animal sightings

[Barbarossa]

I have seen turkey vultures in New Ipswich, NH on the Wapack trail. They were in a formation of about a dozen. I also saw one perched in the woods behind my house in Westford, MA. As I edged closer, he edged away. He got tired of the game and flew off.

On my way to Moosilauke last October, I almost hit a black bear in downtown N Woodstock. It threaded right between two oncoming cars.

I have yet to see a moose, but I have spotted plenty of sign. A couple weeks ago I was on a ridge where it seemed I had burgled a moose colony. There were a couple spots where an animal had lay down for quite a while.

Why don't we see more animals? We may think we are quiet while they think we sound like a freight train.

A leaf fell in the forest. The hawk saw it, the bear smelled it, the deer herd it.

 

[arghman]

Last summer I was at Little Lyford Pond (this is in the middle of the North Woods about 20 miles east of Moosehead Lake) doing trailwork;there are two ponds there & they have canoes at both. Some of us went canoeing around sunset & we saw 4 beavers (separately) & either one or two moose, I forget. The moose were rather skittish; they can't see well but they know you're there and as soon as you get too close they run away. The beavers were either braver or stupid or both -- we got about 5 feet away from one of them until it finally went WHAP! SPLOOSH! and slapped its tail onto the water & dived. People say that's supposed to warn the other beavers of danger but I wonder if it's just to help them get more leverage & dive more quickly.

The moose are more easily seen at remote locations, I've only seen one in WMNF and it was along the Kanc in that flat swampy part in the middle.

Only animals that don't seem to run/fly away from people are gray jays (the thieving bastards!)

 

[sierra]

half dozen bears on the Whites, many deer, grouse and such, but my all time best sighting was a mountain Lion while soloing in the Yosemite backcountry on my way to climb MT. Conness. My first impression was how big it was, second impression was I hoped I looked unappealing as he gazed at me, by far the most beautifull animal Ive ever seen.
P.S. I guess I didnt look to appealing he left me fairly quickly.

 

[forestgnome]

forestnome's list is a good one and if you've ever had the good fortune to see a bear suckling her cubs count yourself very lucky ... on two counts, one seeing such a cuddly sight and two, not being attacked by a defensive Mom. 10 feet!? wow. I saw mine from about 50 feet higher up on Webster cliff.

Stan, I like your avatar, nice shot. I definately feel lucky, on both counts that you mention. First I found mama sleeping under a huge White Pine. She awoke and gave me a false charge and huffed and popped. I backed up immediately, then she let let me stay about 20 feet away. She looked up the tree, tipping me off to three cubs. I took a few shots through the branches and just hung out for a while. Then she made some cool sounds and down came the cubs. Sensing a great eye-level shot at a cub, I eased forward. She gave me another "back off, pal" with a few more huffs and popps, so I stopped at about 15 feet away, then she sat back down. The cubs came down, checking me out as they got closer to the ground. I nailed one nice shot of one cub, but I flubbed a shot of two cubs thanks to the autofocus, which focused on a branch between them. DOAH! I thought the whole family would leave as soon as the cubs hit the ground, but instead mama leaned back against the tree and the cubs crawled up and started nursing. I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. It was very special. I had seven frames left. She was looking me in the eye as I eased a bit closer so there would be no brush btween us, knowing this was once-in-a-lifetime. Scary, but I did capture some pictures. Then I watched for another few minutes, thanked mama, and slowly left the scene.
You can see the pictures at WebShots; I can't find my instructions on how to link it. Just do a search for Forestnome.

 

[weatherman]

spring is here?

WOW is all I can say to the last few posts. Nothing as interesting on my list (typically I hike with noisy kids, or Tramper Al who sees 'em first before they run away) but this morning in Central MA I saw the first redwing blackbird, the first red-bellied woodpecker, and the first turkey vulture of the year.
Bring on more snow-I'm not done playing yet.

Weatherman

 

[adkpooh]

an animal sighting I'd rather forget.....

