This One Wasn't a Stick

Sometimes the cameras catch the story.

Sometimes the story happens just outside the frame.

A recent camera check led me into an area with extensive evidence of winter moose activity. What began as a routine stop quickly turned into one of those days where every clue seemed to point toward another question.

The sign was everywhere.

The moose, however, was nowhere to be found.

At least not on camera.

The video below follows the trail through a surprisingly concentrated area of winter sign, an apparent bedding site, and one discovery that very nearly remained hidden beneath the forest floor.

Watch the video below, then scroll down for a few additional photos and field notes from the day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuIQBnpDquM

These are a few details that didn't make the final edit but are worth a closer look.

• Winter sign was concentrated in a surprisingly small area. Rather than a trail of scattered clues, this felt more like a place a moose had chosen to spend time.

  
  

• The forest wastes no time reclaiming evidence. Several of the photos below show bunchberry, bracken, needles, and duff steadily covering what was obvious only months before.

  
  

• Trail cameras don't tell the whole story. Sometimes the most interesting part of a camera check happens just outside the frame.

  
  

Additional Photos:

Even obvious clues don't stay obvious for long.

Just enough shape to make me stop. 

Nature was already filing this one away.

Once the needles and ferns were brushed aside, there was no mistaking it.

A few months earlier, this antler was exactly where it belonged. 

Thanks for following along.