If I Were Going...: Moosecapades 2021

Moosecapade is about scenery and wildlife

Earlier this year, I posted about an annual activity for Caty and me (and often Scott).

We call it Moosecapade.

An annual trip to see Shiras Moose in Rocky Mountain National Park

It is a trip to the West Side of Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) to see Moose – specifically baby Moose.

Our springtime goal

During the late spring, Moose cows and their calves come into the grassy meadows to graze and it is not unusual to see up to 50 individual Moose in one weekend.

A Moose gathering

Yes, there are Moose in other places, increasingly on the East Side of RMNP and in other places such as Brainard Lake, Maroon Bells, Cameron Pass and State Forest State Park. There was one in Colorado Springs a few days ago, but that is rare.

Two Moose in South Park

But, no area is as reliable and prolific as the West Side of RMNP in the late spring/early summer.

We always enjoy seeing bulls

And, yes, we go to the Park other times to view Moose. We usually have a modified Moosecapade in the fall to see big boys with antlers.

We look for bulls in the fall when antlers are bigger than this

But the May/June Moosecapade is the biggie.

New calves are the prize!

Planning takes several things into consideration:

Where can we stay: camp or cabin?

See the Moose in our campsite to the left?

Is Trail Ridge Road Open? It usually opens around Memorial Day, but spring snows can either keep it closed longer or cause it to re-close temporarily.

That snow fell while we were there in June, temporarily closing Trail Ridge Road

What will the weather be when we want to go?

It's hard to photograph when it rains, but you often see more Moose

First Time Back
This year, spring Moosecapade was a bigger deal because it would be the first time we had been back to the West Side after last year’s East Troublesome Fire.

And, it was devastating ...

The aftermath of the fire

East Troublesome Fire

This explanation comes from Colorado Encyclopedia (edited for length):

One of the most destructive wildfires in Colorado history, the East Troublesome Fire began on October 14, 2020, in the central Rockies east of Troublesome Creek in Grand County. A week later, high winds whipped the fire into a 100,000-acre inferno racing northeast through Grand Lake and into RMNP.

Photo: 9News

By the time snows and colder temperatures halted the fire in late October, it had killed two people, destroyed more than 400 houses and structures, and burned 193,812 acres, making it the second-largest fire in state history.

Burn area

The fire is believed to be human-caused but remains under investigation. Parts of RMNP remained closed through the week of Thanksgiving 2020.

The East Troublesome Fire was the third record-breaking fire of 2020, with all three blazes surpassing 130,000 acres.

Photo: Colorado Sun

Colorado's 2020 fire season got off to a late start, but fires worsened as a hot, dry summer turned to a dry, warm fall. Fires that had burned for weeks were fully contained by September. In October, the Cameron Peak Fire west of Fort Collins became the largest blaze in state history and Colorado's first wildfire to surpass 200,000 acres.

In the fall the entire state was still in a moderate drought, but the drought in the central Rockies became extreme because of higher-than-normal daytime temperatures, strong winds and low humidity.

Photo: OutThereColorado

High winds on the evening of October 21 sent the 25,000-acre East Troublesome Fire racing northeast at a rate of 6,000 acres per hour. By dawn, it had grown to 125,000 acres, burning through parts of Grand Lake and into RMNP, leaving dozens of charred houses and other buildings in its wake.

The damage is significant; the fence is new

The entire communities of Grand Lake and Granby were evacuated, along with hundreds of other residents from the surrounding area.

The Granby evacuation; Photo: Colorado Sun

Some 300 firefighting personnel were battling the blaze, but they had managed only 5 percent containment. Crew leaders reported that weather, terrain and beetle-kill contributed to biggest fire blow-up recorded in the modern fire history of Colorado.

Photo: Ski-Hi News

On the afternoon of October 22, the fire crossed the Continental Divide, burning another 50,000 acres and prompting mandatory evacuation for the entire town of Estes Park, displacing some 6,500 people.

On October 24, authorities recovered the bodies of Lyle and Marilyn Hileman, a couple in their 80s who had stayed in their home near Grand Lake.

Photo: Summit Daily

Containment slowly progressed as snow started falling in the burned area in November.

By November 19, the East Troublesome Fire was 72 percent contained.

