wildlife – Page 2 – Thomas J. Spence Images

February – On The Shore And In The Woods

Here is a collection of photos and notes on February in the woods and along the North Shore of Lake Superior in Minnesota. As some of you know, things began a bit exciting for me this month with a rare encounter with 5 Canada lynx. In the weeks following, I was fortunate enough to spend well over 2 hours with these cats during multiple encounters. It’s my opinion/observation that the family has moved on to a different area. I haven’t seen signs in a while. The mother has likely moved on to mate and left the kittens to fend for themselves. After watching them hunt on a few occasions, I think they will do fine. I’ll talk a little more about that in this post. There is also a fun video of the lynx family if you find the link at the end of this post. I’ll try to keep you posted on the conditions and activity in our neck of the woods each month and A few winter or seasonal photography tips will be added as well. Please subscribe so you get a notification when I update! Otherwise you’ll miss out on most of my photos each month. February was full of Ice, moose, lynx, wolves, pine marten, snowshoe hare, snow, cold and a few unforgettable experiences.

20180224-_MG_0087 — Lake Superior from the hillside – February beauty on the North Shore.

20180225-20180225_070817 — Tofte, MN sunrise after an 8 or 10 inch snowfall. We had some snow in February and it’s looking good. Even the smartphone can take a nice photo!

20180210-_MG_0893 — Sugarloaf Cove and Lake Superior Ice. We had some great Ice pile-ups on Lake Superior this month. Lots of below zero nights and cold, calm days caused a lot of lake ice to form. When the wind picks up, the sheets move, and often come into shore where they break up and pile up. It’s a favorite winter phenomenon along Superior. I have video over on Facebook. Plate Ice Piling on Lake Superior

Winter can be tough on you and your camera gear. There are a few precautions you can take and some tips that can help you on your February, winter excursions. Most modern DSLR gear can take fairly extreme conditions and still function, but there are things you can do to prolong and enhance your experience. Here are three big ones which will help you get into, and out of the cold…
Acclimate Your Gear – From your house to your vehicle, vehicle to your location, back into your vehicle, and back into your house, your camera gear can experience a lot of extreme temperature differences. Quickly going from one to the other extreme can cause unwanted condensation in and on your camera. The key is to acclimate slowly which can take hours. . You’ll also very likely want to look at those images on your SD card right away! Your camera body and lens are cold after a day of February shooting. Very cold. Bringing it into your 70 degree house or cabin has to be done slowly. Before you put your camera away, remove your SD card while outside so you can review your photos sooner, if that suits you. Then, seal your camera either in a plastic, zip-lock style bag, or in your camera bag if it seals up decent enough. Leave it alone to acclimate for a few hours before opening your bag. I also keep some silica packets in the camera bag to help with any condensation issues. When you can, bag your gear and try to keep it from going through those extremes. It can be a challenge in winter, but it’s worth paying attention to.
Batteries, Batteries, Batteries – You really can’t have enough fully charged camera batteries in winter. The cold can drain batteries in a hurry and you have to be prepared. I usually have 3 or 4 on hand. Try to keep them in a pocket in an inner layer, closer to your body to keep them warm. This can also prolong your battery life. Nothing can end a photo session faster than dead batteries, and winter is notorious for causing quick drainage. You can use the cheaper, off brand batteries, but I have had the best luck with my camera’s brand name Canon batteries.
Gloves/Keeping Your Hands Warm – This can be a tricky one as everyone is different in the way they handle winter temperatures, especially when it comes to fingers and hands. My best advice, and what works for me, is layers. I have a two/three layer system, depending on the conditions. You’ll need something you can control your camera settings with, so a glove is essential for a base layer. I often use a cheap, knit work glove that is comfortable to me. My other glove is a Fjallraven Forest Glove which is warm and comfortable on most days. When it gets very, very cold, I use a lorge, gauntlet style mitt over the gloves. I use a 20+ year old pair of Granite Gear Lutsen Mountain Mitts. I don’t think they are made anymore, but they have truly stood the test of time, and use. A lorge, gauntlet or chopper style mitt which can fit over a glove will do.

