For many years, this mountain lake was one of my favorite places to photograph moose.
The 2020 Cameron Peak wildfire destroyed this habitat and it hasn’t been the same since.
While I did manage to do some moose photography this past summer, it was probably the worst conditions I’ve seen since 2007.
There are a lot of moose fanatics in the Rocky Mountains, but I’ve found that a lot of people who don’t live near moose aren’t all that enthusiastic about them. I personally find them to be the most majestic and interesting large animal in North America, which is why I’ve been so attached to them for the past 20 years.
Photographers and folks east of the Mississippi are to a large extent, more interested in ducks and such. The most common thing I hear from the tone-deaf is “Bullwinkle” from the old cartoon series. When I hear someone refer to them as “Bullwinkle” I get the impression I’m listening to a “dingle-berry.” There are so many misconceptions about moose that I’ve pretty much turned my ears off to the nonsense. The worst part is when you hear public officials talking about them with absolutely no knowledge of what they are saying.
You either get it or you don’t. Fortunately, I’ve had pretty good luck with finding and photographing them, and those photographs do sell.