As I documented on one of the other threads, as part of my upcoming trip I plan to spend a few hours hiking the Tony Knowles Trail in Anchorage.

Since I'll be solo and on foot during this excursion (my wife and I are planning a few hours of "divide and conquer" at that point in our trip - she'll drive around to Point Woronzof and meet me once I reach there), I could use some advice on how to handle a potential moose encounter. Objective of course is safety first, and hopefully a photographic opp'y while I'm at it.

Thanks!

 

The WDFW (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife?) has a pretty good web page with useful information for you on moose encounters.

See sections titled "People and Moose" and "In case of attack..."

When I was in Denali in 2006, our guides made it clear that if you piss off a moose, you run the risk of getting stomped to death.

Finally, remember that telephoto lenses are your best defense against unappealing wildlife encounters. Be close up and far away at the same time.

 

That's a good article, and I have also found others similar...thanks.

I'm still hoping someone around here has some experience on moose encounters specifically along the Knowles Trail as well.

 

I have hesitated to post a reply on this. I am an older woman who prefers to walk and hike alone in Alaska. My methods likely are out-of-date and not officially endorsed.

I suppose my methods work as I am still alive and reasonably well.

I have had a moose cross the trail in front of me with a lot of noise. They are not ballet dancers. Scared me, but I was not injured.

Moose are far from subtle. You don't even want to get between a mother moose and her calf or calves. She will kill to protect her off spring.

Do not plug your ears with an IPod. If you see a moose ahead of you on the trail stop and turn around very slowly and retreat. Moose do not see at all well. Their eyes are designed to find food. Anything else is 'noise' to them. They aren't too bright and make quick decisions. If you are at some distance and are still, they likely cannot tell you are there but can sniff you out.

Do not approach moose, try to feed them or fool around taking photos. Some tourists do!

Watch, look and listen. Moose won't sneak up on you.

Now I will stand aside for the young folks who are up-to-date to give their advice.

Have a good time!

 

That's great advice and fits with a couple of the documents I've found. Yes, I intend to heed well...and if I make any photo attempts, they will be from a distance with the ol' Zoom...fer sure.

Thanks!!

 

Young folks!

Your turn!

 

Heh.
I'm no moose expert but I run/walk into them all the time. Well I'm usually always aware of my surroundings, we walked within about 5 feet of a male moose about a week ago in a park in Anchorage. Didn't notice it until we were right next to it. It didn't attack us, or even care we were there, it was just munching away. A couple of days ago there was a female with her calf that was very interested (and was very jumpy) in anything that moved within sight. I'm glad I didn't run into her that close. There was another time that I was walking along and spotted a moose a little bit away, it stopped eating and glared in my direction. I don't like getting anywhere near those guys that stop eating.

Soooo, just based on my own experience, watch where you are going, try to keep some sort of tree/obstacle between you and the moose, and just keep your eyes open to avoid walking into one. If you happen to run into one close up, back a distance away, see if it cares about you, then try to get a picture. I'm not terribly worried of a moose charging at me randomly, there is probably a better chance of a pack of wolves doing that (which is funny to think about, but in reality that's probably true here )

On a side note, you don't even have to leave the airport to spot a moose. If your goal is to take a good picture, you should have plenty of opportunities. If you can't get a good one with one moose, there will be other chances.

 

Don't end up like this unfortunate person

 

I appreciate the additional info, thanks.

My goal is to get in a good hike along the Knowles Trail - any moose photos would only be a bonus.

 

The area around Point Woronzof and the "backside" area of the ANC airport is a great place to spot moose in the evening. She might have a better chance seeing moose than you will on the trail.

 

Or do this

 

Now that is dangerous.

 

I would echo much of the above info. Having grown up in Fairbanks, I encountered dozens of moose and never once had a problem. The one rule that most people seemed aware of (and took seriously) was to avoid a mother who has calves. This can be a bit tricky, since it's possible they won't be standing next to each other (although in my experience they often were). The best strategy is probably to not approach any moose, and to actively move away if you see calves. Other than that, I wouldn't be concerned if I encountered one on a trail--though their size can be daunting the first time you see one in person.

In general I'd say moose are pretty calm creatures that would just as soon leave you alone. And I'd be very surprised if one came after a person unprovoked. Our dogs would go after the moose whenever they wandered near our house, and the moose did not care for that --but nothing bad ever came of it.

 

having seen the result of a moose vs car encounter encounter in maine (no, not mine but one i drove by), i thought i'd out some humor as it could of been this moose