Those are just a few of the many survival tips you’ll need in winter months to explore the snowy, icy, frigid, rocky, unforgiving landscape and conditions along the North Shore.

More photo fun from February…

20180208-_MG_0824 — Great grey owl – I watched great grey owls on numerous occasions this month along the North Shore. Usually, you can catch them hunting near dusk along the edges of clearings. Early morning is another great time for owling on The Shore.

20180208-_MG_0820 — Great grey owl hunting a field – I watched this owl at dusk make a few plunges into the snow. It was a cold, windy evening, and the owl was having great success hunting a clearing in Superior National Forest. February is a good month for North Shore owling.

20180204-_MG_0738 — Beautiful February ice on the Temperance River – Winter photography on the rivers and on The Lake can be incredible. February was no exception.

20180204-_MG_0751 — More February beauty along Lake Superior

20180204-_MG_0772 — Ice on the river side…

Sunbursts can be fun with a dslr camera and I really like them in certain winter scenes. Here are a few tips on how to make the sun burst out in rays…
Sunbursts are fun and rather easy to do. You need to use a small aperture on a dslr. Anything around f/11 and up will work but the smaller the aperture the sharper the rays. I usually use f/18, f/20 or f/22. You want to partially block part of the sun with something, in this case, some of the branches of the tree. You can use a building, tree, person, the horizon, clouds etc. The number of rays coming off the sun is due to the number of diaphragm blades in my camera lens. The lens I am using has 9 blades and produces 2x as many rays, so there are 18 rays. I believe if the lens has an even number of blades, say 6, you get that many rays, 6. Odd number of blades it doubles. It can be a fun thing to experiment with in different situations.

20180224-_MG_0065 — Tall pines and sunrise in the forest

And now for some more February, winter wildlife…
February was full with many different sightings in all areas of our forest and shore. Owls, lynx, marten, moose, snowshoe hare, and even two very brief fisher sightings. I have yet to photograph a fisher. They are much larger and much more elusive than our pine marten. I saw a lot of marten and caught one hunting a snowshoe hare one morning. Fun photos below… The resident red fox made a few appearances as did the occasional roughed and spruce grouse. I’ll let the photo captions do the talking about the many reasons to enjoy February in the North Shore Woods.

20180223-_MG_0031 — Yearling bull moose with antlers in late February – Minnesota

20180222-20180222_162554 — Tracks, tracks, tracks… Use tracks to your advantage when winter hunting with your camera. You can tell how old tracks are by observing a few things about the tracks and knowing a few things about the current and previous days weather. If it’s windy, they’ll be washed out and drifted in. If it has snowed, less defined and slightly covered. If it’s been warm, they can be melted a bit on the edges, softened. You get to know how “close” you are by the tracks. You can also make note to return to an area based on the tracks you see and how old they appear. These were very, very fresh tracks. I knew that because I also saw the moose who left ’em!

20180223-_MG_0045 — Doin’ a little dance. Those hooves…

20180223-_MG_0036 — Yearling bull holding antlers in late February – My previous blog post talks more about a couple moose I ran into in February. Looking for moose in winter months can be a challenge, for various reasons, but the rewards are always special. This was the latest I can remember seeing a bull with antlers personally. This was February 23rd, likely a yearling bull. Those antlers will soon fall off, only to begin the regrowth process again. The bull moose can gain almost 3/4 of an inch per day in summer months when the antlers are growing strong. Here is a collection of Minnesota Moose photos Minnesota Moose Photos

20180210-_MG_0917 — Red Fox On The Temperance – See my website for purchasing this February favorite.Ordering Info Red Fox

20180210-_MG_0910 — Red Fox – The fox can be very curious, often to a fault. This red fox is a fixture in one area I frequent. While I don’t feed or entice the wildlife with food, it’s clear that this fox has been getting handouts. It often approaches me, sometimes very closely. It is always looking at my hands, especially if I reach for something or crinkle anything paper/bag like.

20180223-_MG_0020 — I watched this pine marten attack a snowshoe hare one morning in the woods. The chase went on and off for about 15 minutes. Both seemed to take rest periods. I think the marten eventually had it’s breakfast judging by the noise I heard in the brush at one point. The marten is a vicious little creature for its size.