I had an experience heading out towards Siamese Ponds....this was 1st or 2nd backpacking trip...maybe 13 yrs ago. I had stopped in the middle of a trail to adminster some eye wash to get a bug out of my eye. As my boyfriend & I we were standing there- you could hear to my right what sounded like the largest, heaviest creature tearing thru the thick, shoulder-high brush...it was headed straight for us....Dave spun around to face it - I grabbed his elbows- pinning them behind his backpack. Having a little difficulty seeing at the time, I managed to shake him violently in the direction of the sound- all the while screaming "What is it???? What is it???". Low and behold.....a rabbit tore out of the brush and ran across the trail...right between our feet. It seems that the little hill we were standing on was formed by centuries of fallen pine needles. This made the sound of the rabbits' rather large, furry, hind feet thumping against the ground- grossly exaggerated.
Dave was just a little upset that if it had it actually been a bear- he would have been helpless to do anything- primarily because I had his arms pinned behind his back. After a good scolding and my promising to never do that again, we resumed the attempt to wash out my eye.
To my horror, from the opposite side of the trail was an even greater crash thru the brush - heading straight for us! Not only one creature...but this time two!!! Surely, it must be that rabbit...being chased by a black bear! Once again, I firmly shook my darling Dave by the elbows, fiercely in the direction of the sound...and continued to scream "What is it???". You can imagine how embarrased I was to (barely) see that same rabbit dart across the trail - followed by.....an even smaller rabbit. I don't think Dave said another word to me until campfire that evening.
He now refers to all trail rabbits as "northeastern kamakazee attack rabbits".
I will say that further up that same trail we did see the biggest buck I have ever personally laid eyes on.

 

[forestgnome]

adkpooh, a great story! Women have a much stronger "survival gland", and that's a good thing. My wife ridiculed me quite a bit for what I did, but she understands how much I love the forest and all of her inhabitants.
Animals in dry brush sound much bigger than they are. As Mattl, others and I will attest, the biggest animal threat out there is probably a frustrated bull moose during the rut. We have both been bluff-charged. I believe there are a few lions and wolves around, but I don't fear them. I would love to see one.
You'll be fine out there, just allow Dave use of his arms.

 

[brianW]

Catamount? I thought Harpoon bought them... Oh you mean the feline type. Button Wood Park (zoo) in Nwe Bewdford, MA has a nice exibit of a catamount. You can get within 10 ft of it as it walks about. If you live in the area you should check it out, mostly animals found in New England.

I am still hoping to see a bear, bobcat, pine marten, and if they are really around catamount and wolves.

Most of the animals I have spotted are in unexpected places. For example I used to live near a pond located close to the center of Winchendon, MA. I spotted on a regular basis beaver, muskrat, mink and river otter in it and fox and racoons around it. A few months after I moved a moose was spotted in it.

When I am out hiking I spot signs of animals (tracks and scat) but seldom do I see them. From my porch though I have seen deer, coyote, fox and moose One night I heard brush crashing next morning bear tracks in the area. We did loose one bird feeder last spring (must remeber to remove in next few weeks) and my wife saw a bear near the chicken coop.

 

[Artex]

How hard are you looking?

I'm a fast hiker (or pretend to be), so I bet I miss out on lots of great wildlife sightings, and I'm sure it's the same for many others. I've noticed that most of the time, I'm only looking straight ahead at the trail in front of me, and not much to the sides. I bet if anyone took the time to be more observant of their surroundings, they'd see a lot more than they might expect. Having said that, I've still managed to see moose, foxes, snowshoe hares, deer, and lots of other cool wildllife in NH and Maine. Still no bear though (at least not on the trail).

 

[professor]

Then, of course, there are the wild turkeys. I have a flock of them living in the woods near my house. I see them regulary. One day last summer, as I walked down my heavily wooded driveway to fetch the morning newspaper, I turned the corner out onto the road and found myself standing in the midst of about 20 wild turkeys. They were very cool about the whole thing - I suspect that they were in need of that first cup of coffee just as much as I was. They just waddled away, seeming somewhat embarrassed by the situation. If you do start them, however, they kind of look like flying bowling balls!

 

[Mr. X]

I'm still looking for those "wood devils".

 

[KayakDan]

I'm amazed at the folks who frequent the Whites and never see a moose. Must be incredibly bad luck. I've seen(and almost run into) so many moose that I drive like an old lady at night anyplace past Lincoln.
Only one black bear,but were only in the Whites in winter.
My wife did spot a "mountain chicken" though...it was a grouse. Hey,she's from Ohio so...

