properly trashed. I rarely take pleasure from the misfortune of others, but when you’re doing something illegal/dangerous i do reserve the right to chuckle 😈

Wouldn’t that be one of them thar South American Macaw thingies 😉

But this summer has been fairly low on the things to see; but down here the best times for wildlife are spring / autumn when commuting is at dawn/dusk.

Googled red blue yellow parrot and DaRC_L you are correct it is a Macaw afterall. You learn something new every day.

befor i moved jobs i had a 9 mile comute ever day and there would always be an owl (i presume the same one) on one part of the route. It would fly at head level along side me some days too. Quite amazing to see a wild animal at a distance of 2m

I saw a baguette yesterday – not sure what the filling was, but despite being quite hungry I left it alone.

Funniest/strangest thing was a butt naked lad running along a local A road. Glad i drove that day!
Seen foxes, owls, buzzards. The most memorable thing is Deer rutting! Quite scary especially at early dawn or dusk. I had one stag charge at me last year, with 20-30 metres to go he then caught sight of some photographers which seemed to divert his attention!

Funniest thing I saw was a 3 mile long queue of cars + zombified drivers as they sat in the “rush” on the A4 into Reading…

Oh wait a second… I see that every morning.

despite being quite hungry I left it alone.

I once found a bunch of bananas (intact) in the road when riding into Manchester. I shared them with a colleague.

Yesterday, I noticed the sweet smell of the overhanging pines in Dunham Massey, and I rode through the my first pile of golden leaves of the year.

Autumn is my favourite season and I’m so happy to be back on the bike.