Tracking

Today turned out to be a bright, sunny day so in the afternoon we decided to go for a walk and see if we could find evidence of the wolf and moose that we had seen yesterday. It had been relatively warm yesterday but was now several degrees below freezing so we really weren't sure what we would find.

First we found the distinct tracks of the moose where it had crossed the meadow in front of the cabin. Then out on the edge of the road we found wolf tracks. Big guy, at least 5 inches across on the fore paws. Most probably the wolf we had seen last year that Morningstar photographed, and the one we caught a quick glimpse of yesterday. We followed the mixed prints west along the backroad and eventually found where each had come out of the woods and finally gone their separate ways back into the woods.

Then we passed the spot in the road where a beaver and the road maintenance crew have been going head to head. Last fall the beaver dammed a culvert that runs under the backroad, creating a nice little lake that covered a good portion of the road. The road crew came along and cleared out the culvert. The beaver rebuilt his dam… water covered the road again. The road crew came back – put a metal grate across the culvert. Even better for the beaver. This continued until we left on a two-month road trip across the country, so we had no idea of what we would find today. Well, it looks like the beaver is winning the battle. He is on the other side of the road now and there is evidence of his recent work – fresh chips, and pointy stumps. In the spring when the snow melts, I’ll bet water will once again cover the road.

On the way back we decided to look in on our own beavers at the pond adjacent to the cabin. We didn’t see any activity, but we did discover more wolf tracks, crossing the ice near the beaver lodge and continuing into the woods directly behind our cabin. Now we have a better idea about what has been holding Yu-Ling's attention at the back window these last few nights.

... Bob Weimer

Moose Track

Wolf tracking Moose...