RMNP

We love to visit Rocky Mountain National Park in the fall. It is a great time to see some fall color and to view wildlife. It is rut season for the elk, and the bulls are busy rounding up the females. What an amazing experience to see the elk up close. The elk are also very vocal at this time of year. The bulls bugle and the females signal to their young to keep them close.

Every time we go to RMNP I diligently scan the meadows and forest for moose. Every time I have been disappointed to not see any. I have been told that there are moose in the park, but they are very shy. This year, we finally spotted moose, not one, but four! The first two we spotted because there were several cars pulled over. It was a mother and her young. We also spotted a bull moose. It was very exciting because I first saw his antlers as he was running through the willows. It was getting dark, so I wasn't quite sure what I was seeing at first. I asked Drew to pull off on a side road so we could get a closer look. As we came around a corner, there was a massive bull moose! Look at the size of those antlers!
It is hard to imagine their bulk until he is a stone's throw from your car. He was amazing! We also saw a female moose nearby and figured that the bull had probably been chasing after her. I did take some photos, but they did not turn out very well since it was dusk. The girls had a great day. They especially liked that Drew let them watch the moose out of the sun roof of the car.