Deer! No, Elk - Lots of Elk!

Watching out for animals on our drive back and forth from home is a requirement. There is no question in my mind that the wildlife outnumber the people; we are definitely in their territory and not the other way around. With deer being the most frequently sighted along the road, I was not surprised when I heard:

Deer!

shouted from the passenger seat last evening. But it was quickly followed by:

No, Elk - lots of Elk!

It's quite interesting watching the wildlife change with the seasons. During the winter all of the animals shift down in elevation; the deer which would normally hang out at our house (in our garden) migrate down the mountain towards the river, in order to find some ground not covered in snow. So the elk, of course, move down into our area.

While we've seen elk before, in the past they have been off in the distance, or covered by the dark of night; this time they were right in front of our car, crossing the road. Let me tell you: they are some big animals, at somewhere between 500-700 pounds. (For a reminder of what they can do, see our Mending Fences post.)

Anyway, back to the story. As we approached the crossing herd, the animals that had already crossed the road quickly continued into the woods, and the ones that hadn't yet crossed TURNED AROUND and went back into the woods. And that's the moment that I knew elk were significantly smarter than deer.

Now that the warm weather is returning, that may be our last elk sighting as they move back up Mt Adams to the colder weather. One of these days we'll have our camera with us and at the ready when we spot them. Maybe next year.

- Mike (& Corinne)