20180223-_MG_0025 — Following in the hare tracks in fresh snow…

20180223-_MG_0027 — Hare hopping along, likely tired from being chased. The marten was nearby…

20180223-_MG_0022 — Not a good morning for the snowshoe hare.

And enter the Lynx…

20180217-_MG_0995 — Lone Canada lynx eyeing the woods for a meal

A mother and two young lynx get back to hunting after an already successful morning hunt. Their diet consists mainly of snowshoe hare. I was fortunate enough to witness them hunt on more than one occasion earlier this winter. The family would hunt together as a team. One or two would wait in the open, usually on a road or in a clearing, while the others stalked and flushed snowshoe hare out of the thick brush.

20180217-_MG_0971 — A lone lynx, or was it…

20180217-_MG_1764 — A few parting looks from the group…

16601647_1280704885346109_2251187724030205549_o — Hare in the snow – The hare is the main food source for the lynx in our woods…

20180217-_MG_1791 — One of the young kittens looks at me curiously through the brush.

20180217-_MG_1811 — Back on the hunt, following tracks and using their acute hearing and sight…

20180217-_MG_1734 — More about the lynx…The characteristic ear tufts which top the lynx ears are thought to further aid their already impressive hearing. Once the cats seemed to decide I was not a threat, they went about their business. They would sit and look, and listen, sometimes for minutes. When it appeared that they heard something, they would silently slink through the brush in search of the hare.

20180217-_MG_1755 — A cat-nap in the road after a breakfast of snowshoe hare. The cats would break for about 20 minutes after eating, and before resuming the hunt. It takes a few hare to fuel this large group on a daily basis. Lynx Link

20180217-_MG_1006 — Cat pile – young watching mom as she holds the newly killed snowshoe hare firmly, making certain it was dead. She would then tear it into a few pieces and which point the young took a hunk off into the brush to eat.

20180217-_MG_1832 — In a flash, they burst into action at the sight or sound of something deeper in the brush. Soon, the whole group would be back to stalking, watching, listening for snowshoe hare.

20180217-_MG_1831 — A re-take session with the lynx family earlier this winter. Getting them all to look at the camera is nearly impossible. I’ll take 4 out of 5! If you made it this far, here is a link to some lynx video footage I put together. See you next month! Don’t forget to subscribe to this blog to be notified about new posts. Thanks – Tom

February Moose in the Minnesota Woods

I hadn’t had a good moose sighting in quite some time. A couple quick, blurred flashes of black in the distance, but nothing identifiable or photographable. Late February was better though! Here are some photos of a nice, healthy looking yearling bull moose. He and I had a nice standoff and photoshoot before he took off into the newly fallen snow, deeper into the woods. The bull moose will shed their antlers anytime between November and March. Larger, older male moose have likely lost their antlers by early and mid winter, but the youngest moose can hold them into February and March. This was the latest I had personally seen a moose with headgear. February 23rd, 2018. At first, I thought the rack was bigger but it turned out to be it’s ear I was seeing! This is a yearling bull moose and I hope to run into him when he’s older. Bull moose in fresh snowfall – Superior National Forest – Feb. 2018 Doin’ a little dance. Those hooves…
: Yearling bull holding antlers in late February – Minnesota

Then there was the cow moose… When I saw her, she was standing still with hair raised. She did not stick around long and I was pretty far off in the distance. She ran within seconds of me stopping, running through the deep, new snow. First tracks. I thought she would reappear on the other side of the clearing, so I waited. She looked to be pregnant, and hopefully with twins! She would be about five of eight months along right now. Usually they give birth in May to one, two, and even three!!! calves at times. About 15 minutes passed when I saw motion in the woods near where the cow went in. She had company, and who knows how long they were on here tail. Hope she is still out there fighting the good fight. Here are a few photos I got right at sunset. night was falling and the wolves didn’t look like they were in a big hurry. Mama was healthy looking.
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20180222-_MG_0003 — What appears to be a pregnant cow moose in Superior National Forest. She should be about 5 months along by now, usually giving birth in May. She had company about 15 minutes behind her.

