Day 24 –Moose!


 As we have driven over 4,000 miles through British Columbia, the Yukon, the Northern Territories, and Alaska there are frequently signs “Watch for Moose”. So, yes, we have watched, and watched, and watched as the miles rolled along.

However, so we were excited to finally see a cow moose alongside the Cheena Hot Springs Road. And, she was in a place where Pat could turn around and get back so we could snap some pictures. And, she was still there munching away on leaves by the time we got back!

As one of my friends pointed out, they are not the prettiest animal, but the moose is an impressive animal. The forequarters of moose are massive, especially on the bulls that carry their huge horns (We’re still hoping that we’ll see one of those guys as we journey home). An adult moose can weigh over 1,000 pounds, so if they charge you, get out of the way!

Our moose experience didn’t end with that cow. On the way back out from Cheena, we saw another cow in a pond. Again, it was in a convenient location for taking some photos. Moose like to munch on plants that grow at the bottom of ponds. They can hold their breath for a long time, so when you watch them in ponds, most of the time all you see is this big body. When their head finally comes up out of the pond, cascades of water drip off of it. Then the head goes right back down for more tasty stuff at the bottom.

Unexpectedly, when we were pulling out of the place we had parked, we noticed something else by the cow moose. It turned out to be a calf that came out to see what its mamma was doing! Score! The little ones are definitely cuter than the adults. Needless to say, we stopped again to get more photos with the little one.

Back on the Cheena road, we saw yet another moose munching on plants in the ditch alongside the road. 


And then a couple of days later, we saw another moose while on our ATV ride. This one had twin calves! (Sorry, it’s not a great pict since I was rolling by on the ATV).

Okay, so our watching finally paid off! We’ll keep on watching though because you never know what is around the corner.


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