Moose swims to Pine Island
 

At about 9AM Monday a moose walked past our neighbors window while they were having breakfast. It entered the water and swam from Bear Island to Pine Island.

Swimming Moose
 

We've always found it surprising that an animal built like a moose can be such a good swimmer! But they are very good. We have seen moose swimming from Sleepers Island to the mainland near Smalls Cove in West Alton on several occasions. It's interesting to see just the head moving across the water, and then as soon as their hooves hit the bottom they walk toward shore and come up out of the water as the lake bottom slopes up to the shoreline.

Swimming Moose
 

Always wanted to see one! I'm dont know what I would do if I saw one swimming, but i'll have my camera ready! :)

We caught sight of a moose swimming from Rattlesnake to Wolfeboro Neck early one morning last year. You do a double take when you see the head in the water. Looks like a floating log. Unfortunately my pictures didn't come out well. We did not want to scare her by getting too close. Hope we get lucky and see another this year.

Seeing moose -- missing moose
 

We'll see a moose about every third season.

We heard a loud, shuffling "walk" through the woods, and one passed below our porch, giving us an "aerial view" of one very large moose-critter with antlers. Our guest jogged off after it, camera in hand. Probably a bad idea -- no pictures, anyway.

Another season, a moose swam up to our beach -- such as it is -- and "walked" up our driveway. It had been pursued by a boater, who had sighted it and raced back for a camera.

A stressed, swimming, moose is an even faster swimmer, with its head, shoulders and rump above the water. Prior to the chase, from 3000 feet away, it appeared like a cruising loon with its wings raised. (Just the moose's head/ears above water, rubber necking, as though "It looks a bit more lush over there -- no, over there -- well, maybe over there...maybe Rattlesnake Island is better...well, maybe...ooooo, Cow Island!")

Moose are invisible at night. A guest swerved his VW to miss a moose, and described the encounter as "First my headlights appeared to go out -- then the headlights of an oncoming car outlined the tips of the moose's fur -- back and belly". He swerved in the opposite direction as the moose was traveling. Very smart. A 17-year-old motorist was killed near here -- and his passenger critical from a moose-strike -- as of this past week. Watch for the moose-crossing signs.

Is is possible to add a "Critter Forum"? We miss past reports of bats, loons, carpenter ants, friendly rodents, unwelcome rodents, garter snakes, mergansers, and dock spiders. (Well, maybe not the dock spiders -- there's been a bumper crop here this year).