Deer

I think Clair saw it first. I remember her being the first to climb up a slippery bank of mud and looking over. I heard her say “Hey – a deer!” I dismissed the remark as case of mistaken identity. I have been caving for 17 years. I have seen my fair share of interesting and strange sights in caves. A deer a quarter mile into a cave is something you just don’t see. However a second scout climbed over the mud bank and said “Look guys there is a deer over here!” I quickly climbed over and looked myself. Sure enough there was a large, live deer in the cave.

The deer was in a predicament. It was weak and stuck in between two mud slopes. It stood up when it saw our lights and tried to get away. Its hooves slipped and slid on the muddy slopes and it was unable to free itself. It was very much stuck in the cave. My best guess is that deer was washed into the cave with the floodwaters from the recent rain. The deer probably tried to cross a rain swollen stream on the surface and fell in the creek. This particular creek flows directly into a mountainside and into a cave. The deer probably washed ashore inside the cave and wandered in the complete darkness. Even an animal with the best night vision can't see anything in a cave for there is no light. The deer wandered in the dark until it became stuck.

The first bit of light the deer saw in over a week was the light from our helmets. We all took turns looking at the deer and deciding what could be done. We all had sympathy for the deer but we didn’t know what to do. We decided to leave the deer alone since trapped deer can kick and bite its rescuers. We also didn't have the gear or manpower to drag the deer out. Attempting to rescue the deer would have been nice but it would not have been worth getting kicked or bitten by it.

After exiting the cave we discussed the situation again. My initial thought was to let nature take its course since the event was a natural one. Also, who in the area would be willing to rescue a deer trapped in cave? This particular county has over 100 known caves and animals, including livestock, are always getting stuck in them. The girl scouts were concerned about the welfare of the deer. To alleviate their concerns I told them I would notify the authorities after they left.

Janine and I stopped by the Rockcastle County Courthouse on Saturday evening and spoke with the on-duty 911 dispatcher. We weren’t sure what kind of reaction we would get. However the dispatcher took our request seriously. He called the Division of Forestry in Frankfort, KY who told him to call the Kentucky Fish & Wildlife Service. The Fish & Wildlife Service gave him the phone numbers of two local wildlife biologists. The Fish & Wildlife Service was interested in getting the deer out of the cave. We offered to stay around and lead the wildlife biologists to the deer but the dispatcher said it was not necessary. We left a cave map with the dispatcher and marked a spot on the map where the deer was. The cave is a well-known cave. The wildlife biologists probably knew where the cave was and have been there before. I have high hopes that the deer was rescued.

3/13/03 Update: The deer was rescued from the cave! I received a message from the Mount Vernon Fire & Rescue Department. A game warden, a state trooper and two deputy sheriffs entered the cave, gave the deer a mild tranquilizer and walked him out. The deer is free again!