Although it was still not extinguished by Thanksgiving, the fire no longer threatened communities.

Before the 21st Century, Colorado had not seen a fire grow beyond 100,000 acres. Since 2000, however, there have been six – and three of them occurred in 2020.

Accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere from human fossil fuel consumption over the past two centuries has resulted in higher average temperatures that are accelerating a range of natural cycles.

The fire destroyed huge areas

The East Troublesome Fire was a product of this climate shift and reflects a new era of fire danger in Colorado.

As summers and droughts last longer and winter snow melts off earlier, bigger, later fires at higher altitudes are more likely to occur.

We watched in horror as it burned, fearing for the environment, the wildlife and the beautiful communities in the area. We did not know for sure until we visited in 2021 just how much was destroyed.

Back in 2015, Caty, Scott and I spent the Labor Day weekend in a beautiful little cabin in the Sun Valley community of Grand Lake.

We loved the Little Woolly "Lodge"

It had been our intention to return there every year and stay in the same cabin. But, it was sold in the ensuing year and no longer available for rent.

You can see why someone would want this to themselves

Still, in the ensuing years, we visited Grand Lake several times every year, sometimes camping and sometimes staying in other cabins. We always drive through Sun Valley because it is an excellent place to see Moose, often having more male Moose than the Park.

A couple of bulls by the cool, green lakeside

The light area is private land

Sun Valley is a small area that juts into RMNP just across from the Kawuneeche Visitor Center near the West Entrance of the Park.

Right near the entrance, there is a large resort and campground and RMNP staff quarters and maintenance facilities. Those areas were spared from the blaze.

Further down the road was the Sun Valley community, which was filled with gorgeous homes ranging in size from small cabins to huge luxury retreats.

One of the small cabins

Some had year-round residents; many were vacation homes. Most of the houses either sat on the shore of a small lake or had a view of the lake. Several had fields, barns and horses.

The lake was surrounded by cabins and homes

When we stayed a Little Woolly, the cabin came with a paddleboat and a dinghy that were great for spotting Moose.

That was a fun weekend

Now

So, on our first trip back for our 2021 Moosecapade in late May, we were heartbroken.

Almost everything – houses and trees – was gone.

Where Little Woolly once stood

A few homes escaped, but most were reduced to rubble and, by the time we made it over, had been cleared and chipped. Piles of sawdust and twisted metal were all that remained of what was once a lovely neighborhood.

All that remains

In some cases, new houses are already under construction.

While I am sure homeowners whose homes survived were relieved, they must be heartbroken, too. They no longer have a view; just bare ground and burned trees as far as the eye can see.

There is some foliage around the lake, but much of it will probably die next year

Plus, now they have other issues to deal with; we saw one homeowner building a massive wall out of logs and concrete highway barriers to protect his home from potential landslides because the hill he faces no longer has anything to hold the soil in place.

Heavy rains could bring all this down

Even with the destruction, we did see a couple of Moose in the neighborhood.

Sun Valley Moose

That was good news that was magnified later.

RMNP

We knew that there was damage in RMNP and we were both horrified and relieved.

One of our favorite Moose-watching spots

The damage near the West Entrance is significant. The Kawuneeche Visitor Center survived with only soot stain to show, but the small office by the entrance kiosks was destroyed, as was the restroom in the Harbison Picnic Area.

Melted glass by the entrance kiosk; Photo: Caty Stevens

Although the covered picnic tables we not damaged, the parking area for Harbison is closed. That's a shame because we often stop there and we use it as a turn-around as we hunt Moose.

The Green Mountain/Onahu area is completely destroyed and, from the looks of it, it will be decades before vegetation returns. This is where the fire burned the most severely in the Park, destroying everything down to the roots.

Green Mountain is no longer green

The fire magnified the high winds experienced on October 21 and 22, creating gusts up to 120 mph and creating a lay-down, where burning trees were flattened. You can easily see the direction the wind was blowing.

Evidence of a fierce heat-driven wind

Interestingly, we spoke with a Ranger who told us that the survival of the Visitor Center was pure luck (and probably some fire mitigation work before the fire). There were no firefighters fighting the blaze on the two worst days because it was simply too dangerous. Park staff was evacuated and had to wait with firefighters until the winds died down enough to be safe to go in.