20180222-_MG_0013 — Following mother moose by 15 minutes…

20180222-_MG_0005 — With hair standing up, mother moose had been on the run for a bit. A pack of 3 wolves were close behind.

20180222-_MG_0010 — Hot pursuit – just 15 minutes after I saw the moose, the wolves moved in.

20180222-_MG_0014 — Two of the three, sniffing the tracks of the pregnant cow moose as the sun set and night falls…

Canada Lynx in the Minnesota Woods – A Rare Sight

We don’t often see the Canada lynx in our woods, so we tend to cherish the brief glimpses we get. I’ll share a few of those brief glimpses I have had in recent months and a full set of photos from a recent, unbelievable lynx encounter with a family of five. I’ll also add a few comments that could help you prolong and enrich your photo excursions into the woods if you encounter wildlife from your vehicle.

20180203-_MG_0718 — Five Canada Lynx on the prowl in the forest…

The population of lynx in our forest tends to fluctuate with the population of the snowshoe hare, the primary food source for the lynx. Hare seem to be plentiful in the woods this winter. Lynx will also dine on grouse and other small critters like mice and squirrel. I have been seeing a lot of grouse and hare in recent months and my lynx sightings have increased this winter for sure. I have had many fun grouse photos this year. The hare photos below are from last year.

Ruffed Grouse all puffed up on a cold afternoon.

Spruce Grouse in January

Snowshoe hare – Look at those shoes!

Hare in the snow

You really never know when a great wildlife sighting will occur. This past summer I had a very close, brief encounter with a lynx at a boat landing. I had just finished canoeing on a remote, inland lake and was tying the canoe onto the truck. I came around the back to sit on the tailgate for a minute and as I rounded the back of the truck, a Canada lynx walked right by the back of the truck and past me. It was within 10 feet of the truck. It walked slowly by and looked at me like I wasn’t even there. I rushed to grab a camera and was able to snap a couple quick shots before it disappeared into the woods. Although my camera was in the truck, it was ready to go with a long lens for wildlife and settings for the light of day. I always keep the long lens on my camera when I am driving hiking, canoeing. If I want to shoot landscapes, and wide angle, I can always switch lenses for that. You won’t have the time to change to your long lens if a moose or a lynx walks out of the woods, most of the time.

20785857_1485682394848356_539953547602389189_o — Summer lynx – a fleeting chance and an off center snap as it slinks into the woods…

I don’t know a lot about the lynx, as I just don’t see them a lot and they aren’t always on my radar. I am learning more this winter and with this recent experience, though. I have had a couple encounters this winter just prior to the family group. Below is a recent lynx photo shot from waaaaaaayyyy down the road. I could have tried driving up closer to take shots, but that rarely works out with wildlife. Slowly pull over and shut off your vehicle whenever possible. I tend to assess the situation quickly to determine if my subject is about to run, or if they are going to be comfortable enough for a photo shoot. Sometimes you get close, and sometimes you just have to take the long, landscape type shot.

27164170_10156063365718805_5100108240566981551_o — Canada Lynx Roadblock – Winter 2018 in Superior National Forest

Often times, if you are lucky enough to see one cross a road in a flash, they will lurk in the woods not too far off the road and offer you a quick glimpse through the trees. While they avoid us when they can, they seem to be curious like any cat and not necessarily threatened by us. Another step you can take to prolong a wildlife experience is to stay still and don’t wander too far from your vehicle. The animal may already be nervous about the car, now with a couple people out milling about in the road you tend to look like a pack of predators. Sometimes the wildlife won’t seem to mind our presence, but more often than not, they do.

20180127-_MG_0167 — Briefly through the brush – Winter 2018 in Superior National Forest

On the morning of February 3rd, a very cold, sub-zero morning, I headed out to look for grouse and a possible moose to photograph. I had been seeing moose tracks in a few different areas in recent days and weeks. I had an uneventful morning and was retracing my drive after turning around and heading back home. As I rounded a corner I had just driven by minutes ago, I saw a solitary wildcat in the middle of the road.

