Moose

[Queen of the MST]

My start date is mid September- mid October heading SOBO, do I need to worry about Moose on the LT? All my hiking has been done in Moose free woods. I pulled some info online but I am wondering if I need to know anything else before I start my adventure.
Thank you,
Queen

How to Survive a Moose Attack

Remember, a moose charges to ward off potential threats. Wild moose are aggressive, but by assuring the bull or cow that you are not a threat, you can survive an aggressive moose encounter.
Signs of an aggressive moose include:

• Walking in your direction
• Stomping its feet
• Peeling its ears back
• Grunting
• Throwing its head back and forth

These are all signs of an aggressive, wild moose. If you are hiking through moose habitat and encounter a moose behaving in this manner, it perceives you as a threat and you must be prepared for an attack.
Should you encounter an aggressive, wild moose, here is how to prevent and survive an attack:

• Back away with your palms facing the moose
• Speak softly and reassuringly, like you would to a little child
• If the moose charges, get behind a large tree or rock in order to separate your body from the moose. Most moose charges, like grizzly bear charges, are bluffs
• If the moose attacks you, feign death by curling up in a little ball. Protect your head and neck with your arms. If you are wearing a backpack, your pack will protect your back

[Styles_for_miles]

Starting SoBo October 1st maybe I'll see you on trail,


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[TJ aka Teej]

Well, always be prepared, I guess. But if you are lucky enough to see a moose, be quiet, take a photo, and hike on. Wear safety orange, because it's hunting season. Have fun!

[egilbe]

I'd be more afraid of the very common and hungry mice and squirrels than a very rare moose.

[Shutterbug]

I always consider it a thrill to see a moose. They are majestic animals. I agree that if you see one do your best to get a picture.

I have only felt threatened by a moose once. It was close to dark and the light wasn't good. A moose was bedded down right by the trail and I didn't see it until I was about 10 feet away. When it jumped up, my head was even with its shoulder. It ran off into the woods making a lot of noise. It seemed to be just as frightened as I was.

I have seen more than 50 moose in Maine -- mostly in the fall. You will have a good possibility of seeing one, but you should not feel threatened.

This is one I saw in Baxter State Park.

[jjozgrunt]

And I was only worried about bears, thanks a heap.

[Sarcasm the elf]

When was the last time a hiker was attacked by a moose? I have honestly never heard of an a verified incident that didn't involve people intentionally harassing the animal.

Edit: I am asking the above as an honest question. If there have been documented attacks I'd be interested to know about them.

[DuneElliot]

I have encountered a lot of moose on the trails and in the back country of Wyoming. I almost walked within 5ft of a huge bull moose at the beginning of July if my dog hadn't warned me of it's location first...I gave it a wide berth, but it just watched me. I've spooked cow and young moose, and had a cow and calf moose walk into camp.

Just be aware in areas of dense willows and undergrowth near water and make noise in those areas, just like with bear. Moose have never worried me but I do keep a respectable distance from bulls when I see them. It is always awesome to see them:

[bigcranky]

23 days on the LT and we never saw a moose. Really wanted to, alas. I suspect most moose sightings are in the ponds and they are off in the distance.

[nsherry61]

And I was only worried about bears, thanks a heap.

Yeah moose kill way more people than bears. As noted above, most moose trouble is with people that are trying to take pictures and are getting closer to the moose (and often her calf) than the moose approves of.

Favorite moose story:
While working in Denali National Park in about 1989, a colleague of mine walked from a trail out onto a road one night and when he looked to his left a cow moose was charging straight for him. He quickly climbed onto the roof of a little grocery store/gas station next to him, only to see the moose run right on by him charging toward the grizzly that he hadn't seen off to his other side. Cow moose have serious mama juju!

[DuneElliot]

Yeah moose kill way more people than bears. As noted above, most moose trouble is with people that are trying to take pictures and are getting closer to the moose (and often her calf) than the moose approves of.

And one of the reasons why I prefer to carry a camera with a good zoom on it vs just using the camera on my phone; I love to capture pictures of these animals, but I always want to be able to do it from a safe and respectful distance.