Plants are coming back in some areas, but not in others

I never heard if there was an estimate of wildlife deaths. But, there must have been some.

I don't know what happened here

Now, with no vegetation, the land is extremely delicate. While we were there, we witnessed multiple dust devils that stirred up the loose dirt.

Dust devil underway

No doubt, mudslides and falling trees will continue to plague the area. As a result, all the Onahu/Green Mountain trails are closed and probably will be for a long time. Plus, visitors are not allowed to stop cars in the burn areas, although we have for short periods to photograph wildlife.

Moose in burn area

I said we were horrified and relieved.

So, why were we relieved? Two things.

First, the fire damage stops after a couple of miles in the Park and the rest of the landscape is unscathed.

Beaver Ponds looks like it always had

Second, the Moose did not flee.

A Moose in a lightly burned area

Burned willows and green grass

In fact, the fresh, ultra-green grass that cropped up in the burn areas in May seemed to attract a bumper crop of Moose.

One of the weekends we went, we broke our Moosecapade record of 76. We had 77 sightings.

And, we had been afraid there would be no Moose!

Now, as the seasons progress and the grass is depleted, this may not hold because the willows are completely gone, as are most of the trees.

Willows are a primary food source for Moose; this year they are just burned twigs

I also don't know what will happen if drought returns. This spring has been quite wet.

The Colorado River was running high

Two Moosecapades

We went to RMNP twice for Moosecapade.

We went once in May where we seemed to be just a bit ahead of the baby boom with only one very fleeting calf sighting, but we did see more bulls than we usually see in RMNP ...

Pretty good antlers for May

While there were not a lot of calves, we did witness some pretty interesting Moose behavior, like this female who entertained us with a dance ...

We don't know what inspired the agitation

... or these two who admired their own reflections ...

A wet spring made for some great photoscapes

... or this one that was still holding on to some of her winter coat ...

A pretty cow

Plus, we saw some old friends ...

The collars help us keep track

We returned in June where we had good luck with Moose calves …

Awwww....

And, we didn’t do too badly with baby Elk, either …

Elk Calf

In fact, we felt very fortunate on the Elk front ...

Elk calf

While baby Moose can be seen any time of day because they are always within a few feet of their mothers ...

An attentive mom

... we very rarely see Elk calves until dusk. Their Moms hide them in the woods with a few female Elk watching over them, forming nurseries ...

Elk cows with their offspring

... then, they come out to graze and nurse in the early evening ...

This pair was right by the road

Observations

During Moosecapade, we noticed a couple of things.

Because the main meal was short grass, we got to see many more Moose employing the technique of kneeling to eat. I am sure it’s a lot easier on the neck. But it looks funny …

Early spring eating techniques

Although Moose are not herd animals, the more open vistas created by the destruction of trees combined with the scarcity of food seemed to cause adult and yearling Moose to congregate in larger groups in the burn area.

Six Moose in one area

The mamas and babies seemed to have moved back up valley. In the past, we tended to see more in down the dirt road that leads to the river and National Forest access, this time we saw more in the Beaver Ponds area.

Cow and calf at Beaver Ponds

Moose seemed to be reasonably OK with the fire damage; we even saw some in the severely damaged area.

A bull navigating a burned area (we briefly stopped, but we didn't get out of the car)

Of course, as the season progresses and the grass is depleted or dried out, the Moose may have to move on to -- literally -- greener pastures.

Who knows where this guy will be in the fall

We noticed that birds and animals haven't abandoned the Park. This year, we saw our first in-the-Park Muskrat ...

At first, we thought this Muskrat was a Beaver -- in Beaver Pond!

Our first in-the-Park Ring-necked Ducks ...

Another first sighting for RMNP

An American Three-toed Woodpecker ...

A nice find

Lincoln's Sparrows ...

Perching on a tree by the pond

Robins ...

King of the World!

A few Red-tailed Hawks ...

In recent years, we have seen more and more Hawks in the Park

A Townsend's Solitaire ...

The burn area provides an interesting backdrop

Tree Sparrows ...

Singing from a high branch

Lots of Wilson's Warblers ...

We saw the most Wilson's Warblers we had ever seen in RMNP

Nesting Northern Flickers ...

