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Wildlife encounters

#1
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2/17/08 at 7:01pm
  • Joined: November 2003
  • Location: Boulder County & Winter Park
  • Post Count: 1,246
A colleague had an interesting encounter this week.

Has anyone here ever been teaching a lesson when suddenly a large adult moose trots out of the woods and decides to join your class? What would you do? The moose didn't attack anyone but a few people were startled resulting in some injuries.

I teach snowboarding and pegger ski biking at Winter Park Resort.  
What's pegger ski biking?  Glad you asked!
Ski biking at Winter Park on a powder day...ahhhh.
"What do you say we guys go down to the beach, and shoot some clams?" ...Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana

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#2
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2/17/08 at 8:11pm
  • Joined: October 2004
  • Location: Ontario, Canada
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A moose is one of the animals I would least like to tangle with, along with bears. I would suggest quietly leaving the area.
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#3
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2/17/08 at 8:32pm
  • Joined: November 2003
  • Location: Boulder County & Winter Park
  • Post Count: 1,246
The instructor would have liked to have taken his board and left but there were a few kids with broken arms and the rest of the class, it wasn't an option. The moose was chased off the mountain. I wouldn't want to tangle with a 1300 lb moose either.

I teach snowboarding and pegger ski biking at Winter Park Resort.  
What's pegger ski biking?  Glad you asked!
Ski biking at Winter Park on a powder day...ahhhh.
"What do you say we guys go down to the beach, and shoot some clams?" ...Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana

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#4
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2/17/08 at 8:43pm
  • Joined: October 2004
  • Location: Ontario, Canada
  • Post Count: 10,664
Must have been really startling to break arms :.
I meant for everybody to quietly leave the area. As to chasing a moose out of the area, I guess it depends on the season. I'm not sure I would try it in the fall.
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#5
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2/17/08 at 9:08pm
  • Joined: January 2008
  • Post Count: 210

telluride

There have been lynx family sitings on the slopes of Telluride (last year a few times I think). Personally I think it would be really cool to see. The moose would be scary depending on the circumstances but as long as it wasn't too close of an encounter and the moose didn't get startled I would enjoy that too.
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#6
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2/19/08 at 11:29am
  • Joined: February 2004
  • Location: kalamazoo, MI
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Was the moose up hill from the class? If so, he's responsable for the injuries and should be sued.

Seriously, cool experience right up until the injuries. Sounds like great stories to be told, injured or not.
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#7
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2/19/08 at 12:45pm
  • Joined: November 2003
  • Location: Boulder County & Winter Park
  • Post Count: 1,246
I believe that the moose was uphill from the class. He left via Turnpike all the way down the hill to the train tracks and into the woods.

Sam had to write up the accident report and diagram where the moose came from, where he went to, where the class was, where the kids were located that got injured. Those kids are going to have an interesting story when they tell their friends how they broke their arm.

On another note, Willie the Moose is our official ski school mascot.


Interesting that the moose wanted to learn to snowboard and not ski.:

I teach snowboarding and pegger ski biking at Winter Park Resort.  
What's pegger ski biking?  Glad you asked!
Ski biking at Winter Park on a powder day...ahhhh.
"What do you say we guys go down to the beach, and shoot some clams?" ...Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana

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#8
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2/19/08 at 1:47pm
  • Joined: January 2005
  • Location: Denver
  • Post Count: 803
Hmmm, a Moose at Winterpark? I've never seen one there. Though I don't hang out at that resort as much these days. Never seen one on Berthoud either. Did you see the story about the Moose at Steamboat? First a coyote and now a moose. I tell you it's a wildlife uprising against the snow community...
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#9
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2/19/08 at 2:14pm
  • Joined: November 2003
  • Location: Boulder County & Winter Park
  • Post Count: 1,246
I didn't see the one about a moose at Steamboat. When was that?

The moose visit to WP was on Thursday. I got the first hand account Sat. night from the instructor. Another instructor saw it down at the base and go into the woods.

There was a moose that hung out at the Safeway in Fraser last season. Maybe the same moose?

I teach snowboarding and pegger ski biking at Winter Park Resort.  
What's pegger ski biking?  Glad you asked!
Ski biking at Winter Park on a powder day...ahhhh.
"What do you say we guys go down to the beach, and shoot some clams?" ...Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana

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#10
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2/19/08 at 2:17pm
  • Joined: January 2005
  • Location: Denver
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http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...21/detail.html

The moose had to be put down...
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#11
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2/19/08 at 2:26pm
  • Joined: November 2003
  • Location: Boulder County & Winter Park
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Poor moose. Sounds like it was in pain.

I teach snowboarding and pegger ski biking at Winter Park Resort.  
What's pegger ski biking?  Glad you asked!
Ski biking at Winter Park on a powder day...ahhhh.
"What do you say we guys go down to the beach, and shoot some clams?" ...Det. Sgt. Nick Yemana

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#12
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2/20/08 at 2:32pm
  • Joined: June 2005
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That's sad. We "put down" moose who intrude on what we consider our territory, never mind they were there first, and then name the holiday housing developments after them.

Skiing Vasquez Cirque a few years ago, in the runout section, didn't see the cougar but it's tracks crossed the ski path following bunny tracks into the woods. They were very fresh. Made us sure not to fall!
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