20180203-_MG_0681 — Lone Canada lynx stares into the woods…

I was able to pull off and shut the truck off without scaring the cat off. I was amazed. It was immediately evident that it wasn’t put out by my presence. It was locked on the woods and sat down in the middle of the road as I planted myself in a snowbank just in front of my truck. I was certain this forest feline was honed in on a hare. I waited for the action. To my surprise and amazement, a second cat came over the snowbank and onto the road to join the other lynx.

20180203-_MG_0686 — A second, smaller lynx joins the first…

20180203-_MG_0687 — Two lynx in the road…

The two lynx interacted for a bit. It was obvious that there was a size difference and there was a difference in attitude in the two as well. The second was more playful, curious and energetic, it seemed. The larger cat still seemed intent on the woods. Never really moving much and paying me little attention. The smaller cat was a bit unsure of me at times.

20180203-_MG_0688 — Two Canada Lynx in the Minnesota Woods – One a little more curious than the other…

20180203-_MG_0694 — Two Canada Lynx in the Minnesota Woods – Paying attention to the woods in front of them…

20180203-_MG_0699 — Two Canada Lynx in the Minnesota Woods – Number 2 is a little unsure…

I knew the opportunity could end any second, and I didn’t have a lot of light to work with, but the subjects were cooperating so well! I couldn’t believe it! I boosted the ISO a little and tried to remain still while I took pictures. The two at one point locked on to something in the woods and stared for a few seconds. I thought about switching to video, but the tripod was in the truck and I knew with the long lens it would be shaky at best. My cell phone was in the truck charging or it would have made great video.

20180203-_MG_0690 — The pair of lynx are locked onto something in the woods. I wait for what’s to come…

With the camera to my eye, aimed at the pair, I notice movement and realize there are more cats entering the road from the woods. I took a few photos and lowered the camera and watched, amazed.

20180203-_MG_0700 — A third and fourth lynx join the scene…

20180203-_MG_0701 — One, two, three, four…

Right away I noticed the difference in size between the first lynx and the three who joined. The three were smaller than the first and similar in size to each other. The four cats nuzzled, cuddled and circled with the larger cat. At this point i’m thinking it’s a family unit, but know so little about them. They seemed to check in with and not stray far from the larger, adult cat when in the road. They stayed in a tight group together.

20180203-_MG_0703 — 4 Canada Lynx checking me out in Superior National Forest

20180203-_MG_0705 — Always seemed like they were watching in all directions, as a group.

20180203-_MG_0707 — The smaller kittens were a little curious, but playful.

The four cats milled about, circled, checked me out a bit. It seems like they were curious, but also attentive to all directions around them. When they grouped up in the road, in the open, they got in a pile and were all looking in different directions it seemed. 360 view. Maybe I am imagining that, but when I look at the photos it looks like that is what they were doing. Maybe the fact that they were in an open clearing(roadway) and my presence triggered an instinct they have as a family unit? Huddle together to look larger and watch in all directions while we are exposed in the open. Anyway, that’s what I observed.
As I was photographing and watching the group of four another animal appears!! Number 5 enters the scene and explains what the others were still looking at in the woods. Looking for their other sibling. It’s now fairly certain this is a mother and 4 kittens nearing a year old. I have since learned that this is the time of year that the lynx will mate. At that time, almost year old kittens will go out on their own, away from mother. It’s known that a mother lynx will have up to 6 or so kittens and will teach them to hunt and nurture them for their first 9 months or so. It’s great to see that 4 healthy looking lynx have made it almost through their first winter and are strong and smart enough to be on their own. Here are some of the shots of the group of 5 Canada lynx.

20180203-_MG_0709 — A 5th lynx enters the scene!

20180203-_MG_0711 — number 5, another smaller cat, joins the gang in the road.

20180203-_MG_0712 — Still a little unsure about me over in the snowbank….

20180203-_MG_0713 — It seemed like one was almost always watching me. It was like a group defence posture to look large and watch in all directions when out in the open. At least that’s my theory.

20180203-_MG_0714 — One final group pose and cuddle huddle before continuing on up the road.

