Sunday, December 12, 2010

The Moose are Loose!

Out for a morning stroll.
A few days ago, Bob and I were just getting going about 8 AM, when Bob happened to look out the back windows.  Out in the meadow behind the cabin were 2 big bull moose (meese, mooses??).  Bob ran (well, went as fast as his bad knees could go) upstairs to look at them with his binoculars and I grabbed my camera and went outside, in my sweater in 30 degree weather to snap some pictures.  Well, the snow was deep!  It was almost to my knees out by Harry's rock pile by the fence!  I got on top of the rocks for my pictures but was sure they would look like 2 black dots against a background of beautiful snow clad mountains.  They just stood there posing and watching us.  Their paddles were huge but they kind of blended into the willows in the distance behind them.  I finally came in and they hung around a little while and then wandered off into the trees.
Checking me out while I check them out!

Posing for the camera.
That afternoon I was on a cleaning kick and was really making some progress, using my new $8 Black Friday electric broom, over by the big window next to the piano.  I looked up and there were the two big bulls standing right where I had taken my pictures that morning looking in the window at me!  I couldn't believe it!  One of them had jumped the fence and was between the cabin and the rock pile!  I grabbed my camera again and took pictures right from the window.  Again, they just stood there posing with their big old paddles!
Our afternoon visitors.

He turned around on me!  Oh well look at those paddles!

The shyer one of the two.  He didn't come over the fence.


  Finally I decided to go outside and see how close I could get.  (OK, I'm not like the people with the bears up in Yellowstone, but I wanted a clearer picture.  I wasn't going to pet them or anything like that!)  They decided that was enough and wandered off back out into the meadow but stopped and turned to see if I was coming with them, which I wasn't!  I got one last shot of them as they bid us farewell.
So long, boys!
The next day we had to take the Argo over to the pickup and go into town.  I decided to put my camera in my outside pocket just in case I needed to take a picture of something.  (On our last Argo ride into the cabin we had seen a cow moose with her calf but my camera was not available!).  As we were coming out of the draw, a big moose ran out of the trees in front of us!  I pulled out the camera just in time to see 3 more big bull moose come trotting out .  I snapped a few quick pictures and then decided to take some movies of them as they ran alongside us out in the meadow.  They finally cut across in front of us and I felt great that I had gotten some great video of them.  (I have to say I was just pointing and shooting because of the bright sunshine).  When I went to show the ladies at the medical center what we had seen, we were disappointed to see that my battery had given out after about 2 seconds!  Oh well, I did get a few shots of them and here they are!  Well, one good one.

3 big bull moose running across the meadow!

Kind of blurry but then we were moving and so were they!

We are heading into the trees.  The video takes over from here!
We haven't seen any sign of moose since but my guess is that they are around!  The weather is windy and cold so they are probably in the trees somewhere.

My video taping actually did work, sort of, so I put just a short clip of it on here.  Look sharp between the trees!  I missed all of them crossing the road in front of us somehow.......  Be prepared for a bouncy view from the Argo!

3 comments:

  1. Great photos and story Penny! Those bulls must have caught a whiff of your caramel corn..
    Jim

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great pictures & video. Good thing they were the friendly type. You have such great adventures!
    Merry Christmas!

    Emily

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow, hope we get to see them when we come! I love the 3rd picture with the snow glistening in the sunlight! Magical! Wow-wee you just hit the 3K mark!

    ReplyDelete