Late but clear deer tracks

The identity of the track maker is easy to determine: cloven hooves in the middle of the woods, and no telltale odor of fire and brimstone. Clearly, a deer... and not Satan. White-tails are, of course, common as field mice around here, and for many trackers, they're the first animal to master. Throughout most of this winter, however, tracking has been tricky, since the snow has often been of the powder variety—a species of white that doesn't hold clean edges and the fine details a student of this ancient art needs to determine the story left behind by an animal. But with slightly warming weather and temperatures by day above freezing, critters can make a good impression that is easily to read. This set of tracks, which, now that the Babcock Ridge parking area is accessible, I found during a non-snowshoe-hike at the preserve, is blissfully unambiguous: deer all the way, with a few spent Beech leaves thrown in as a garnish.