Whenever I can I get out of the vehicle for roadside wildlife photography, especially in winter. The heat from the truck can cause blurry waves as it hits the cold outside air and can make photos difficult. Also any vibrations can cause problems. If you have to shoot from a vehicle in winter, try to keep the heat down and open other windows to balance the temperature when shooting. That will reduce heat blur. Some will use a beanbag type setup on their window or door for comfort and balance. I find it too constricting and tough to make a good composition from a car, so I avoid it at all costs. I’m not sure I could have captured this encounter as thoroughly from the truck window. It always just feels better to be out there, too. I often snowshoe or hike to look for wildlife in winter, but some 20 below mornings are better suited for a drive 😉
When the group of lynx had enough of my gawking, they all got up at once, in unison, and headed up the road together in a little pack. Their movements in that group, and as they stood up, and as they marched down the road looked like a polished, practiced routine they have played out many times. This looked to be a strong, healthy, and I like to think happy family group. I hope you’ve enjoyed this encounter and maybe learned a thing or two. I am using this experience to learn more about this mysterious mammal we have roaming, and I like to think playing, in the woods of Minnesota.

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Fall 2015 – Leaves, Aurora and Moose, Oh My!

Fall is a great time in the Northwoods. This has been a busy and rewarding season for photography and exploring the woods. Most of my explorations and photography have shifted inland this year. I have not been visiting The Lake for sunrise as often as I am most often into the woods by sunrise time. This has been great for fall colors and moose alike. Don’t worry Lake Lovers! I will likely return more often now to Lake Superior as winter approaches and takes hold. Lake Superior photographs well in winter 🙂 This will be a three-part post highlighting my three favorite things to photograph, all of which happened to happen in the past few months. Fall colors, the northern lights, and the majestic, Minnesota moose.

This year it seems that our fall color season was long, but not as “spectacular” as past years. In my observation, color started early in some spots and finished late in others. This never gave us a really great “peak color” time as the forest was changing at different rates, often in pockets. I still had some great photography days chasing fall color…

Early color along the Honeymoon Trail. Sept. 23, 2015

Foggy, misty morning along the Honeymoon Trail. Sept. 2015

Six Hundred Road looking beautiful every fall. A fall favorite and fall classic back road drive.

October and nearly the end of fall color. This was a great scene as the leaves were floating on 8-10 feet of crystal clear Lake Superior water.

If you are an aurora chaser, or one whom enjoys pursuing the northern lights in the night sky, this has been a good fall. The Great Lakes Aurora Hunters Gathering also took place in October. We are on the downslope of the peak of a “solar maximum”. Much like our seasons, the Sun has cycles. The Sun goes in 11 year cycles with a minimum and maximum. At solar maximum, sun spots and solar flares are more prevalent. This means better chances for better aurora, more or less. The whole year has been good for northern lights, in my opinion. Things have slowed down here in late October, but early fall was great for night sky fun…

One of the best, although brief, displays of the northern lights that I have witnessed. This was early September and it was a wild sight for about 25 minutes. One to remember. 9/8/2015 near Schroeder, MN

The Schroeder dock and Lake Superior – September 2015.

October lights along the Temperance River outside Tofte, MN.

Another view of the Temperance River reflecting a light aurora glow from above. October, 2015

October was also the annual Great Lakes Aurora Hunters Gathering in Two Harbors, MN. 200 people from 10 states and two countries got together for three days of fun. Fantastic speakers and meals all weekend. The northern lights were not cooperating, so steel wool spinning was the evening’s activity at Gooseberry State Park. This is Jamie Rabold of Willowmaker Images spinning steel wool.

Matt Rohlader spinning steel wool at the annual Great Lakes Aurora Hunters Gathering.

Happy Halloween! Carved up the pumpkin from my mother on a nice, starry, aurora filled night. October, 2015

The International Space Station often becomes visible in the night sky for a few days in a row. I use this site to predict the times. It is always spot on! http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/ ISS and northern lights – October, 2015

