Spirit Moose

I was very fortunate yesterday to see a moose on the drive down to Chicago. It was a beautiful spring day - the sun was shining - temperature was probably in the mid-50's - positively balmy - it was about 6pm ET.

There is a large wetlands (what we used to call a swamp) between Covington and Amasa in the UP which is about the only place you have a chance to see a moose from the road. This is the third time I have seen a moose here at this location. This time I had a 6.0 megapixel camera instead of my old 1.3 megapixel with me - so I could get a little bit better shot. It was a clear day - low humidity and plenty of evening sun which helped as well. Advances in technology also allowed me to shoot some video with the digital camera.

In 1998, I was feeling a bit sorry for myself, our family had a legal issue set us back financially. This reversal of fortunate led me to decide to leave my teaching position and return to the more lucrative consulting business. I was a bit depressed about leaving the family and heading back to Chicago to consult. At that point I didn't really see a way back north any time soon. I felt like I was heading off to exile - and an exile not of my own making. The commute was a tough grind when I had done it a few years earlier and it was not something to which I was looking forward to resuming.

It was a Sunday night about 9pm ET (still plenty of sunshine) in June of 1998 just north of the wetlands near Tracy Creek when out of the woods comes a large animal forcing me to come to a complete stop. It was a moose cow followed by a calf. Needless to say that experience made my entire week. My recollections are still very clear after all these years (approaching a decade now). That was the first time I saw a moose in the UP.

Seeing one of these marvelous animals is a real exhilerating experience - made more so because the opportunities are so rare. The moose population in the UP is estimated around 400 animals.

spirit moose