Saturday night we camped in a grove of Aspen at 8,000 feet in the Boulder Park Campground on the Bighorn National Forest in Wyoming and were joined for dinner by five local residents.
It was just after we had sat down for our evening meal when our neighbor, Chad Courtright, a retired forester from California, alerted us to other new neighbors–five moose–three bulls, one cow and her calf. At first they were grazing about 50-yards from our site and we sat transfixed … until they began browsing their way closer and closer … after a young bull expressed interest in Jimmy’s burrito, we gave ground.
These were the first large wildlife we have encountered this close on this trip–humbling. We thought they would continue to slowly move down meadow. However, much to our amazement, they elected to bed down within a few feet of our backdoor for an hour to process their evening fare–we were honored.
Photos: Five moose feeding in Boulder Park Campgrond in Bighorn National Forest. (Julianne G. Crane)