And let me tell you about the moose! 🙂 It’s been an exciting couple months when it comes to moosing. Fall brings all kinds of wildlife activity to Superior National Forest and surrounding woods. Everyone is preparing for the coming winter in various ways and it seems that the chances of fun, unique wildlife encounters are more common. In addition to many moose encounters I have seen pine marten, spruce and ruffed grouse, ducks of all kinds, deer, eagles, a northern shrike out hunting in a field, and many more thrilling sightings. The moose have been my main quarry this fall. I have run into 8-10 different bull moose, likely 4 different cows and a couple with calves. There is a cow with a GPS collar that I have not been able to photograph but have seen a couple of times. The moose numbers are declining in NE Minnesota and there are some “research moose” in the area. (I pictured one below that I saw in Grand Portage) These collared moose have GPS units that can track the animals habits throughout the seasons. Important data is collected about seasonal habits and movements and the animals range. They can also alert researchers if an animal dies. This can be important so the researchers can get to the body asap to determine the cause of death. It will be interesting to see the next count. A January 2015 count showed the population at 3450 animals. In 2011 the survey showed around 4900 moose and back in 2006 the count showed nearly 9000 animals. I have heard many theory on the subject and have not formulated my own conclusion but am following closely.

I have had the good fortune of following another big group of moose this fall. It is rivaling last fall for quality encounters. I have filmed a lot of video over the past two months and I am working on a project to compile video clips and still images into a nice, short video featuring these moose. I will keep you posted on that.
Here is a sample of the massive moose I have seen starting with a unique looking bull from Labor Day weekend and taking us through November 1st…

BWCA Bull Moose I spent the better part of a HOT Labor Day Sunday out in a canoe in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. The fishing was slow that day but this big bull moose swimming in the lake made up for it.

Nothing like a dip in the lake on a hot afternoon. Labor Day Weekend – BWCA Bull Moose

One of the younger moose. He makes up for it in spirit and spunk. This one was prodding the larger bull on another occasion.

Cow moose. She had a bull off to the left that I could see. I did not know she also had a calf at her feet. It would later stand up, revealing itself when I got home and saw the photos on screen.

Bull, cow and calf. The calf is well hidden even after standing up. Can you see it? These three were together on multiple mornings.

Field of Cows – Two cow moose snacking in the late afternoon sun. October 2015

Another scene from an early morning wildlife cruise. Two eagles sparring over the high tree. There was a nearby bear carcass the two were feeding on.

I call this one Number Two. While a massive animal, he is a bit smaller than Hoss. He also seems to know his place around the bigger one. Smart animals in this post-rut group. We watched the sunrise together a few times this fall…

One of the smaller bull moose scenting, or just amazed that he can see his breath on this cold October morning…

Bully and Number Two Bully is the scrappy, smaller guy. Never afraid to test the limits of his elders…

Number Two likes to bask his face in the morning sun on these frosty mornings. I have watched him and the bigger bull do this a couple of mornings. Once, the group of four had their backs to me as they all raised their heads to the morning sun coming up over the trees.

Number Two watching over a cow. Her calf is nearby, too.

Four Bull Morning – the group on a frosty October morning. I was able to watch this gang interact for almost two hours. Once they ambled off out of range, I left them. I try not to spook the moose. If possible, I photograph them and leave them calm, grazing, like I found them. I hate to see them running or in a panic because of me and that rarely happens. Watching your step and walking slowly around them is key.

Mother and Child – Cow and calf with frost at first light.

Big Hoss. I have been fortunate with this moose. I have been running into him a lot and have logged a few hours watching him. Lots of video and photos of him with the group and alone. He is a sight to behold, especially in the near dark, early morning hours. I have caught him in photographable light, too.

Another one of the locals. I don’t see this one as often but he sure is a beauty. He had a cow and calf with him for a couple of mornings, but now seems to be gone. I wonder if Big Hoss pushed him out and took over the cow and calf?? The bulls can be solitary animals, so they may be breaking up for winter already. They will often stay grouped up into winter, though.

These next photos are from yet another encounter with Big Hoss. November 1st in the light rain.

We may have a month or more of fall left here on The Shore, but there have been days that feel like we are turning the corner towards winter. Before long, the tracks I see will be in the snow, not mud. The animals will be stark against a white backdrop, if they aren’t hibernating or burrowed in. The woods will be quiet except for the wind in the pines. unless they are muffled by a fresh blanket of snow… The ever changing seasons in The North. Winter is coming. 11/2/2015 *edited 11/5