The Quest: Finished!

On July 1, 2006 I set out to find and photograph a moose with a full rack. Little did I know that the quest would take more than 10 years to complete. My journey forced so many moose into hiding it is a wonder the species has survived.

Technically my quest ended a few days ago in Anchorage. At practically dark we spotted a bull moose with a huge rack. The photograph was out of focus, grainy and a poorly positioned shot. I decided not to count it and the quest continued.

Yesterday, after our 66 mile tour of Denali by bus ended, we had seen two bull moose with full racks. I photographed them but both were poorly positioned behind trees and thick brush. I decided the quest had to end with those photographs but I was not too happy with the shots. They just didn't represent my ideal photograph that came to mind back in 2006.

In Denali, you can only drive the first 15 miles of the 93 mile park road. To go any further, you must take a shuttle bus. When we returned to the Wilderness Access Center, we decided to get the car and drive the 15 miles. It was about 7:30 pm and it would be light until about 9, though the day was cloudy and rainy.

We drove out about 7 miles and found a bull and 2 cows in thick brush. Photographs weren't too good. After driving out to about mile 11, we decided to turn around. At about mile 9 we noticed a stopped car. You always check out a stopped car. Sure enough, a huge bull moose stood out in a field about 400' out. The antlers of the moose are white this time to year and are easy to recognize if you can see them. They are like a flashing sign that reads, "Moose here!"

This first shot is my prize standing out in the field. You can see those white antlers a mile away.

After a few minutes, he decided to walk toward the road. He is standing about 100 feet from me in this shot.

And then finally crossing the road. Jeff, another man who was standing there, and I agreed that the rack on this bull must have been about 60' wide. He is a massive creature, but an impressive creature made by God to declare His handiwork. And that, this moose does.

So with that the quest is completed. Several years ago Nan asked, "So what is next once your moose quest is complete?" I'll be starting blog soon that you can reach at polarbearquest.blogspot.com. Until then, you can rest knowing that the quest is complete and you won't have to hear me talking about it anymore...except to tell you about our trip, of course.

Thanks for reading and riding along.

By the way, I actually started this blog so that our parents could follow our journeys on vacations and other trips. They couldn't travel with us and the daily posts gave them a chance to ride along. Since then we've each lost our dads, we gained a daughter-in-law and a grandchild. We've been blessed, have seen so much of God's wonder creation, and been able to share it with others. Facebook came along and my posts became less frequent. In some ways I wish I had kept up this blog rather than using Facebook. Being able to go back and read the stories I wrote with the pictures is interesting, at least to me. Facebook doesn't give you the same ability.