Coming out of the nest

Least Chipmunks ...

We saw this one while photographing some Moose

Yellow-rumped Warblers ...

Fluffed up

And, even, a Coyote ...

I hadn't seen a Coyote at RMNP for years

Even after the fire, the Park is still beautiful ...

Even burned, its breath-taking

... still has great wildlife ...

Female Elk

... and is still worth visiting ...

I mean, why wouldn't you?

Really Great Opportunities

While we were on our second Moosecapade, we had two great opportunities to photograph Moose calves in the Beaver Ponds/Beaver Creek area.

Calf in the pond

One evening, the baby climbed down the bank ...

A curious youngster

... and explored the shallow water under Mom's watchful eye ...

Early evening exploration

The next afternoon, we watched a baby in the same pond, but with better light ...

Walking through the pond

It ate ...

Munching on some grass

It drank ...

Thirsty baby

It splashed ...

Kicking up some spray

And, it posed for the photographers ...

Baby Moose celebrity

... for probably an hour or so ...

What a cutie!

The final morning, we had another opportunity for some up-close-and-personal photography in really great light ...

Mom and baby step into the light

This baby was exceptionally rambunctious ...

Full of energy

Running ...

Running out into the open

Playing ...

Fun to watch!

And, making some funny faces ...

That's a look!

Plus, I got some great shots of the smallest baby of the weekend very early in the morning when Mama and Baby crossed the road right in front of us ...

Early morning sighting of a cow and her newborn

Although this was a newborn, it could still move pretty quickly on those long, long legs ...

Climbing up the hillside

After, of course, it got a good look at us ...

Look at those legs!

Accommodations

As I mentioned, we sometimes camp and sometimes stay in cabins when we visit. But, for the past two years we have not been able to camp on the West Side.

The first-come-first-served Timber Creek campground was closed during the severe portion of the COVID pandemic and now it is closed because it is being used to “house” trail maintenance crews. More than 30 staff accommodations were destroyed by the East Troublesome Creek Fire – including some historic cabins along the river – so lots of Park personnel now have to camp.

Timber Creek campground from Trail Ridge Road (our trailer is there)

Construction is already underway to rebuild some of the staff quarters and some escaped damage.

Park Entrance

If you plan to visit RMNP, check before you go to see what the entrance requirements are.

During the height of the COVID epidemic, the Park implemented a “timed entry” system between key hours. Then, for the summer, they modified it slightly.

Graphic: NPS

What it means is that between the affected hours (right now, it is 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.), you must have reservations to enter the Park. Once you enter, you can come and go with the reservations. You can also enter before or after the reservation hours, but if you leave, you would not be able to get back in until after the reservation period.

Most of the Park requires reservations between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.

And, to go to Bear Lake and the Glacier Gorge Area on the East Side, you need a specific reservation for that area between 5:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Reservations will not be needed after Oct. 11 and will most likely be reinstituted next summer.

You'll need extra reservations to visit Dream Lake

The reservations are made on recreation.gov a month in advance and cost $2.00 per vehicle (you also need a pass or to pay a fee to enter).

Some complain, but it seems a small price to play

To accommodate shorter-term planning, 25 percent of permits are held and available for purchase the day prior at 5 p.m. through recreation.gov.

Many people have complained about how this dampens spontaneity, but, it hasn’t caused us a problem. Just, show up before 9:00 a.m. if you don’t have a reservation.

Early bird gets the good photos, anyway

We stay away from Bear Lake in summer because it’s just too crazy anyway.

Where Else?

There are lots of lovely places near RMNP. So, we usually have additional stops when we go there, especially if we drive the long way around to the West Side through Poudre Canyon.

Our route; Route 14 goes through Poudre Canyon

There's some pretty -- and different -- scenery outside of Granby, which is where you make the turn to go north toward Poudre Canyon.

A different-looking landscape

And, wildlife doesn't stop at the Park boundary.

A Brewer's Blackbird outside of Granby

If we travel the the West Side via Poudre Canyon, we like to stop at Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge. In the past, we have driven the Wildlife Loop. This time we visited Moose-Goose Nature Trail boardwalk. We didn't see Moose or Goose, but the scenery was pretty ...