My most memorable animal encounter was a really close up visit from a sea lion while kayaking in Alaska. It gets a little tense when you figure this 1000lb visitor might just haul out on your kayak-as they have been know to do. We had a short conversation,and he left.Right under my kayak

Also had an owl visit our backcountry campsite one cold winter night about 4AM. Holy crap! I thought there was a train coming through the woods!

 

[proszach]

No moose on trail in NH for me, but seen them on the road some. At Chimney Pond in BSP, we woke up to a moose and her calf (correct?) licking our pots and eating leaves by our lean-to. I've never seen a bear either, although we had a fun experience in the Adirondacks where a bear infiltrated our "bear-proof" hanging system. Note to self: hang food very far away from trees, as bears can climb like champs...

 

[Barbarossa]

this morning in Central MA I saw ... the first turkey vulture of the year.
Bring on more snow-I'm not done playing yet.

Weatherman

I just saw my first turkey vulture this afternoon. I was snowshoeing in the woods out back when I heard a raptor type scream. I stopped and looked up and caught a glimpse of it through the trees. I tried to catch up, but it covered a lot of sky pretty quickly.

 

[MattC]

I just saw my first turkey vulture this afternoon

Funny, it's all about where you live. Here in the New Paltz (NY) area there's so many turkey vultures around it's almost boring. It's not unusual to see as many as 30 while I'm walking home from work. I believe some actually live in some Norway Spruce right here in the village, and there are tons of 'em up on the nearby Shawangunk Ridge. I've seen them riding the updrafts only about 30 feet above me while up on a part of the ridge called Bonticou Crag. They are indeed kinda ugly up close, but they're quite beautiful when in flight.

Not too many moose around here though...

Matt

 

[SherpaKroto]

My list is pretty much identical to Tramper Al's. I did see a Bobcat many years ago crossing the ski trails at Wildcat while I was skiing. Last month we saw 4 deer, many grouse, and 2 pine martens in BSP.

My all time favorite sighting was on Moosilauke a few winters ago. I had a killer migraine, and only continued on so my climbing partners ahead woud not be concerned (I wanted to tell them I was turning around). At around 3900 feet, I was slumped over my poles, cooling my face with snow. Directly in front of me, no more than 5 feet away an ermine slowly crossed, stopped, looked up at me, cocked its head and then proceeded to go on its merry way. I had to look it up when I got home - I didn't know what it was

Weatherman, I feel your pain. I was hiking with Tramper when he saw the Moose high on the Pine Bend trail, and a ways behind him when he saw his bear on North Brother.

Al, what, no otters? How about Eagles?

 

[MattC]

Wow, Forestnome-I just looked at your webshots gallery. Those nursing bear shots are just incredible! You're very fortunate. The alpine meadow and northern lights photos aren't too shabby either.

So far my only bear sighting was on the Devil's Path on the way back from Hunter Mt. last September. It was kind of small, maybe a year old or so. It was up in a tree about fifty feet ahead of me and when it smelled and/or heard me, it shimmied down very quickly and took off into the forest. An hour earlier, I had decided not to try for Southwest Hunter (one of the Catskill 35) after hitting the main peak. If I had gone for SW, I wouldn't have seen the bear that day. Just something to think about.

Anyhow, the stories on this thread are downright inspiring. Thanks for sharing y'all.

Matt

 

[Barbarossa]

Funny, it's all about where you live. Here in the New Paltz (NY) area there's so many turkey vultures around it's almost boring. It's not unusual to see as many as 30 while I'm walking home from work. I believe some actually live in some Norway Spruce right here in the village
Matt

To clarify, it was the first of the season. I have seen 4 or 5 at once in the woods out back. The first time I saw a turkey vulture there was a formation of about a dozen or so. This was on the Wapack Trail on New Ipswich mountain.

Like SK, I had to look it up when I got home.

 

[Cold River Bob]

I saw this on another fourm, How would you like to see this on you front step?http://www.adkforum.com/showthread.php?t=2043

 

[Nighteagle]

Besides crapping your pants and praying, whats the best way to deal with an unfriendly lion where both you and the lion walk away ??