[peakbagger]

They are "annoying household pests" in my neck of the woods. I am in rural development with 1 acre lots and on a somewhat obvious game route of small interconnected wetlands from one type of habitant to another, moose travel through the area frequently and rarely do folks see them except for muddy footprints leaving a swamp. Sadly there are more dogs in the development, they are for the most part tied up but I expect that it cuts down on the resident moose. For several years a cow and calf would work the sides of the roads and yards. It was common to see fresh tracks in the gravel of the shoulders of the road. With the exception of the fall rut season and mothers with very young calves, they are not aggressive. Its pretty easy to figure out when a moose is stressed. There was a population explosion about 15 years ago in Northern NH VT but of late the population is down due to the winter tick. NH fish and games collared numerous cows and calves last fall prior to the mild winter, they reported that the majority of calves died most likely due to winter tick of other parasites that prey on weakened moose. Generally the mortality from winter tick is in the spring, if they make it then they usually can make through another summer and fall.

[Shutterbug]

Yeah moose kill way more people than bears. As noted above, most moose trouble is with people that are trying to take pictures and are getting closer to the moose (and often her calf) than the moose approves of.

Favorite moose story:
While working in Denali National Park in about 1989, a colleague of mine walked from a trail out onto a road one night and when he looked to his left a cow moose was charging straight for him. He quickly climbed onto the roof of a little grocery store/gas station next to him, only to see the moose run right on by him charging toward the grizzly that he hadn't seen off to his other side. Cow moose have serious mama juju!

It is true that moose kill more people than bears, but most of those killed are in traffic accidents. Moose get run over a lot more than bears.

[DuneElliot]

Googled it: http://www.all-about-moose.com/stati...-by-moose.html

Apparently there aren't enough deaths by moose to create a statistic anywhere on the internet.

[Hosh]

When was the last time a hiker was attacked by a moose? I have honestly never heard of an a verified incident that didn't involve people intentionally harassing the animal.

Edit: I am asking the above as an honest question. If there have been documented attacks I'd be interested to know about them.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...-by-moose-dies

http://www.denverpost.com/2013/09/09...n-to-hospital/

http://www.summitdaily.com/news/6821...ife-grand-lake

Moose were transplanted in Middle Park several decades ago, they are everywhere on the western slope. I think they are more dangerous than black bears as they have little or no fear of humans. I fly fish the upper Colorado and have stumbled upon twins bedding down under a willow bush, luckly mommy was no were close or it could have gotten ugly.

Males are aggressive in the fall, Females with young are to be avoided anytime.

[Deadeye]

I just spent a few days on the LT and only saw one very old pile of moose dung. When I hiked that same section a few years ago, you couldn't avoid stepping in the stuff. It was everywhere. But, the population has declined significantly, this from a recent local paper:
The game warden recounted the April 23 incident to a reporter to illustrate the challenges facing Vermont's moose population. The herd has declined dramatically over the last decade, from an estimated 4,800 animals in 2005 to 2,070 in 2015.
The reasons for the drop are not fully understood, but one of the likely causes is warmer winters. They have triggered an increase in winter tick infestations that can cause young moose to drop dead from blood loss and emaciation. Higher temps may also result in heat stress and other health problems for the majestic animals.
So maybe my lack of moose "sighting" is evidence of that. I've seen moose on the LT, but I wouldn't be at all concerned unless it was rut season and you saw fresh evidence of moose. BTW, moose dung looks like a pile of malted milk balls.

[Shutterbug]

Googled it: http://www.all-about-moose.com/stati...-by-moose.html

Apparently there aren't enough deaths by moose to create a statistic anywhere on the internet.

There is a sign by the highway near Kenai, Alaska that shows how many people have died this year in moose/auto accidents. Apparently, they keep the statistics.

[DuneElliot]

There is a sign by the highway near Kenai, Alaska that shows how many people have died this year in moose/auto accidents. Apparently, they keep the statistics.

By "deaths by moose" I meant attacks (charges, stompings etc) not automobile vs moose accidents, in reference to the moose kill more people than bears comment above yours.

[1azarus]

There is a sign by the highway near Kenai, Alaska that shows how many people have died this year in moose/auto accidents. Apparently, they keep the statistics.

...and they have a program to harvest that road kill and feed it to the needy. We're talking about a lot of meat here!

[nsherry61]

...and they have a program to harvest that road kill and feed it to the needy. We're talking about a lot of meat here!

Between Fairbanks and Seward AK the coal trains (at least in 1989) killed about 350 to 400 moose per year. The engineers had contact lists of people that would harvest the meat anywhere along the 400 miles.