Digging deep into the Doubletough archives, I came across this one from 2006 that is absolutely remarkable. The incident occurred in October 2004 near Fairbanks, Alaska. To replace or update power cables, electrical crews will attach the new cable to the old, then pull the old line through, bringing the new line through the towers / poles with it. Slack occurs in the new line until the crew has it in hand and is able to tighten it.
In this particular case, the slack for the static line (a line strung alongside power lines to serve as a lightning rod) was hanging low enough for a moose to become entangled. As the crew began taking up the slack, unaware of the moose’s dilemma, they kept cranking in the line even as it required more torque than expected. Realizing something was amiss, the crew went searching the line for the problem.
They found the moose, still alive, lifted 50 feet above the ground. According to the report, the cable was slackened and the moose released but eventually dispatched due to stress from his ordeal. Local fish & game officials believe the moose was in full rut and upon seeing the cable moving up and down, decided to “challenge” it.
Reportedly photographed by a highway near Marenisco, Michigan, here’s an albino moose for the animal oddity lovers among you. I find it hard to believe it’s lasted this long in the wild and suspect the location is actually within a protected area, or it escaped from one. If you know the story, let us know in the comments. More photos after the jump. Read more…
This photo may not seem particularly remarkable and I suppose it’s not, but consider it was taken by a snowboarder and the moose was in the middle of the trail.
There’s nothing like bombing down the mountain through the trees right into a big ass moose snacking on the cat track.
The shots were taken by my brother on a recent trip to Jackson Hole and it wasn’t their only sighting; they had another moose outside their chalet that week.
Of particular note, a local cab driver told him “they were trying to get hunters to come in and thin out the elk” so if you’ve got any insight into that, let me know, I’d like to get in on it! Read more…
Following up our Thursday post of a bowhunter’s remarkable experience with an elk, check out the moose that takes an interest in the “tree branch” in this clip.
Have you had a close encounter? Tell us about it in the Comments!
If you’ve been reading this blog since the early days then you may recall the story of “The Longest Minute”. It is about two hunters and their dramatic encounter with a grizzly while quartering a moose in the Alaska wilderness. It is a fascinating story written by Doug White, one of the hunters. But that’s not the reason for the post.
In the story, Reed Thompson, pictured here, distracted the bear long enough for Doug to free the pistol and take the single shot that saved their lives. At that time Reed was dating my cousin, Cooke Adams, and today I am proudly looking forward to future hunts with our newest family member! Reed proposed to Cooke on Thanksgiving and we can’t wait to get him into the Doubletough fold!
The wilderness is a tough place and this series of photographs are not for the faint of heart (if you’re a regular reader, you don’t need such a warning!). They made the rounds last year and show a pack of wolves tracking and bring down a bull moose. Unfortunately the bull recently shed his horns so it was less than a fair fight, but it still takes the full effort of the pack to score the meal. Read more…
This story was forwarded to me back in October 2006, about three weeks after the hunting incident it describes occurred. As with most forwarded email, it was interesting to look over the previous recipients and see exactly how it wound up in my inbox; it had definitely made the rounds, having been repeatedly forwarded to at least 40 folks until my friend, we’ll call him Bubba, sent it my way.
It’s a three page Word document and I read it twice, trying to imagine being there for all the drama. Then I opened the included photos. I immediately recognized the guy in the third shot because every picture I’ve ever seen of him, he has that same expression. The hero of the story, Reed Thompson, dates my cousin and both were in Alaska at the time of the incident where they worked as dentists. Reed is a big-time hunter and I asked him about this particular hunt and the story Doug White, the author, tells is exactly how it went down……… Read more…
